KCS State of the Railroad: Starling outlines m/w accomplishments and future projects
Kansas City Southern’s President and CEO David Starling issued his annual State of the Railroad letter sharing KCS’ “successes and tremendous potential.”
Kansas City Southern’s President and CEO David Starling issued his annual State of the Railroad letter sharing KCS’ “successes and tremendous potential.”
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) joined elected officials and representatives from Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) to celebrate the opening of Houston’s North Line light-rail extension, on Dec. 21.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials and other local leaders took a ceremonial first ride on the extension of the 7 Subway line, terminating at the new subway station located at 34th Street and Eleventh Avenue in Manhattan.
Kinder Morgan Energy Partners L.P. and Imperial Oil have entered into a 50-50 joint venture to build a crude oil rail-loading facility in Strathcona County, Alberta, called the Edmonton Rail Terminal.
Metrolinx and Infrastructure Ontario issued a request for proposals for Toronto’s Eglinton Crosstown light-rail project to the consortia pre-qualified to deliver the balance of the Crosstown project, an integrated system consisting of stations, trackwork, signaling, communications and other required infrastructure.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has awarded a contract to Parsons Brinckerhoff for preliminary engineering, final design and construction-phase services for the rehabilitation of the Mahoning Avenue Viaduct in New Castle, Pa.
Granite Construction Incorporated has been awarded a $21 million contract by the city of Coachella, Calif., to construct a new grade-separated crossing junction.
Harsco Rail signed an exclusive distribution agreement with Protran Technology on December 5, 2013.
TorQuest Partners, in partnership with a group of co-investors, has acquired a majority interest in A&B Rail Services Ltd., a national railway services company based in Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Canadian National started a special program to acquire additional monitoring equipment to enhance its technological base for early detection of defects.
Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph Szabo, along with representatives of the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT), Union Pacific, Amtrak and contractor OCCI, Inc., officially opened a new Union Pacific $28-million 1,200-foot railroad bridge across the Osage River, ahead of schedule and under budget.
Gross & Janes Co. has begun construction of a new $2.2-million crosstie production and borate treatment facility in Camden, Ark. The new facility will replace an existing Gross & Janes crosstie plant and also consolidate production from two other company plants in Taylor, Ark., and Carthage, Texas.
When fully operational after its scheduled completion in March 2014, the plant will employ 15 people and have the capacity to produce 600,000 crossties annually.
“The Camden location was chosen for its logistical advantages in serving three of our largest railroad clients, including Union Pacific, BNSF and Kansas City Southern,” said Mike Pourney, president and CEO of Gross & Janes. “In addition, the surrounding area in southern Arkansas has some of the best oak timber in the country. This area is also home to some of our most productive sawmills.”
Most crossties processed at the new Camden facility will be Gross & Janes’ borate pre-treated crossties called Tuff-Tie. This crosstie is treated with borate using a non-pressurized process prior to drying and shipping to the customer for creosote treatment. The company notes that this two-step treatment process eliminates the cost of pressurized application of borate at the time of creosote application, while also offsetting the amount of oil-based creosote needed for tie protection.
When the new Camden facility opens, the Carthage plant will remain open as a railcar loading facility and the Taylor plant will close.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation’s (NCDOT) Rail Division has made crossing safety improvements at intersections in Monroe and West End and has scheduled a meeting to discuss crossing closure.
Stella-Jones Inc. has completed the acquisition of substantially all of the operating assets of Arizona Pacific Wood Preserving, Inc., Nevada Wood Preserving, Inc., and Pacific Wood Preserving of Oregon, Inc., (commonly referred to as The Pacific Wood Preserving Companies®) conducted at their wood treating plants in Oregon, Nevada and Arizona and their wood concentration yard in Texas.
Canadian National says it has spent the past 12 months engaging customers in order to better position the railroad for success during the upcoming winter. The result is CN’s WinterREADY Plan 2013-2014, which the railroad says adds resiliency to its network and improves communication flow.
Union Pacific installed a new bridge during the weekend of Nov. 2-4 at Shermer Road south of Willow Road in Glenview, Ill., to replace a temporary embankment of crushed concrete the railroad has been using since last year.
The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (SCVTA) celebrated a major project milestone for the Mission Warren Area Improvements Project in southern Fremont, Calif., when the first Union Pacific freight train traveled over one of the two recently completed bridges, spanning Mission Boulevard and Warren Avenue.
Full train service between 69th Street Transportation Center and Norristown Transportation Center (NTC) on Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority’s (SEPTA) Norristown High Speed Line (NHSL) will resume on November 11, 2013, following a four-month repair project that closed SEPTA’s Bridgeport Viaduct,