Ballast, Ties, Rail

UP, IDOT to invest $90 million in Chicago line; celebrate completion of CREATE project

Union Pacific (UP) and the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) are making a significant investment in Chicago’s Metra West Line. Each will invest $45 million for the construction of a new third mainline track on the line from River Forest to Melrose Park and then from West Chicago to Geneva.

“Today, we are investing in jobs that will help solidify Illinois’ status as the premier rail center of the nation,” Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn said. “This final piece of the West Line improvement program will enhance commuter and freight travel on one of our state’s busiest rail lines. Building world-class infrastructure is vital to a healthy economy and today’s investment will help get us there.”

The West Line improvements are designed to ensure smoother traffic flow and reduce conflicts between the passenger and freight trains that share the line. Earlier projects completed by Metra and UP modernized the signal system and added crossovers to make freight movement more efficient. A third phase on the West Line, improving the Lombard and Wheaton Metra stations, will be finished in 2015. The West Line third track construction is the final step that will allow the 59 Metra trains and 70 freight trains that use the line each day to operate at the same time, a critical step to improving the line’s reliability and efficiency.

The announcement was made during a celebration to mark the completion of a Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency (CREATE) rail project that included the construction of a rail overpass, the rehabilitation of two passenger stations and the addition of pedestrian tunnels in Bellwood and Berkeley and signal and track improvements along the UP/Metra West Line. The project created and supported 1,000 jobs and was funded primarily through a $52-million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant, a $27 million commitment from UP and other freight railroad partners, other federal funding of $3 million and a $615,000 investment by the state of Illinois.

“Our nation’s system of bridges, rail and roads is the strength of the nation, tying us together and giving us access to the world,” said U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL). “Chicago remains the busiest rail hub in the United States, with more than 1,000 trains passing through the region every day. Protecting and investing in our nation’s infrastructure and specifically in Illinois’ transportation network, is one of my top priorities.”

“This is a new day for Metra, one in which we want to ensure that every project we execute puts commuters first,” Metra Chairman Martin Oberman said. “We are confident the West Line improvements will greatly improve the commuter experience.”

 

ARRC crews continue washout repair efforts

Alaska Railroad (ARRC) crews continue to make progress on plugging an 80-foot-long washout following high waters at Skookum Creek (ARRC milepost 59.7).

The incident began about 7:30 a.m. June 17, when high water eroded the trackbed, leaving the track suspended over the water. Alaska Railroad track maintenance crews, heavy equipment and a rockhauling work train have been working round-the clock for three days to plug the gap and re-route a high volume of water.

“Earlier this week, this area experienced significant isolated rainfall that measured as much as a half inch every 10-15 minutes for a sustained period,” said ARRC Vice President Engineering Clark Hopp. “We are essentially dealing with a new river channel that did not previously exist.”

While freight traffic is not affected, passenger train traffic southbound from Anchorage has been suspended since the incident occurred. A decision to restore passenger service will be made at 7p.m. on June 20 and is based on the progress of the repair efforts.

The railroad has not yet determined the final financial impact of the outage. However, ARRC says revenue losses are expected to reach tens of thousands of dollars due to refunds and cancellations. Track repair expenses will also be considerable, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Maryland Transit Administration performing emergency light-rail repairs

The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) is launching an emergency project on June 20, 2014, to repair the light-rail tracks and prevent further erosion of land around the Cold Spring Station due to heavy rains. Emergency work will require the temporary closure of the Mt. Washington, Cold Spring and Woodberry stations for approximately three weeks and MTA anticipates the project should be complete by July 11, 2014, weather permitting.

Unitrac celebrates 25th anniversary

Unitrac Railroad Materials, Inc., is celebrating its 25th anniversary this month. Since the company’s founding in 1989, Unitrac has offered railroad products, special trackwork and railroad services to customers nationwide.