The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) issued a safety advisory guidance document concerning the protection of right-of-way (ROW) workers, as well as a request for information from transit agencies and State Safety Oversight (SSO) agencies that will be used to review the nation’s rail transit right-of-way worker safeguards.
Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) 244 issued its recommendations December 21 for settling a dispute between the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and its employees represented by the United Transportation Union Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (UTU-SMART) and several other labor unions.
The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) is making approximately $3 billion available to strengthen the resiliency of public transportation systems affected by Hurricane Sandy. The funds will be awarded by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) on a competitive basis for projects that protect critical transit infrastructure from being damaged or destroyed by future natural disasters.
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) General Manager Grace Crunican says all contract issues have been settled between BART and its two largest labor Unions. She will recommend the ratification of a final collective bargaining agreement with SEIU Local 1021 and ATU Local 1555 to the BART Board of Directors as soon as possible.
Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) presented a new capital improvement plan for addressing some of the transit system’s most pressing needs, including critical infrastructure upgrades and equipment replacement.
Wabtec Corporation signed a $34-million contract with Sound Transit, in the Seattle, Wash., region, to design, install, test and commission a Positive Train Control (PTC) system.
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) launched a 60-day safety assessment of Metro-North Railroad in response a December 1 derailment in the Bronx. Operation Deep Dive, beginning December 16, 2013, will exhaustively review Metro-North’s compliance with federal regulations, its procedures and practices and its safety culture.
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) will dole out $75 million in federal grant funds to extend the Metrolink 91 passenger rail line from Riverside to Perris, Calif.
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) New York City Transit (NYCT), Metro-North Railroad, Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and MTA Bridges and Tunnels are once again preparing for the arrival of winter weather.
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Metro-North Railroad is making immediate improvements to reinforce safety at critical curves and movable bridges along the railroad’s right-of-way. These improvements were directed by New York Gov.Andrew Cuomo in a letter to the MTA and by an emergency order from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA).
U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) urged the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to immediately begin requiring critical safety monitoring systems that consist of inward and outward facing cameras in locomotives and operating railway cabs following the December 1 Metro-North derailment.
American Public Transportation Association (APTA) President and CEO Michael Melaniphy reiterated the commuter rail industry’s commitment to Positive Train Control (PTC) installation but said Congress needs to help cover PTC costs for the technology to be implemented as soon as possible.
Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY-18) introduced the Commuter Rail Passenger Safety Act, to help commuter rail lines, such as Metro-North, fund and implement positive train control (PTC) systems.
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Metro-North Railroad resumed more than 98 percent of its regular Hudson Line service December 4, following last weekend’s derailment.
In 2012-2013, Amtrak California carried a record 3.9 million passengers on its Pacific Surfliner and San Joaquin rail lines. Over the past 10 years, ridership on the Pacific Surfliner and the San Joaquin increased by nearly one million passengers and ticket revenues skyrocketed from $44 million to $102 million.
All Aboard Florida passenger line plans to develop its Fort Lauderdale station on parcels of land adjacent to the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) corridor on NW 2nd Avenue, between Broward Boulevard and NW 4th Street.
The California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) has awarded a $61,325-grant to Metrolink for a year-long Public Safety Awareness on Railroads campaign.
A bipartisan coalition of 10 senators introduced legislation to establish a new infrastructure financing authority to help states and localities better leverage private funds to build and maintain the nation’s outdated infrastructure, including rail.
U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) says that Amtrak has developed a plan to greatly and quickly improve the conditions of the East River Tunnels used by every Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) train that leaves or arrives at Penn Station. The tunnels are owned by Amtrak and, according to Schumer, have been a massive source of delays for commuters.
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) officials are requesting a return to the negotiating table after it was discovered a provision was included in its recent labor contract that the district did not agree to.
