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.

PUCO approves upgrade of rail crossing in Butler County

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio approved construction authorization from the Ohio Rail Development Commission, authorizing Norfolk Southern to install flashing lights and gates at the Station Road/Township Road 120 (524-701M) grade crossing in West Chester Township, Butler County.

RailComm provides remote control to NECR bridge

RailComm has provided remote control for a New England Central Railroad bridge. RailComm’s Domain Operations Controller System is used to dispatch the railroad and has been modified to include control of the bridge.

PTC revisions in place, savings to railroads could be up to $775 million

Changes have been made to regulations governing the installation of positive train control equipment that will give railroads additional flexibility, save money and maintain a high level of safety.

ASLRRA names both Safety Pro, Safety Person of the Year

The American Short Line & Regional Railroad Association has named Tyrone James, vice president of Safety & Compliance at Genesee & Wyoming, as the winner of this year’s Safety Professional of the Year Award. ASLRRA also announced that Aaron Willet, superintendent of Operations at the Illinois Railway, as the winner of its 2012 Safety Person of the Year award.

AAR recognizes safety achievements with Harriman and Hammond awards

Railroads with the industry’s best safety performance records were honored at the annual E.H. Harriman Awards ceremony, which also marked the industry’s near century long commitment to safety and innovation with the Centennial Award.

VIA Rail, CN, CP and partners put spotlight on rail safety

From April 30 to May 6 this year, Operation Lifesaver’s Rail Safety Week raised public awareness and encouraged Canadians to take personal responsibility for safety near rail property.

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.

HDR acquires Stetson Engineering, Inc.

HDR, Inc., has acquired the business of Stetson Engineering, Inc., a Wyoming-based firm with offices in Gillette and Riverton. Stetson Engineering, Inc., specializes in design, engineering and consulting services related to water, sewer, storm sewer, hydrology and transportation.

Lilee Systems earns Red Hat Hardware Certification

Lilee Systems, provider of communication systems designed exclusively for the railroad industry, has achieved Red Hat Hardware Certification for the company’s WMS-2000 wayside messaging server, making it the first wayside messaging server with internal 3G, GPS and IP KVM options to achieve Red Hat certification. Now, Lilee says customers deploying WMS-2000 with embedded Red Hat Enterprise Linux are offered proven performance and reliability.

Caltrain on its way to an electrified system

The Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board, which owns and operates the San Fransisco Bay area’s Caltrain, unanimously approved a regional agreement to fully fund the electrification of the railroad.

FRA strengthens PTC team with Hartong

The Federal Railroad Administration strengthened its positive train control team by naming Mark Hartong senior scientific technical adviser for railroad electronic systems within the FRA’s Office of Safety.

NRC’s annual auction a success

The NRC’s Annual Railroad Construction and Maintenance Equipment Auction was held on Thursday, April 26 at the RailWorks/E&L Paving and Construction facility in La Porte, Ind. The auction was a success with nearly $500,000 of equipment auctioned to on-site and online bidders.

BNSF plans $202 million capital program in Nebraska

BNSF plans to invest an estimated $202 million on maintenance and rail capacity improvement and expansion projects in Nebraska this year.

RMI selected as top logistics technology company by Inbound Logistics

RMI, a GE Transportation company and provider of transportation management software and analytics to the railroad industry, has been selected as a 2012 Top 100 Logistics Technology Company by Inbound Logistics magazine for the seventh consecutive year.

KCSR receives Responsible Care Partner Award

Kansas City Southern’s subsidiary, The Kansas City Southern Railway Company, received the American Chemistry Council’s Responsible Care Partner Award on April 30 at the 21st annual Responsible Care Conference and Expo in Hollywood, Fla.

NCTD assumes dispatch responsibilities for Coastal Rail Corridor

California’s North County Transit District, through its contract with Herzog Transit Service, Inc., will assume dispatching responsibility for the 60-mile coastal rail line that begins at the Santa Fe Depot in San Diego County and ends at the Orange County line.

CN, CP mark Rail Safety Week Canada

With trespassing being the leading cause of rail-related fatalities in the United States, Canadian National is marking Rail Safety Week through May 6, 2012, with a public awareness campaign stressing the deadly risks of trespassing on railway tracks and property. CN police are urging the public to call CN Police at 1- 800-465-9239 to report unsafe behavior on railway property.

BNSF salutes 2011 Employees of the Year

BNSF honored the accomplishments of employees from across its network at a recent awards ceremony in Fort Worth, Texas. The event recognized BNSF’s Safety Employees of the Year, Achievement Award winners and the “Best of the Best” leaders of teams that showed outstanding safety performance in 2011.

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