Phase 1 and Phase 2 of a major upgrade of the Seattle Maintenance Facility in Washington State has been completed by Amtrak and its partners. The facilities support Amtrak operations and maintenance agreements in the Pacific Northwest for the Empire Builder, Coast Starlight, Amtrak Cascades and Sounder commuter trains.
Las Vegas Railway Express, Inc. (X Train), the company building a luxury passenger train with planned rail service between Southern California and Las Vegas, Nev., selected R&O Construction as the general contractor for the X Train’s Las Vegas Station. R&O Construction is a national general contractor firm.
Caltrain will receive $3.2 million in U.S. Department of Transportation grant funds to install an advanced signal system needed to support modernized Caltrain service and the eventual addition of high-speed rail.
The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) has awarded an on-call contract to Parsons Brinckerhoff for construction services in support of the agency’s efforts to implement accelerated rail services along a high-speed rail corridor between Pontiac/Detroit, Mich., and Chicago, Ill.
Amtrak has released a Master Plan to revitalize the terminal at Washington Union Station.
The Alameda Corridor-East Construction Authority Board of Directors is expected to award a $172.6 million contract on July 23 to construct a 1.4-mile railroad trench for Union Pacific freight and Amtrak passenger trains with street bridges built at four crossings, in San Gabriel, Calif.
Nearly $21 million in federal funding has been formally approved for the Springfield, Mass., Union Station and the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority, according to a statement from Rep. Richard Neal’s office . Approximately $17 million will be used in the planned renovation of the historic landmark in the city’s northern blocks region and an additional $3.9 million will be directed to the PVTA for the maintenance of the local public transportation system.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority released a Revised Draft Environmental Impact Report/Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the 114-mile Fresno to Bakersfield Project section. This document provides alternatives for public consideration and comment; no decisions have yet been made on these proposals. In its continued efforts to receive public participation in its process, the CHSRA has lengthened the public comment period to 60 days, which is 15 days more than what is required by law.
Federal and Illinois state officials, along with representatives of the town of Normal and Amtrak dedicated a multimodal transportation center to serve as a station for Amtrak rail and motorcoach passengers, as well as local transit buses.
In collaboration with various sectors of the rail industry, the Association of American Railroads says that the nation’s major freight, intercity passenger, commuter railroads and rail supply companies expect to hire more than 5,000 veterans in 2012. The rail industry’s commitment is part of the White House Joining Forces initiative, a nationwide effort to recognize, honor and support America’s veterans and military families.
Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed a law to begin the next phase of the Illinois Jobs Now! capital program, which is designed to create jobs, strengthen the transportation system and support economic growth across Illinois.
A new report issued by Amtrak summarizes and updates the ongoing planning efforts to expand capacity on the Northeast Corridor rail network to accommodate more trains operating at faster speeds with significantly reduced trip times and improved service reliability, while also developing 220 mph next generation high-speed rail.
On Friday, July 6, the California Senate followed the State Assembly in approving funds for the first 130 miles of the planned high-speed rail corridor. Voter-approved bonds to finance the project can now be sold with the bill’s passage.
The OneRail Coalition, a diverse group of rail stakeholders, issued a statement congratulating both parties and the House and the Senate for working together to advance transportation reauthorization legislation, which saves and creates millions of jobs by maintaining federal transportation spending at current levels.
The Federal Railroad Administration issued a Notice of Intent that it will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement to evaluate potential passenger rail improvements on the Northeast Corridor between Washington, D.C., and Boston, Mass. The FRA is leading the planning and environmental evaluation of the NEC, an effort known as NEC Future, in close coordination with the involved states, the Northeast Corridor Infrastructure and Operations Advisory Commission, Amtrak and other stakeholders.
Both the House and Senate passed “Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century,” or MAP-21, on Friday, June 29. President Obama is expected to sign the legislation into law shortly.
The state of Illinois has made a $8.6 million commitment toward the Phase II engineering studies on high-speed rail service on a consolidated 10th Street corridor through Springfield, should that be the chosen corridor in the Record of Decision. The planned commitment coincides with the Federal Railroad Administration’s approval to release Draft Environmental Impact Statements on future enhancements to the Chicago-to-St. Louis high-speed route currently under construction.
The Tier 1 Draft Environmental Impact Statement evaluating high-speed rail service improvements along the 280-mile Chicago to St. Louis Corridor was released on Tuesday, June 26. A key question with the improvements was what route to funnel freight and passenger traffic as it traversed through Springfield, Ill. The Illinois Department of Transportation recommended rail traffic be moved to the existing Norfolk Southern corridor running along 10th Street.
VIA Rail Canada, as part of its ongoing modernization, is taking action to better meet customer demand. VIA Rail is introducing significant improvements to its operations, including tracks, stations and trains, better interconnectivity with other carriers, enhanced customer experience and e-services.
Amtrak has named Jason Molfetas as chief information officer to lead the company’s information technology team and develop and implement systems to support customer service initiatives, enhance business operations and improve financial performance.
