Seattle, Wash.-area’s Sound Transit hired Michael Harbour, a 17-year veteran of Olympia’s Intercity Transit, as its deputy CEO.
The Chicago Transit Authority published its first-ever buying plan, designed to preview purchases of services, equipment and commodities the agency anticipates in the next 18 months.
Senators Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), chair of the Commerce Subcommittee on Surface Transportation; John Rockefeller IV (D-WV), chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation and Dick Durbin, (D-IL), have requested a Government Accountability Office (GAO) review of rail safety and how the Federal Railroad Administration, state rail safety agencies and other stakeholders cooperate to ensure the safety of people and goods. This request comes after multiple high-profile rail accidents in recent weeks.
The Denver, Colo., Regional Transportation District Board of Directors formally approved a current snapshot for implementing the FasTracks program with existing revenues as part of the Denver Regional Council of Government’s Regional Transportation Plan (RTP). RTD, the Colorado Department of Transportation and all the cities and counties in the region must identify the transportation projects that can be completed within the DRCOG 2035 plan to enable the region to continue receiving federal funding.
California’s Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s contractor Skanska Shimmick Herzog (SSH), a Joint Venture with LAN/T.Y. Lin, will begin the demolition of existing buildings at the future Milpitas Bay Area Rapid Transit Station located at the southeast corner of Montague Expressway and Capitol Avenue.
In the San Francisco Bay-area, Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s Bay Area Rapid Transit Silicon Valley Project was allocated $40 million in Traffic Congestion Relief Program (TCRP) funding by the California Transportation Commission (CTC).
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority in New York has submitted its Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and insurance claims to recover the $65 million in losses it suffered due to flood and wind damage to the regional transit infrastructure related to Tropical Storm Irene, which hit the region on August 28, 2011.
Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Timothy Murray recently joined Congressman John Olver, Congressman Richard Neal and Mayor Alex Morse of Holyoke for a first look at the potential site of the upcoming Holyoke Passenger Rail platform, signifying that construction is now underway to restore passenger rail service along the Connecticut River rail line, known as the Knowledge Corridor.
The Federal Railroad Administration’s Draft State Rail Plan Guidance, which was announced in the Federal Register on Tuesday, August 14, 2012, provides an explanation of the proposed process to be followed in developing state rail plans.
As part of a continuing commitment to diversity and inclusion, Kansas City Southern recently expanded the scope of its U.S. Supplier Diversity Program Initiative (SDPI) for suppliers, contractors and professional service providers to include small businesses, as well as disadvantaged, minority-owned, women-owned and veteran-owned businesses.
Train and engine, mechanical and maintenance-of-way employees on Columbia and Cowlitz Railway in Washington state, all represented by the United Transportation Union, have ratified their first agreement since joining the union in October 2011.
Phoenix, Ariz., Mayor Greg Stanton, City Council members and community members launched planPHX, an interactive way for Phoenix residents to decide how the city grows and changes during the next 10 years through their involvement in the update of the city’s general plan, such as planning for neighborhoods along the light-rail line.
Clackamas County commissioners in Oregon approved a re-negotiated agreement to lower the county’s contribution to TriMet’s Portland-Milwaukie light-rail project to $19.9 million from $25 million and approved the sale of bonds to pay the obligation.
U.S. Department of Transportation formed the Freight Policy Council, which it says will focus on improving the condition and performance of the national freight network to better ensure the ability of the United States to compete in today’s global economy. The council will develop a national intermodal plan for improving the efficiency of freight movement and will work with states to encourage development of a forward-looking state freight strategy.
The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio approved construction authorization from the Ohio Rail Development Commission directing Cleveland Commercial Railroad to install mast-mounted and cantilevered flashing lights and gates at the E. 156th Street grade crossing in the city of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County.
International Rail Partners LLC was recently formed to pursue the acquisition and operation of freight railroads outside of the United States, as well as other rail-related support businesses worldwide. In addition to its corporate headquarters located in Boca Raton, Fla., the company also has an office in San Francisco, Calif.
On Tuesday, August 21, 2012, U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer toured the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s Bay Area Rapid Transit Silicon Valley Berryessa Extension Project, the largest transportation infrastructure project in Santa Clara County, Calif. Senator Boxer, along with other advocates and supporters in Washington, helped secure a $900 million federal grant for the Berryessa Extension Project earlier this year.
The National Institute of Governmental Purchasing has awarded Seattle-area’s Sound Transit its Pareto Award of Excellence in Public Procurement for outstanding achievements in procurement.
BNSF plans to invest an estimated $154 million on maintenance and capacity improvements in both Iowa and Illinois this year.
In anticipation of the start of next year’s Red Line South project, the Chicago Transit Authority held meetings with various community and neighborhood groups including local chambers of commerce, block clubs, faith-based groups and other organizations to answer their questions, listen to their concerns and suggestions.