Amtrak has begun work to
improve Union Station in Chicago and relieve some Amtrak passenger overcrowding
by nearly doubling the seating in its general passenger lounges, increasing the
number of public rest rooms and by providing air conditioning in the Great Hall
for the first time since the early 1960s. The $40-million project is expected
to be completed by the end of 2012.
Steel Dynamics, Inc., said
that Standard Strength rail produced at its Columbia City, Ind., mill has been
tested and approved by four U.S.-based Class 1 railroads and by Amtrak (the
National Railroad Passenger Corporation). The Class 1 railroads include BNSF,
CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, and the Union Pacific.
U.S. Senator Robert
Menendez (D-NJ), Commissioner James Simpson, New Jersey Department of
Transportation, Richard Larrabee, director of port commerce, Port of New York
and New Jersey, Clarence W. Gooden, executive vice president of sales and
marketing and chief commercial officer, CSX Transportation will be among the New
Jersey, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and CSXT officials who will
celebrate the opening of the Liberty Corridor Freightway, a major
public-private project that paves the way for growth by providing improved
access to the Port of New York and New Jersey. This engineering milestone will
expedite freight traffic between inland markets and the Port by increasing
train capacity and improving service levels.
Mass. Lt. Gov. Tim Murray
said $320,000 in technical assistance grants is coming to 15 communities across
Southeastern Massachusetts to help them plan for the growth associated with the
South Coast Rail project, local media report. The funding announcement, the
third round of these grants, comes about a year after the state released the
South Coast Rail Economic Development and Land Use Corridor Plan, which
estimated that commuter rail could generate about $500 million in new economic
activity annually.
As Pennsylvania lawmakers
debate requiring that natural gas drillers compensate communities for any
damages to local roads, bridges and water supplies through a state severance
tax on their production, they are also proposing that state tax dollars be used
to develop infrastructure projects to support the industry, the Scranton times
Tribune reports.
At a special board
meeting, the Metrolink Board of Directors authorized its CEO, John E. Fenton,
to complete the final terms and conditions to award a $120-million contract to
Parsons Transportation Group to manage and integrate Positive Train Control technology
on Metrolink’s 512-mile system.
As part of Massachusetts Patrick-Murray
Administration’s proven commitment to transportation reform and focus on
customer service, Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray said real-time train location
and arrival information is now available for the MBTA’s Orange, Red, and Blue
Lines. Following the successful release of real-time information for all 187
MBTA bus routes, this program expands the Administration’s award-winning open
data initiative to hundreds of thousands of daily subway riders.
On October 4, the Santa
Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is making significant improvements
to light rail service since its inception nearly 23 years ago. VTA will operate
a new non-stop, faster express light rail service now featuring free WiFi. With
the debut of the VTA Commuter Express, customers will enjoy faster and more
frequent light rail service with six newly added, peak-hour commute trips from
south San Jose, Calif. through downtown to North San Jose.
Scott R. Bamford, P.E., and
Don Jacobs have recently joined Geocomp Corporation, a geo-engineering services
firm headquartered in Boxborough, Mass.
Sound Transit’s University
Link is moving forward n the Seattle area. At the Capitol Hill Station, more than 40 percent of
the excavation for the station box is now complete. A conveyor system is now in
place to transport the excavated spoils to the surface.
The contractor is currently
building a temporary bridge over the station excavation at approximately Denny
Way within the construction work site. Trucks and other construction vehicles
will use the bridge to move around the work site. A number of existing
utilities will also be suspended below the bottom of the bridge in order to
allow the utilities to span the station box excavation.
Due to the ongoing
station repair work in New York City at the 207th, 215th, 225th, 238th and
242nd Street stations and the station rehabilitation at Dyckman Street, there
will be no No.1 service between 242nd Street and 168th Street for all five
weekends in October.
California is getting a
$194-million federal grant to fund planning of a 520-mile high-speed rail line,
local media report.
Marc Laliberté, VIA Rail’s
President and CEO, spoke on the issues and challenges confronting the passenger
rail industry in a speech made in Quebec City to the members of the Ordre des
comptables agréés (chartered accountants) du Québec. Laliberté took the opportunity to explain to the
350 convention attendees the context in which VIA operates at the beginning of
this 21st century. In particular, he described the strategies his team has
implemented to manage VIA’s growth, despite the difficulties caused by the
economic situation since the end of 2008. He stated that. "VIA must
continue to adapt and evolve if it wishes to pursue its growth and remain
relevant in the coming years."
The dedication of a new
switchyard in Winchester, Ore., may be a relatively minor event in the nearly
140-year history of train service in Roseburg, but it is notable achievement,
according to the News-Review.
The CREATE Program
will be participating in the 14th Annual Transportation Symposium
and Business Exchange sponsored by several CREATE partners and other regional
transportation agencies. Participants include the Regional Transportation
Authority, Illinois Tollway, CTA, Metra, Pace and IDOT, among others.
Deutsche Bahn Netz AG, a
subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn AG (DB), switched to a new tamping surveying
solution from Amberg Technologies. It will support maintenance measures of
automated tamping of tracks and points.
L.B. Foster Company said
it is extending its previously announced cash tender offer, through its
wholly-owned subsidiary Foster Thomas Company, for all outstanding shares of
common stock of Portec Rail Products, Inc., until 12:00 midnight, New York City
time, on November 15, 2010. The tender offer was previously set to expire at midnight,
New York City Time on September 30, 2010.
October 1-3, Metro in
Washington, D.C., will install a track switch and upgrade its track, platforms
and aerial structures on the Yellow, Green and Red lines to improve long-term
reliability and service. The track switch is work that was recommended by the
National Transportation Safety Board. As a result of this work, riders can expect
delays of up to 30 minutes.
Feedback from riders and
communities along the Union Pacific North line regarding recent schedule
changes has prompted Metra to postpone the project to rebuild 22 bridges on the
line until next spring and reinstate the line’s original schedule with a
two-track operation starting Sunday, Oct. 3.
The Illinois Commerce Commission has granted
approval for construction of a new bridge that will carry County Highway 19
(7000 N Road) over the Union Pacific tracks, in Kankakee County. The County
proposes to reconstruct the structure with a new multi-steel stringer and
reinforced concrete bridge. It will have a 30-foot wide travel surface with
bridge railing on each side, and will provide 23-feet minimum vertical clearance
over the railroad tracks.