News and Opinion

ENSCO wins $24-million FRA contract






In-Channel Work Press Release

ENSCO, Inc., has been
awarded the Operations, Maintenance, Instrumentation and Analysis Support
contract from the Federal Railroad Administration, Office of Research and
Development. The task-order contract, composed of a one-year base period and
four one-year options, has a five-year ceiling value of more than $24 million.
ENSCO shall perform engineering and operations services to support the
development and application of advanced research and technologies for enhanced
rail safety. The contract continues ENSCO’s longstanding relationship with the
FRA. The company has been a major provider of instrumentation, field-testing,
engineering analysis as well as research and development services since the
1970’s.


UP issues invitation to bid on CREATE B2 project near Proviso Yard






In-Channel Work Press Release

Union Pacific has posted an
invitation to bid for work on the CREATE B2 Project. Work includes track
roadbed, drainage, bridge and retaining wall construction to add a railroad
flyover connection between the Union Pacific line and Indiana Harbor Belt
Railroad near Proviso Yard in the near west suburbs of Chicago..

Atlantic Track and Turnout Co. purchases capital assets of Mid-South Rail






In-Channel Work Press Release

Atlantic Track and Turnout
Co. is expanding its railroad trackwork manufacturing capability by purchasing
the capital assets of Mid-South Rail, Memphis, Tenn. Jeff Grissom, president of
Mid-South Rail, will retain day-today responsibility as director of engineering
for the Memphis plant and will assume new responsibility as director of
engineering and manufacturing for Atlantic Track.


Amtrak reaches Niantic Bridge channel-closure agreement






In-Channel Work Press Release

Discussions between
Amtrak, East Lyme Selectman Paul Formica, the U.S. Coast Guard and local
boaters and marine businesses have resulted in an agreement that balances the
use of the Niantic River channel by the marine community and the need to keep
the bridge-replacement project moving forward and on schedule.

Infotech Enterprises acquires Wellsco Inc.






In-Channel Work Press Release

Infotech Enterprises Limited said that its wholly owned subsidiary,
Infotech Enterprises America Inc., has acquired Wellsco Inc., located in
Paragould, Ark. in an all-cash deal. Wellsco is a focused engineering services
provider to the U.S. telecommunications industry. Headquartered in Paragould, Wellsco
has more than 180 employees located across five offices. It counts some of the
largest Telecom companies in the U.S. as long-term customers.

 

DC Metro Board commits to implementing NTSB recommendations






In-Channel Work Press Release

Washington, D.C., Metro
Board Chairman Peter Benjamin made the following remarks at a joint meeting
between the Metro Board of Directors and the National Transportation Safety
Board at Metro headquarters on Monday, August 9: 
Safety is the top priority
at Metro, for the Board, for Metro management, for all of our staff from top to
bottom. This Board intends to ensure that, to the best of our ability, each and
every National Transportation Safety Board recommendation to Metro associated
with its review of the June 22, 2009 accident is implemented. 



Opinion: Baltimore tunnel derailment points to unfinished business






In-Channel Work Press Release

(The following column by
Michael Dresser appeared on The Baltimore Sun Website on August 9, 2010.) Baltimore
received a relatively gentle reminder last week of some unfinished business
that it can ill afford to ignore. A CSX Transportation freight train derailed
last Thursday in the Howard Street tunnel, the scene of the nearly disastrous
July 18, 2001, derailment and fire that paralyzed much of downtown for a week.
Thirteen cars of a 79-car train left the tracks – 11 of them in the tunnel
under Howard Street and two outside the portal at Mount Royal Avenue.

South Shore plans service outage August 28-30






In-Channel Work Press Release

The South Shore commuter
line in northwest Indiana is alerting passengers to a series of planned
temporary weekend construction outages. The next weekend outage is planned for
August 28-30. During these construction related weekend outages, the South
Shore Line will not operate trains in either direction between South Bend and
Gary Metro Center beginning 2:30 a.m. Saturday thru 3:00 a.m. Monday. The South
Shore will operate regular weekend train service between Gary Metro Center and
Chicago.

VR Mergers & Acquisitions announces sale of Central Illinois Railroad






February 14, 2001

VR Mergers &
Acquisitions – St. Louis is pleased to announce the sale of Central Illinois
Railroad Holdings to strategic railroad buyer, R & R Contracting. The sale
included substantially all of the assets of Central Illinois Railroad Company,
Central Railink Services and Central Railgroup Construction Services.

UP investing $33 million in Nebraska, Missouri, Wisconsin track






February 14, 2001






February 14, 2001

Union Pacific is investing
more than $18 million to improve the rail line that runs from Fremont to North
Bend, Neb. Also Union
Pacific is investing more than $11 million to improve the rail line that runs
from Jefferson City, Mo., to Wooldridge, Mo. Also in Missouri, UP is investing more than $2 million to improve the rail line
in St. Louis, Mo., that runs from Vandeventer Ave. to near Jefferson Barracks.
In Wisconsin, UP Railroad is investing more than $2 million to improve the rail
line that runs from Merrillan, Wis., to near Millston, Wis.  


 

 

FRA sets up to $25 million for high-speed passenger rail research






February 14, 2001

U.S. Transportation
Secretary Ray LaHood today announced the Federal Railroad Administration is
soliciting research proposals to foster rapid development of high-speed and
intercity passenger rail service technologies in the United States. 
A pool of
$25 million is available for basic and applied technology research, development
and demonstration projects to advance the state of the art in track and
structures, train control systems, operating practices and rolling stock. FRA
is seeking projects focused on accelerating development of technologies that
ensure safe, efficient and strategic deployment of integrated passenger rail
systems. The solicitation is open to all sources.

High-speed rail workshop for Florida business owners






February 14, 2001

Governor Charlie Crist is
applauding Florida’s application to the Federal Railroad Administration seeking
$1.1 billion in funding that will allow Florida to deliver high-speed rail
express service in the Tampa-Orlando corridor with operating speeds of 168 mph
by 2015, local media report.

Federal Railroad Administration makes 2 high-speed rail grants






February 14, 2001

Colorado has received
$400,000 and Vermont $500,000 under the Federal Railroad Administration’s High-Speed
Intercity Passenger Rail (HSIPR) Program grant program funded from fiscal year
2009 appropriations. Colorado will use its funds to develop a state rail plan,
a prerequisite for receiving additional HSIPR intercity passenger rail funding.

Sound Transit updates long-term revenue forecasts






February 14, 2001

Sound Transit released
updated long-term revenue forecasts to the agency’s Executive Committee that
show ST2 funding levels down by about 25 percent, or $3.9 billion. Last fall
Sound Transit estimated long-term revenue levels to be down by about 20
percent, or $3.1 billion through 2023. The latest estimates come from updated
forecasts the agency received showing an additional $767 million shortfall.

Historic site rule may slow some stimulus projects






February 14, 2001

A routine federal
requirement that’s intended to preserve historic sites threatens to delay some
economic stimulus projects around the country, McClatchy Newspapers report. Federally-funded
projects that could affect sites with historic value are required to undergo
reviews that consider ways to minimize disturbance of the sites. Projects
funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are no different. In some
cases, that’s meant delays in getting crucial stimulus projects out the door,
and therefore in pumping stimulus dollars into the economy.

Canadian Pacific building transload facility for gas industry in Taylor, Pa.






February 14, 2001

Canadian
Pacific is joining the procession of railroad facility developments to handle
freight shipments for the area’s emerging natural-gas drilling industry, the
Times-Tribune reports. Canadian Pacific, based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, is
developing a transload facility at its Taylor yard to process sand for
Marcellus Shale natural gas development, CP spokesman Mike LoVecchio said.

Trinidad, Colo., transportation center construction expected next year






February 14, 2001

Construction on a
multimodal transportation center for the City of Trinidad, Colo., is currently
expected to begin in summer or fall next year, the Trinidad Times independent
reports. The planned center, to be owned by the city but operated by the South
Central Council of Governments (COG), will allow ingress and egress from the
city by train and bus and to COG’s local transportation system.