RTD West Rail Line to open in April 2013, eight months early

The Denver, Colo., Regional Transportation District will open the West Rail Line to the public on April 26, 2013, eight months ahead of the originally scheduled opening date. The West Rail Line is the first FasTracks project to be completed and part of the current $4.2 billion investment in the region. Presently, 50 miles of new rail line are in construction or under contract to begin construction.

Officials kick off Eads Bridge Rehabilitation project

Deputy Federal Transit Administrator Therese McMillan joined Missouri and Illinois officials to kick off the Eads Bridge Rehabilitation Project, which will repair and restore the historic, 138-year old bridge and ensure safe and efficient light-rail service for thousands of people who use the bridge to cross the Mississippi River every day.

Milestone reached on Dulles Metrorail project

Engineering, project management and construction company, Bechtel, has been building Phase 1 of the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project in northern Virginia and has installed the final segment of the elevated Tysons East Guideway, signaling the close out of the heavy civil work needed on the project.

BART to implement last of inflation-based fare increases July 1

Bay Area Rapid Transit near San Francisco will implement the last in a series of inflation-based fare increases when fares increase by 1.4 percent. Because BART fares are rounded to the nearest nickel, some fares will remain the same after the increase, including the minimum BART fare of $1.75, and the average fare will go up by five cents.  Fares last increased in July 2009

MBTA releases See Say smartphone app

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Transit Police Department released the See Say smartphone app. With this iPhone App, riders are able to instantly report suspicious activity on the MBTA to Transit Police. In just a few clicks, riders can share pictures, text and incident location details.

Sound Transit’s deputy CEO to retire

Seattle’s Sound Transit Deputy CEO Celia Kupersmith will retire effective August. 3.

“I have loved every moment at Sound Transit and am pleased by all we have accomplished in my time here but my two-year old grandson is calling so I am moving on to spend more time with him.”

HART receives approval for work on rail guideway and precast yard

Hawaii’s Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation received the green light from the Federal Transit Administration to move forward with $21.8 million in work that includes a precasting yard that will create the concrete guideway for Oahu’s rail system.

TriMet receives $85 million for Portland to Milwaukie light-rail line

Trimet in Portland, Ore., has been awarded $85 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation to help complete the Portland to Milwaukie light-rail line.

NCRR, CATS and NS reach agreements for LYNX Blue Line extension

The North Carolina Railroad Company, the Charlotte Area Transit System and Norfolk Southern signed lease, construction and operating agreements for the LYNX Blue Line Extension light-rail project along the North Carolina Railroad corridor. The 2.7-mile section begins near East 12th Street and ends a half mile east of Eastway Drive in Charlotte, N.C.

Sound Transit contractors connect University Link tunnels to downtown Seattle

Sound Transit contractors have connected the University Link light-rail tunnels with the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel (DSTT) in Washington state. The tunnel-boring machine (TBM) nicknamed “Brenda” recently completed its one-mile trip on the second tunnel between Capitol Hill and downtown.

TriMet ridership continues to rise

In April, there were more than 8.8 million trips taken on Portland, Ore.-area TriMet buses, MAX and WES commuter rail. For 13 consecutive months, weekday and weekly trips and total monthly ridership increased. System-wide, all modes were up in all categories of ridership for April.

New York MTA celebrates completion of Far Rockaway-Mott Av. Station rehab

New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority has completed the work that transformed the southern terminal of the A Line into a sparkling, steel and glass, state-of-the art transit facility and was marked with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by MTA leaders and local elected officials.

Twin Cities’ Central Corridor LRT construction reaches halfway mark

Construction of the Central Corridor Light Rail Transit project in Minnesota is 50 percent complete and on track to be 75 percent done by year’s end.

“The contractors really hit the ground running in March. We now have work occurring in all areas of the nearly 10-mile long project, employing more than 3,000 workers to date,” Metropolitan Council Chair Sue Haigh said.

Denver RTD breaks ground on I-225 rail extension

The Denver Regional Transportation District, the Colorado Department of Transportation and SEMA Construction broke ground on RTD’s I-225 Light Rail Line extension. This kicks off construction on the first segment of the light-rail project from Nine Mile to Iliff.

Metrolinx board puts Toronto LRT plan back on track

The Board of Directors of Metrolinx in Toronto, Canada, voted unanimously to proceed with the implementation of the Toronto Transit Plan as originally approved by Metrolinx on May 19, 2010, consisting of the following projects:

Secretary LaHood to visit Utah for Sugar House Streetcar groundbreaking

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood will be in Utah Wednesday, May 9, for an official groundbreaking on the Sugar House streetcar project. He will be joined by elected officials and community leaders to celebrate this special occasion. 



WMATA performance shows progress

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s latest performance report shows several key indicators moving in the right direction as the system advances its multi-year WMATA Forward rebuilding effort.

OneRail Coalition hosts “The American Rail Industry: Investing in Infrastructure, Creating Jobs”

On Thursday May 10, 2012, the OneRail Coalition will host a briefing on “The American Rail Industry: Investing in Infrastructure, Creating Jobs” at 2:00pm in the Capitol Visitor Center, Meeting Room North (CVC 268).

SFMTA board moves Central Subway Project forward

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors and the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency Board of Directors unanimously approved several resolutions that will move the Central Subway Project forward.

Denver RTD receives award for advancing design-build awareness

The Design-Build Institute of America recognized the Denver Regional Transportation District with its 2012 DBIA Transportation Owner of the Year Award in the category of transit. The award was presented Thursday, April 26, during the 2012 Design-Build in Transportation Conference in Phoenix.