A Louisiana House committee took the first steps toward setting up a means to establish train or light rail services in regions of the state, the New Orelans Times Picayune reports. The Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works gave unanimous support to House Bill 1410 by Rep. Michael Jackson, I-Baton Rouge, a longtime proponent of rail and mass transit. The bill now heads to the House floor for debate.

Steady growth across the Triangle near Raleigh, N.C., will make traffic worse over the next decade, and thousands of students and workers will be eager to park the car and catch a train, the News & Observer reports. That's the forecast in a new report on demand for commuter trains that would run every 40 minutes during the morning and afternoon rush hours. Now the area will have to see whether taxpayers, elected leaders and commuters buy into the idea.

Société de transport de Montréal (STM) informed clients that Côte-Sainte-Catherine métro station must be closed temporarily so it may carry out major repairs. Access to the station will remain closed to clients at all times from May 17 to August 22 inclusively.

Signaling its most forceful objection yet - and perhaps protracted court battles - Union Pacific has notified the California high-speed rail authority that it will fight the state's newest plans to run bullet trains from the South Bay to the Central Valley, including along Monterey Highway in San Jose, the Mercury News reports.

VIA Rail Canada said that as of May 11, travel times on the Montréal-Ottawa route will improve with the introduction of new schedules. Trip times will be shortened by as much as 15 minutes, while arrival and departure times for certain trains will be changed to better suit customer needs.

MTA Long Island Rail Road customers can now obtain train fare information via cell phone text message from CooCoo, the Long Island-based text engine company that has been providing train schedules and service updates via cell phone at no extra cost beyond the phone company's standard texting fee.

Sound Transit contractors will complete final installation of light rail track switch heaters May 14-16 on the main tracks near the Link light rail Operations and Maintenance Facility. Link trains will be delayed starting Friday, May 14th at 10 p.m. through the start of service Monday morning at 5 a.m.

The Jo-Carroll Depot Local Redevelopment Authority, LRA, is accelerating plans for development and jobs at Savanna Depot Park after the federal government agreed to expedite the property transfers needed for the proposed railcar mall and other development.

J.L. Patterson & Associates, Inc., a transportation-engineering firm providing engineering design, construction management and staff augmentation to public and private sector clientele, as a sub-consultant to David Evans and Associates, Inc., will be providing engineering design management, track design and structures design services for the Oregon Department of Transportation's High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Project. The scope of work includes National Environmental Policy Act and Preliminary Engineering Services.

BNSF plans to spend $84 million on track improvements in Wyoming this year, the Casper Star-Tribune reports. Major projects will include rail, tie and surfacing work, BNSF spokesman Gus Melonas said.