Elected officials closed of
a $100-million deal with CSX Corp. to launch commuter rail service to the South
Coast and increase service for Central Massachusetts commuters, the Telegram
and Gazette reports. The agreement, announced by the governor and other
officials, allows the state to buy more than 30 miles of track from Taunton to
the Fall River and New Bedford area, which is crucial to passenger service.
BART has completed the
Final Program Environmental Impact Report (FPEIR) for an extension between the
Dublin/Pleasanton Station and the City of Livermore, Calif. The FPEIR consists
of a "Response to Comments" (Volume 2), which publishes BART’s
replies to public comments about the project together with the previously
issued Draft Program Environmental Impact Report (Volume 1). Both volumes of the
FPEIR are now available.
(The following statement
was issued by Association of American Railroads President and CEO Edward R.
Hamberger in response to the Teamsters Rail Conference employee survey titled "High
Alert 2") "Feedback from rail employees can be useful in improving worker
communication and training techniques. However, it is important to keep this
subjective survey in context: This is not a study or report on railroad
security. It is an unscientific survey of the perceptions of a small percentage
of the freight railroad workforce about security.
Alaska Railroad Corp. has
received a permit from state regulators to spray the herbicide AquaMaster (key
ingredient Glyphosate) and Agri-Dex, a substance to help spread it, along 30
miles of track between Seward and Indian, Seward City News reports. The
railroad has not used chemical weed control for the past 26 years due to
widespread public opposition and an inability to obtain the needed permits. The
Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation permit is for two years. But
earlier this month six Alaska environmental groups and the Native Village of
Eklutna intervened to delay DEC from activating the permit. The groups are
hoping that the agency will reverse its decision altogether.
Backers of a proposed
$400-million Detroit River rail tunnel announced June 17 they have launched the
first steps toward construction, The Windsor Star reports. CP Railway, Borealis
Infrastructure and the Windsor Port Authority have joined together to work on
building a new double-stack high-clearance tunnel to replace the existing rail
freight tunnel constructed in 1909.
California, the top
recipient of funds from President Barack Obama’s high-speed rail program,
expects to issue a tender for a bullet-train line linking Los Angeles and San
Francisco by late 2011, BusinessWeek reported.
June 18-20, Washington,
D.C., Metro will make upgrades to the track and a bridge on the Red Line to
improve reliability and service. As a result of this crucial work aimed at
keeping the railroad in a state of good repair, riders can expect delays of up
to 30 minutes.
CSX Transportation joined
with the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority and the National Gateway to
celebrate the arrival of five new ultra-efficient intermodal cranes at the Port
of Toledo, Ohio. The cranes are bound for the new Northwest Ohio Intermodal Terminal
in North Baltimore, Ohio.
Imagine boarding a train
in Queen Creek and arriving 35 minutes later at a restaurant on Tempe’s Mill
Avenue, then hopping back on board for a 10-minute jaunt to Chase Stadium in downtown
Phoenix, The Arizona Republic asks.
Amtrak is using $115
million in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to improve
tracks, buildings and control systems in Chicago this construction season, as
part of a $1-billion construction program to fund capital projects designed to
rebuild critical infrastructure.
Two rail tunnels under
the Hudson River – one dug by NJ Transit and another by Amtrak – could be built
within 20 years to handle the growing passenger load between New Jersey and
Manhattan, transportation officials said, The Record reports.
(The Teamster Rail
Conference sent the following letter to its membership): The Teamsters Rail
Conference takes great interest in efforts by our nation’s railroads to
maintain and improve the industry’s workplace security and safety – as well as
workforce training and awareness – especially in light of heightened security
threats and increased use of technology. As your representatives, we care
deeply about your job, your employers’ long-term security and viability, and
employer accountability across the rail industry.
The NJ TRANSIT Board of
Directors advanced the first phase of a project that will transform Perth Amboy
Station into an ADA-accessible facility, with high-level platforms and
elevators to provide access for customers with disabilities.
NOMAD
Digital Limited, a provider of train-to-shore data connectivity solutions, has
been awarded a contract with train builder Talgo. The contract is to deliver
and operate a high-quality wireless broadband and live passenger information
system on all Talgo’s train sets, servicing its cross border route from
Vancouver, Canada, through Seattle and Portland and Eugene, Oregon. The project
forms part of a train refurbishment program that Talgo is undertaking.
The Canadian federal
government should get on board with a high-speed rail line linking Ontario and
Quebec or risk being left in the dust by the Obama administration in the United
States, the premiers of both provinces said Wednesday, according to the Toronto
Star.
Representatives from the Connecticut Department of Transportation and URS engineering consultants held an information session
in Brookfield Town Hall June
16 to introduce four alternatives for improving the Danbury rail line. One
potential option includes extending passenger service up to New Milford, which
would include a stop in Brookfield, the Brookfield Patch reports.
Thirty companies
representing the U.S.’ rail and infrastructure technology, engineering,
security and construction sectors will convene at the Emirates Palace Hotel in
Abu Dhabi on June 20 to launch the "The U.S. Commercial Railroad &
Infrastructure Trade Mission to the United Arab Emirates," led by the
U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council and the Association of American Railroads.
Construction for a bridge
over Lenwood Road near West Main Street in Barstow, Calif., is expected to
begin in two years and will transform the current two-lane road into a
four-lane road, the Desert Dispatch reports.
The new method to paint
the railroad bridge across Alabama’s Coosa River was cheaper than the other
proposed method, but just not cheap enough, local media report. Gadsden Associate Planner Shane
Ellison said the city received only one bid for the CSX Transportation railroad
bridge coating project, and it was much higher than the grant funds the city
has for the project.
Sealy, Texas, residents
could hear a few less trains blow their horns while passing through town within
a year as the city moves forward with plans to construct a quiet zone
stretching the length of the city, the Sealy News reports.
