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).
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has awarded a $93.4-million federal grant agreement to extend SunRail commuter rail service 17.2 miles from Southern Orlando to Osceola County. The extension will provide faster and more efficient travel to jobs and cultural and retail destinations in downtown Orlando and throughout Central Florida.
Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) has completed a major renovation project on the Clark/Division Red Line station. The project added a new entrance, as well as a fully renovated and modernized the station.
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) has selected Dr. Joshua Schank as the first-ever head of its newly created Office of Extraordinary Innovation, effective October 5, 2015.
Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) 248 has issued its recommendations to settle the four-year contract dispute between New Jersey Transit and the Rail Labor Coalition of 14 unions representing 4,300 union workers, reports the United Transportation Union.
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) approved the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) corrective action plan to improve the safety of its Metrorail and Metrobus systems as required by an FTA Safety Directive.
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) Board of Directors approved the contract for the L.A. County Grade Crossing and Corridor Safety Program, authorizing engineering studies to identify potential safety improvements at approximately 153 pedestrian and vehicular grade crossings along 160 miles of LACMTA-owned right-of-way in Los Angeles County.
Bentley Systems, Incorporated, provider of software solutions for sustaining infrastructure, has released the list of project finalists in the 2015 Be Inspired Awards program.
Metra Director of Safety Hilary Konczal has been named to the World Safety Organization (WSO) Board of Directors and received the group’s James K. Williams Award for his dedication to programs and practices that promote safety.
The Foothill Gold Line Construction Authority and its contractor marked the substantial completion of the Pasadena, Calif., to Azusa, Calif., segment. The construction authority said the $1-billion project is on budget and on time with passenger service expected to begin in the spring of 2016.
The Eglinton Crosstown light-rail transit tunnel boring machines named Don and Humber will begin their journey westward on September 29, 2015, marking another milestone toward the completion of the new LRT.
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.
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.
In its first report to the legislature, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Fiscal and Management Control Board (FMCB) detailed underlying problems at the MBTA that are even more serious and deep-seated than reported in April by the Special Panel to Review the authority.
The Metra Board of Directors has formally called on Congress to extend the Dec. 31, 2015 deadline to install Positive Train Control (PTC), agreeing with a staff analysis that in the current regulatory environment, Metra will not be able to legally operate beyond that date.
September 18 marked 15 years of steadily growing ridership since the Puget Sound region’s commuters first climbed aboard Sounder commuter trains. Since Sounder began operating in 2000, more than 29 million people have used the popular commuter and game day service.
Battelle has been awarded a $3.1-million contract by New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), to perform an Independent Safety Assessment and safety certification support for the design and implementation of Interoperable Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC) on the Queens Boulevard Line in the New York City Transit system.
The Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) in North Carolina will receive a $180-million Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan for construction of the LYNX Blue Line light-rail extension. The TIFIA loan will support the expansion of the light-rail system from Center City Charlotte to the UNC Charlotte Campus.
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.
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).