FRA explains internal review that brought change to bridge safety program

Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Sarah Feinberg, took to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) website to explain the process the FRA has gone through to enhance safety of the nation’s rail bridges.

Silver Line

Construction on Silver Line Phase 2 to ramp up

Construction on Phase 2 of the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project, a.k.a. the Silver Line, is about to head into a busy period as the project hits the 30 percent complete mark.

Refining profile and saving face

Success in battling defects and extending the life of a rail can be met with a well-planned grinding or milling program.

Materials handling with care and accuracy

Suppliers offer many versatile options to railroads for precise placement and removal of materials needed along the rights-of-way.

Metra lays out 2016 construction program

Metra has laid out plans to begin infrastructure improvements to its stations, track, bridges and road crossings this year to ensure safe and reliable service and maintain a state of good repair systemwide. Construction work is expected to begin this week and continue through the fall, weather permitting.

OmniTRAX names Bridgewell Resources Supplier of the Year

OmniTRAX, Inc., selected Bridgewell Resources LLC, a wholesale distributor of ties and other materials, as the recipient of its first annual Supplier of the Year award.

Palmetto Railways proposes 10-mile line in South Carolina

Palmetto Railways is exploring the development of a 10-mile industrial rail line to serve the Camp Hall Commerce Park in Berkeley County, S.C.

KCS plans to replace more than 92k ties, 100 crossings through five states

Kansas City Southern plans to invest approximately $20 million this year in construction and improvement projects on KCS’s mainline from Kansas through Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas and northwest Louisiana, which is a key component of the KCS network.

Koppers hosts tour of South Carolina tie plant

Representatives from the offices of Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Tim Scott (R-SC) joined representatives from GoRail and the Railway Engineering-Maintenance Suppliers Association (REMSA) on April 5 to tour Koppers’ rail tie manufacturing facility in Florence, S.C.

ConnDOT continues bidding process for Hartford line; launches Walk Bridge site

The Connecticut Department of Transportation (ConnDOT) has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a service provider on the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield intercity rail line, now branded as the CTrail Hartford Line. The RFP is open only to those service providers approved and “short-listed” after a Request for Qualifications issued by ConnDOT in 2014.

Rocla opens new tie facility in Florida

Rocla Concrete Tie, Inc., producer of pre-stressed concrete railroad ties, has opened its new manufacturing facility in Ft. Pierce, Fla.

Gannett Fleming expands with 10 new hires across the U.S. and Canada



To accommodate growing client needs, Gannett Fleming Transit & Rail Systems (GFT&RS) has expanded teams in the U.S. and Canada. GFT&RS is a North American transit and railroad track, signal, communication, catenary and electric traction design company.

FASTRACK Returns to the 1 Line in Upper Manhattan

Beginning on March 28, Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) New York City Transit’s (NYCT) FASTRACK program returned to the 1 line in Upper Manhattan for two weeks. For four consecutive weeknights from until early April 1, and for four weeknights from April 4 to April 8, 1 service will be suspended between 96 St and Dyckman St from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Atlantic Track & Turnout VP retires

After 35 years in the railroad industry and 23 years of service with Atlantic Track & Turnout Co., Vice President William Roan, Jr., has decided to retire.

Gateway Program partners lay out project plans

Partners in the Gateway Program have outlined steps to move it forward including the allocation of $70 million for preliminary engineering, a federal pledge to streamline environmental reviews and finalization of development corporation structure.

Metra adds more than $64M to its 2016 capital program

The Metra Board of Directors has approved a $64.5 million addition to the agency’s 2016 capital program which now totals $251 million in projected spending.

Keolis plans to replace 30k crossties on MBTA Framingham-Worcester Line

Trackwork will begin on the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s (MBTA) Framingham-Worcester Line this month, with a goal of replacing 25,000-30,000 crossties while work to end the line’s heat-related speed restrictions wraps up.

Work continues on NYS&W service restoration in New York

The Rail Revitalization Project begun by the Chenango County Industrial 
Development Agency (CCIDA) in 2011 will mark a major milestone March 23, when 
Frontier Railroad Services, LLC, begins removing brush and other 
obstacles along the 45.5 miles of New York Susquehanna and Western (NYS&W) rail right-of-way in
 Chenango County, N.Y.

NYCT plans crucial rebuild of M Line

Metropolitan Transportation Authority New York City Transit (MTA NYCT) is preparing to rebuild two crucial sections of the M line in Brooklyn and Queens in order to ensure that two decades-old deteriorating overpasses remain safe for travel.

WSDOT begins track, signal improvements at King Street Station

Construction began March 11 on track and signal improvements at the King Street Station in Seattle, Wash. The work is part of the $50.4-million King Street Station Track Improvements project overseen by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT).

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