Texas Central enters agreement for engineering and pre-construction work

Texas Central Partners entered into an agreement with Dallas to Houston Constructors (DHC), a joint venture between Archer Western Construction and Ferrovial Agroman US Corp. (FAUS), that includes engineering and pre-construction work valued at $130 million.

Amtrak Cascades celebrates 20 years of international rail service

It has been 20 years since the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) and Amtrak launched Amtrak Cascades passenger train service to Canada. Today, international ridership on the line continues to grow and benefit economies on both sides of the border.

Chicago Union Station revitalization plan moves forward

Amtrak, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Metra and the Regional Transportation Authority revealed a set of initiatives on Friday aimed at advancing the master plan to redevelop Chicago’s Union Station.

Work to begin next week in Kansas for Amtrak Southwest Chief upgrades

Work is expected to begin next week on infrastructure improvements for the Amtrak Southwest Chief route, which will upgrade several miles of the La Junta subdivision of the BNSF Kansas Division to support passenger train speeds.

NJDOT leadership change underway

The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) Commissioner Jamie Fox will make his anticipated transition back to the private sector by the end of the month, when NJDOT Deputy Commissioner Joseph Bertoni will take over as acting commissioner.

HNTB nabs CHSRA design and construction contract

The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) Board of Directors has awarded HNTB Corporation the project and construction management contract for Construction Package 4. HNTB will provide design and construction oversight for the next 22 miles of construction in the Central Valley.

UP and BNSF win distinguished Hay Award at AREMA Conference

The American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA) presented the 2015 Dr. William W. Hay Award for Excellence to Union Pacific and BNSF for the Tower 55 Multimodal Improvement Project in downtown Fort Worth, Texas.

Amtrak’s Chicago Gateway Blue Ribbon Panel offers solutions to rail gridlock

The Amtrak panel appointed to find solutions to rail congestion in the Chicago Gateway recommends co-located dispatchers, improved operating practices and projects to prevent $800 billion in impacts from rail gridlock.

House T&I Committee introduces legislation for three-year PTC deadline extension

The U.S. House of Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure Committee leadership introduced legislation to extend the deadline for U.S. railroads to implement Positive Train Control (PTC).

APTA: Two-thirds of Americans are likely to use high-speed rail if available

According to a 2015 survey released by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), if high-speed rail were available today, two-thirds (63 percent) of Americans are likely to use high-speed trains and this jumps to nearly seventy (67) percent when respondents were informed of the costs and time saving benefits of high-speed rail service.

Steps taken at federal level to speed up infrastructure projects

The White House Office of Management and Budget, Council on Environmental Quality and U.S. Department of Transportation says the Obama Administration will take steps to accelerate critical infrastructure projects, including an enhanced Federal Infrastructure Permitting Dashboard, new guidance to federal agencies establishing metrics for the permitting and environmental review of infrastructure projects.

Richmond to Raleigh rail project gets federal approval

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the state of North Carolina and the commonwealth of Virginia have signed off on the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the proposed Richmond to Raleigh (R2R) passenger rail line along the Southeast Corridor. The completion of the FEIS is one of the final steps necessary before construction of the project can move forward once funding is secured.

Las Vegas to L.A. high-speed project gets new partner: China

China Railway International USA CO., LTD. and XpressWest have agreed to form a joint venture that will accelerate the launch of the XpressWest rail project connecting Las Vegas, Nev., to Los Angeles, Calif., (Southwest Rail Network).

Laura Mohr joins HNTB as rail and transit group director for southern California

Laura Mohr joined HNTB Corporation as vice president and rail and transit group director in one of the firm’s Los Angeles offices.

SNC-Lavalin names Bruce as president, CEO; Card to retire

SNC-Lavalin has named Neil Bruce president and chief executive officer and a member of the board of directors, succeeding Robert Card, who will retire. Bruce will begin in his new role October 5, 2015.

GAO calls for additional oversight; AAR calls for deadline extension regarding PTC

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report reviewing the process of Positive Train Control implementation. Bottom line: Most railroads will not meet the deadline.

Feds would pay for half of new Hudson tunnel under Christie-Cuomo proposal

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo sent a letter to President Barack Obama outlining what they call “a viable funding framework to break the logjam over funding for a new trans-Hudson commuter rail tunnel.”

FTA awards funds to planning projects that improve transit access

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) awarded 21 organizations around the country with a share of $19.5 million in grants to support comprehensive planning projects that improve access to public transit.

Public meetings will highlight results of study for proposed NNEIRI passenger service

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) and the Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) will air findings on a study to expand regional intercity passenger rail service at three public meetings to be held in Massachusetts and Vermont in September.

New Haven-Springfield stakeholders vow plan for progress

Talks Sept. 10 between Amtrak, Connecticut and federal officials resulted in a pledge to move the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield project forward. However, a plan will not be solidified until the end of the month.

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