East Bay Congressman John
Garamendi (D.Calif.) toured BART to see how a new construction project, using
$13 million in federal stimulus money, is putting thousands of people to work
and will ultimately provide more seating, more trains and improved on-time
performance for BART commuters riding between Pleasant Hill, Oakland and San
Francisco.
Amtrak
says it is ready for an exciting 2010 with major projects and new initiatives
that will benefit passengers, increase service, rebuild infrastructure, and put
America’s railroad at the center of intercity and high-speed passenger rail
development and expansion.
When Hampton Roads
Transit’s board meets in special session Jan. 11 to discuss the future of
embattled President Michael Townes, the members cannot immediately fire him, The
Virginian-Pilot reports. Townes’ contract requires that he be given 30 days
notice of a vote to terminate his employment. That notice was given Dec. 28,
when four board members wrote him demanding that he resign or they would
introduce a resolution to dismiss him at the Jan. 28 board meeting.
Denver’s Regional Transportation
District — in the wake of a fatal commuter rail crash in Los Angeles — is
installing $3 million in safety technology, The Denver Post reports. The Automatic
Train Stop technology, or ATS, is designed to prevent trains from going through
a red signal, the cause of the 2008 Los Angeles accident in which 25 people
were killed.
The very foundation of the
Burlington, Iowa, railroad bridge project over the Mississippi River may have
to be shifted before significant work can continue on-site for increasing the navigation
channel by constructing a lift-span, the Burlington Hawkeye reports. In
drilling foundations for a new pier on the east side of the span to support the
new lift-span, contractors encountered large rocks and sheet metal that
prevented them from finding bedrock and securing the foundations.
Unitrac has been named a key supplier and valuable
partner in the CSX Transportation supply chain. The company has been identified
as a key supplier that goes that extra mile by providing quality products and
timely deliveries.
The American Public
Transportation Association has launched the Center for High-Speed Rail to advance
and promote high-speed rail in the United States. The Website for the Center
for High-Speed Rail is www.highspeedrailonline.org .
With the extension and a
new method for painting the bridge, Gadsden, Ala., officials think the project
will be completed before the grant expires in September, the Gadsden Times
reports. The city received a grant for $500,000 from the Federal Railroad
Administration in 2005 for the CSX Transportation Railroad Bridge coating
project, but the appropriation was reduced because of across-the-board
rescissions by the Federal Highway Administration.
Reading Blue Mountain and
Northern Railroad has acquired a short-line between Towanda and Monroeton in northeastern
Pennsylvania. RBMN, which currently operates more than 300 miles of railroad in
Eastern Pennsylvania, purchased the assets of the approximately six-mile
Towanda-Monroeton Shippers Lifeline Railroad Inc. from former owner, Joseph
Zadrusky of Scranton, on Dec. 30, 2009. The line is approximately 40 miles
north of RBMN’s current terminus in Mehoopany, Pa. RBMN will be able to connect
its two properties by working with Lehigh Railway L.L.C., which leases a
Norfolk Southern line that connects to the Towanda-Monroeton line in Towanda.
The line will become part of the RBMN system.
Paducah & Louisville
Railway is looking for incentives to build a new headquarters in downtown
Paducah rather than move to one of the other cities where it does business, according to The Paducah Sun.
Railroad President Tony Reck told The Sun that the company is hoping to
stay in Western Kentucky, but isn’t close to making a commitment to any place.
Work on Caltrain’s Grade
Crossing Improvement Program, which will enhance safety at 25 grade crossings
in San Mateo County, continues at the following locations: Oak Grove Avenue,
Burlingame; First Avenue, San Mateo; Main Street, Redwood City; Watkins Avenue,
Atherton; and Oak Grove Avenue, Menlo Park.
Increasing travel options, improving access to goods and services and keeping the state competitive are some of the objectives of the 2009 Minnesota Comprehensive Statewide Freight and Passenger Rail Plan by the Minnesota Department of Transportation.
The rail plan, mandated by the 2008 Minnesota legislature and still in draft form, is the first step in obtaining federal funding for construction of lines within Minnesota and the region that tie into an emerging national rail system, according to Transportation Commissioner Tom Sorel.
"A priority in the plan is intercity passenger rail service between Chicago and the Twin Cities," Commissioner Sorel said. "While the corridors for the project have yet to be determined the connection would support development and economic competitiveness of the Midwest and provide an alternative to automobile and air travel."
In addition to service between Chicago and the Twin Cities, the plan also includes high-speed connections for Duluth and Rochester to the Twin Cities, in cooperation with the Mid-West Regional Rail Initiative.
The report also envisions additional passenger rail services to St. Cloud, Moorhead, Mankato and Eau Claire. Other corridors identified for future development beyond 2030 or as part of national system expansion include Albert Lea, Willmar and Winnipeg.
"This plan recommends that the rail system be developed incrementally with a goal of implementing key passenger services and preparing projects for federal funding as it becomes available," Commissioner Sorel said.
The plan estimates freight and passenger rail 20-year capital costs at $6.2 to $9.5 billion (uninflated). This total assumes $2.2 to $4.4 billion of private investment for freight improvements, and $4.0 to $5.1 billion in federal, state, local and additional private investments for passenger rail development. Mn/DOT officials said that the state rail plan cost estimates are based on high-level, system-wide unit costs, not detailed engineering costs being developed for specific corridors.
The document is now available for public review and comment on Mn/DOT’s Website at http://www.dot.state.mn.us/planning/railplan/. Mn/DOT will accept comments on the plan through Friday, Jan. 29, 2010.
The 2009 NRC/RT&S/Commercial Insurance Associates Safe Railroad Contractor of the Year Awards will be presented at NRC Conference being held at the JW Marriott in Palm Desert, Calif.
This year marked the fifth consecutive year of record participation in the contest, with 46 separate railroad contracting companies participating. Every one of these companies should be commended for their extensive efforts to promote and improve safety in the railroad contracting industry and for subjecting their full safety program and range of practices to an extensive outside review. These companies represent the very best of the NRC and the entire railroad construction and maintenance industry.
Special congratulations to the four category winners:
• US Trackworks LLC of Wayland, Michigan
• Delta Railroad Construction of Ashtabula, Ohio
• Mass Electric Construction/MECRail of Irving, Texas
• Loram Maintenance of Way of Hamel, Minnesota
A full list of awards is available at www.nrcma.org.
Dean Wise is joining BNSF as vice president, Network Strategy, effective Feb. 1, and will report directly to Matt Rose, chairman, president and chief executive officer.
Wise will also serve as a member of the Executive Team. He will, over the next few months, assume the responsibilities of Pete Rickershauser, who will retire April 30. Those responsibilities include directing the railroad’s Haulage Management, Interline Management, Network Strategy Development, Public-Private Partnerships and Short Line Business Development.
Wise earned a bachelor’s degree from Colgate University and a master’s degree from Harvard and has most recently been a partner of Norbridge Inc., a recognized consultant in the freight, transport and logistics industry.
RailComm has provided a wireless remote control yard system at CSXT’s Osborn Yard in Louisville, KY. The RailComm Domain Operations Controller (DOC®) system provides remote control to several GETS HydraSwitch machines. RailComm’s DOC® system is configured to control all switches individually as well as provide eNtrance eXit (NX) routing functionality.
RailComm’s 2.4 GHz RADiANTTM data radios provide a wireless communications network to link the office with the field locations.
The Surface Transportation Board granted the request of the Alaska Railroad Corporation to construct and operate a new, 80-mile railroad line, the Northern Rail Extension, subject to extensive environmental-mitigation conditions. The new line would run from North Pole, AK, outside of Fairbanks, to Delta Junction, which is only served by road or air.
According to the STB decision, "the Board was satisfied that the proposed line would provide reliable, year-round freight and passenger service to the region south of North Pole, AK; access to training areas used by the United States military; and an alternative to the Richardson Highway, now the sole means for surface transportation of commercial freight in the proposed project area. The Board was also satisfied that the proposal would foster development of Alaska’s economy by expanding ARRC’s passenger and freight network to an area currently without rail service."
NJ Transit awarded a $271.7 million contract to PTP Constructors of Secaucas, a joint venture of Schiavone Construction, J.F. Shea Construction and Skanska USA Civil Northeast. The contract is for the design and construction of a mile-long tunnel between North Bergen and Hoboken, roughly 185 feet beneath the Palisades.
In December, the first contract was awarded for the Midtown segment of the project. The $583 million contract was awarded to a consortium of Barnard of New Jersey and Judlau Contracting of College Point, N.Y. The third, and last, contract for the Hudson River segment is expected to be awarded next year.
The entire Access to the Region’s Core project, or ARC, will double the amount of trains that travel to Midtown and eliminate transfers to thousands of NJ Transit riders.
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority approved a two-year contract extension for Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Co., the firm that operates the T. This is the second contract extension granted to the firm and allows operation of the T until July 2013 at a combined cost of $559.7 for the final two years.
The contract extension also came with promises from the firm’s officials to build on service improvements made over the past year. In addition to improved performance and additional money for maintenance of the commuter fleet, passengers can expect to see a new system offering real-time information on train arrivals and wireless Internet access on every train.
Community leaders broke ground on The Port of Beaumont’s rail improvement project that will add close to 40,000 feet of track to the port. The project is expected to take 18 months to complete and should reduce traffic congestion as well as greenhouse gasses in the city, increase rail velocity and improve port security and safety.
The existing interchange yard, which is small and narrow, will be retired and a new turnout will lead directly to new interchange facilities within the terminal. In addition to the new track being installed, close to 4,000 feet of track will be upgraded and modernized.
Beaumont is served by BNSF, UP and KCS and handles around 25,000 rail cars annually. The new configuration will allow the port to receive and dispatch trains as a unit.
The City Council of Riverside, Calif., pledged $4.45 million of federal grants toward buying land for the $32 million Iowa Avenue railroad grade separation project.
Iowa Avenue is one of more than two dozen crossings within the city without overpasses or underpasses leading to severe traffic congestion. Grade separations have become a priority in recent years and the city is either designing, constructing or just completed five grade separation projects.
Design and land purchases for the Iowa Avenue project are expected to be completed late this year with construction to begin in early 2011.
