The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) Board of Commissioners approved a major redevelopment of Greenville Yard that will include a new ExpressRail facility, the fourth of its type to be built by the agency, that will support the adjacent Global Marine Terminal. This will allow the terminal to ship and receive containerized cargo by rail.
Union Pacific will strengthen Nebraska’s transportation infrastructure by investing $11 million in the rail line between Grand Island and Gibbon, Neb. The UP-funded project began September 12 and is scheduled to be completed by mid-December.
Watco Companies has formed the Watco Safety, Training, and Compliance Team. The company says the team formation is an effort to continually improve focus on its people and customers.
Two pieces of rail-related legislation have progressed on opposite sides of the hill.
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) is expressing concerns over the Surface Transportation Board (STB) Reauthorization Bill (S.2777), scheduled to be marked up in the Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday, September 17, 2014.
Kansas City Southern completed a large bridge project where it rebuilt six timber bridges on the Beaumont Subdivision in an area known as the Sabine River bottoms near Starks, La., in order to increase track speed to add capacity.
In late July 2014, Strukton Systems installed a POSS switch monitoring system in Detroit, Mich., which involved Canadian National Railway switches at the Moterm junction. At the end of the six-month period, CN will decide whether or not it will be acquiring the system.
The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $53.7 million in Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants that will help rail projects in six states and District of Columbia.
The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded $2.5 million in Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery funds to complete the master plan for expansion of the marine terminal in Seward, Alaska.
The Alaska Railroad Corporation (ARRC) and the city of Seward submitted the application for the planning grant funds concurrently with an application for capital project grant funding. These grants are necessary to fund improvements to Seward’s West Dock, which primarily services passenger ships and is nearing the end of its useful life.
While the program makes competitive grants based on a variety of factors, U.S. Sen. Mark Begich (D-AL) said a recent visit by U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx certainly helped.
“I brought Secretary Foxx to Alaska in August so that he could get a better understanding of our state’s special transportation challenges. I’m glad to see the visit generated some real results,” said Sen. Begich. “These grant funds will be used to develop plans for the Seward dock expansion, a project that will provide family-wage jobs and increase transportation and economic growth in Seward and throughout the state.”
Sen. Begich organized a meeting between representatives of ARRC, Secretary Foxx and other transportation leaders during his visit to Alaska. During the meeting, railroad representatives pressed Secretary Foxx on the urgency of funding the Seward Marine Terminal Expansion project. In order to complete the project, ARRC must complete several studies including a passenger study, freight traffic study and transportation connectivity study. These elements will be the foundation of a new Seward Marine Terminal Expansion Master Plan, which will allow ARRC to prioritize infrastructure improvements at the terminal in order to better serve regional, state and national partners and customers.
Several rail-related projects across eight states will benefit from close to $90 million million in Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants.
U.S. Sens. John Thune (R-SD) and John Rockefeller IV (D-WV) introduced the STB Reauthorization Act of 2014, which the senators said is expected to increase efficiency of the Surface Transportation Board (STB) by changing internal processes and increasing timeliness of STB decisions to improve U.S. rail service.
Canadian National (CN) has officially opened its new employee training center in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The 100,000-square-foot facility is currently hosting 350-plus CN students from across Canada every week, with hands-on training for all key railway jobs.
Canadian National (CN) has officially opened its new employee training center in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The 100,000-square-foot facility is currently hosting 350-plus CN students from across Canada every week, with hands-on training for all key railway jobs.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) is seeking a new partner to operate the 13-mile Piedmont & Northern Railway line from Gastonia to Mount Holly in Gaston County following Patriot Rail’s announcement that it will terminate its lease of the shortline.
Union Pacific will begin a major rail replacement project September 15 on its West Line, which serves freight and Metra passenger trains in Illinois.
U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent (R-PA-15) joined representatives from R.J. Corman Railroad Company and the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) for a tour of R.J. Corman’s rail yard and material sales facility in Allentown, Pa.
Kansas City Southern promoted L.E. Jameson to assistant vice president safety and standardization where he will report to vice president transportation and safety Steven Truitt.
The official opening of the Mufford Crescent overpass marks the official completion of all nine Roberts Bank Rail Corridor (RBRC) infrastructure improvement projects in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada.
Metrolink, Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) and Operation Lifesaver Inc., launched a combined safety campaign September 4 of “See Tracks? Think Train!” to honor Rail Safety Awareness month in California.