Watco names GMs to two shortlines
Watco Transportation Services named Jimmy Patterson general manager for the Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad (KO). The former manager, Brad Hayes, will be managing the company’s Tampa, Colo., terminal location.
Watco Transportation Services named Jimmy Patterson general manager for the Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad (KO). The former manager, Brad Hayes, will be managing the company’s Tampa, Colo., terminal location.
Construction is moving swiftly as Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) moves forward on a $53 million, 42.5-acre intermodal container transfer facility (ICTF) at Port Everglades that will be used to transfer domestic and international shipping containers between ship and rail beginning in mid 2014.
Indiana assembled a Blue Ribbon Panel to plan the next generation of transportation infrastructure in the state. Gov. Mike Pence made this announcement at the 2013 Indiana Logistics Summit recently.
The North Carolina Railroad (NCRR) Board of Directors has elected Duane Long as board chairman and Franklin Rouse, Jr., as vice chairman.
Long will succeed John Atkins, III, who served as chairman since 2009. Atkins will continue to serve as a member of the board.
Long, who has served on the NCRR Board since 2011, is chairman of Longistics, a full-service provider of global logistics solutions, headquartered in Raleigh. He and his wife started the company in 1984, providing trucking, warehousing and foreign trade zone management operations.
Rouse has served on the NCRR Board since 2011. He is president of Rouse Insurance Agency, Inc., of Leland and is active in a variety of Brunswick County business organizations.
The North Carolina Railroad Company owns and manages the 317-mile rail corridor extending from Morehead City to Charlotte. The railroad carries 60-plus freight trains and 10 passenger trains daily.
Watco Transportation Services has appointed Jeffrey Buck to general manager for the Mississippi Southern and Vicksburg Southern railroads. Buck will be responsible for the daily operations of both railroads; specifically focusing on improving safety, productivity, efficiency and developing team members.
Twelve grants totaling more than $12 million have been awarded through the New Jersey Department of Transportation’s (NJDOT) Fiscal Year 2013 Rail Freight Assistance Program, which helps support economic activity by preserving and improving the existing freight transportation system and by making freight rail service more widely available for businesses throughout the state.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) made public its report on positive train control (PTC) implementation and issued a trio of recommendations including extending the deadline, approving alternative safety technologies and granting provisional certification of PTC systems.
After its largest acquisition to date,GWI plans a capital program for 2013 to continue its growth and development.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker approved four freight rail improvement projects totaling approximately $11 million in grants and loans. The goal of Wisconsin’s freight railroad assistance program is to increase the use of rail transportation and support economic development and job creation.
On September 13 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx joined four members of Congress, Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Ted Deutch D-(FL), Lois Frankel (D-FL) and Patrick Murphy (D-FL) and other local leaders to talk about how the South Florida Freight and Passenger Rail Enhancement project will help South Florida.
Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Association of American Railroads, named two railroaders, Christopher F. Liucci and Jim Vena, to its Board of Directors.
The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) has been awarded an $8.9 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant to rehabilitate a freight corridor and prepare it for future passenger service.
The $18.5-million project involves rehabilitating 20 miles of the state-owned Vermont Railway from Rutland to Leicester, which includes replacing nine miles of rail, upgrading 11 at-grade farm crossings and other improvements. When completed, this project will eliminate track-related slow orders, allowing for unrestricted Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Class 3 speed operations of up to 40 mph. The Vermont Rail System operates over the line and provides a critical connection for shippers to the Class 1 network in New York.
The project also supports the state’s efforts to improve the line to allow for the future extension of Amtrak’s Ethan Allen service from Rutland to Burlington. Approximately $6 million in match funding is coming from previous federal appropriations benefiting the corridor, as well as $3.2 million from the state and $200,000 in-kind contributions from the rail operator.
“This investment is helping to move the economy by improving track, bridges and other infrastructure, building stations and intermodal facilities, advancing higher-performing rail service and improving safety,” said FRA Administrator Joseph Szabo.
Fifty-two transportation projects in 37 states will receive a total of approximately $474 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant program. Among these, $146 million will help fund rail projects.
Maryland plans to invest nearly $1.5 billion in transportation investments for the Baltimore Metropolitan Region that will support more than 13,000 jobs, reduce traffic congestion and revitalize communities.
Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) and New Hampshire Northcoast Railroad have been awarded $11.4 million in Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants.
William Costantini has accepted the position of vice president and chief transportation officer for Florida East Coast Railway (FEC), effective September 16, 2013. He will assume responsibility for the FEC rail transportation network and terminal operations.
Merv Tweed, who recently announced his resignation from the Canadian House of Commons after serving more than nine years as the Member of Parliament for Brandon-Souris, has been appointed as president of OmniTRAX Canada.
Springfield, Ill. has been awarded $14.4 million for the construction of a railroad underpass at Carpenter Street, an important component of the Springfield Rail Improvement Project and the entire Chicago-to-St. Louis passenger rail corridor.
The U.S. Department of Transportation issued a rule proposal that would give states an opportunity to manage the federally required environmental review process for highway, rail and transit projects.