RTD staff recommends Balfour Beatty Infrastructure proposal for SE rail extension

Staff of Denver’s Regional Transportation District (RTD) recommended that the RTD Board of Directors move forward with a proposal from Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Inc. to design and build the Southeast Rail Extension on July 14.

RailWorks executive Brace retires

Scott Brace, who has served as president of RailWorks Track Systems, Inc., for the past five years, has retired.

Railway Interchange exhibits sell out

Railway Interchange 2015 host associations say they are gearing up for the biggest event to-date. With four months to go before the event, indoor and outdoor exhibition space is sold out and 60 percent of available hotel rooms have been reserved.

Carolina Worrell joins Railway Age as managing editor

Carolina Worrell has joined Railway Age as Managing Editor, based at Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corp.’s headquarters in New York City.

Uncertainty clouds key rail bills in Senate

Two bills of substantial importance to railroads—Staggers Rail Act revisions as part of reauthorization of the Surface Transportation Board (STB), and extension of the deadline to implement Positive Train Control (PTC)—took meaningful steps forward March 25, gaining the imprimatur of the Senate Commerce Committee.

AECOM completes acquisition of URS Corporation

AECOM completed its acquisition of URS Corporation on Oct. 17, 2014, following approval of the merger agreement by URS’ stockholders and the stock issuance proposal by AECOM’s stockholders at each company’s respective special stockholder meetings held on Oct. 16, 2014.

Minneapolis Interchange/Target Field Station open for business

The Metro Transit Interchange/Target Field Station multi-modal transportation hub in Minneapolis, which opened May 17, 2014, links light-rail transit, regional rail and bus service and contains a civic space for retailers, an amphitheater and green space.

Baker selected for CSX Intermodal Terminals professional services agreement

Michael Baker Jr., Inc., an engineering unit of Michael Baker International, has been awarded a Professional Services Agreement by CSX Intermodal Terminals, Inc. (CSXIT) to provide construction management and inspection services for its Trans-Shipment Terminal Expansion Project in North Baltimore, Ohio. Additionally, Baker will provide engineering review services during the construction phases of projects. CSXIT has issued Baker the first work order under this agreement. CSXIT is expanding the original terminal, completed in 2011, due to increased intermodal container traffic.

Proposed MAP-21 Reauthorization Act text unveiled

The U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW) released its proposed bill text for the MAP-21 Reauthorization Act (S. 2322). The six-year legislation plans to maintain highway program funds at current levels plus inflation.

UNITRAC, NRC host Rep. Duncan for Knoxville facility tour

U.S. Rep. John Duncan, Jr. (R-TN-02), joined representatives from UNITRAC Railroad Materials, the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC), the Gulf & Ohio Railway and Nisus Corp. for a tour of UNITRAC’s manufacturing facility in Knoxville, Tenn., on March 17.

In Memoriam: John Hunsberger

John C. Hunsberger, II, manager of sales at Pandrol USA, died Jan. 10, 2014, following “a lengthy illness bravely fought.”

Axion receives order for composite crossties

Axion International Holdings, Inc., producer of ECOTRAX® composite rail ties and STRUXURE® building products, received a purchase order worth $925,000 from “a major domestic transit line located in the South Central region.”

LACMTA issues “Notice to Proceed” for Crenshaw/LAX Line

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority issued a Notice to Proceed to Walsh/Shea Corridor Constructors for the Crenshaw/LAX Line.

Gannett Fleming consolidates GFT&RS, Transit and Rail Practice under Mulqueen

Bryan Mulqueen, the national manager of Gannett Fleming’s Transit & Rail Practice, has taken on added responsibility for Gannett Fleming Transit & Rail Systems (GFT&RS), along with the operations of the firm’s Transit and Rail Practice in the northeast United States.

SCCRTC approves contract for scaled down bridge repair project

The Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission (SCCRTC) approved a $4.2 million contract to make repairs to four bridges that “require attention more immediately” along the Santa Cruz Branch Line in California.

Webcor Builders awarded Foothill Extension contract

The Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority awarded the third and final design-build contract, worth $48.7 million, for the light-rail project from Pasadena to Azusa, Calif., to Webcor Builders.

Harsco Rail awarded contracts in North America, China

Harsco Rail secured a new service order for a two-year track renewal project in North America.

AECOM to provide design services for Honolulu rail transit project

AECOM Technical Services, Inc., a subsidiary of AECOM Technology Corporation, is working on a $43.9-million contract from the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation to provide design services for a portion of Hawaii’s Honolulu Rail Transit Project.

Trinity Railway Express to use Axion’s ECOTRAX crossties

Axion International Holdings, Inc., received an order worth more than $500,000 for its ECOTRAX composite crossties from Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) for use in the Trinity Railway Express (TRE) that connects Dallas and Fort Worth.

Denver RTD receives unsolicited proposal for North Metro

The Denver Regional Transportation District’s (RTD) “call for innovation” to the private sector yielded an unsolicited proposal on February 22 for the North Metro Rail Line, part of its FasTracks program.