Update to Brightline West Field Investigation Work
LAS VEGAS – Brightline West gives an update on the field investigation work taking place in Southern California and Nevada for the proposed rail corridor.
SEPTA Welcomes Passengers to New Drexel Station at 30th Street
PHILADELPHIA –– SEPTA joined Drexel University and local, state and federal officials this week for a ribbon cutting to celebrate the newly reconstructed and renamed Drexel Station at 30th Street.
SFMTA Train Traffic Control System Runs on Floppy Disks
SAN FRANCISCO –– The San Francisco Metropolitan Transportation Agency’s train control system today uses a system that relies on 5 1/2-inch floppy disks –– the ones that are really floppy.
MTA Renovates 2 More Stations Under Re-NEW-vation Program
NEW YORK CITY – Under the Re-NEW-vation program, the MTA upgraded, cleaned, and inspected the Sutphin Boulevard-Archer Av-JFK Airport and Jamaica-Van Wyck stations in Queens.
Pat Porzillo to Serve as HDR’s Transit Engineering Director
WASHINGTON ––HDR’s Pat Porzillo, P.E., was recently promoted to be the firm’s transit engineering director.
PANY/NJ Launches $430MM ‘PATH Forward’ Program
NEWARK – The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANY/NJ) on April 5 reported kicking off a two-year, $430 million program to upgrade stations, tracks, bridges and railcars at PATH (Port Authority Trans-Hudson Corp.), the fifth-busiest rapid transit system in the United States.
WATCH: SMART Gauntlet Track Construction for Petaluma North Station
PETALUMA, Calif. – From April 13th to 14th, SMART will have a partial system closure to install a gauntlet track for a new Petaluma North station.
Saskatchewan Short Lines Receive C$530K in SRIP Allocations
SASKATCHEWAN – The government of Saskatchewan announced it is investing C$530,000 in short line rail infrastructure.
Track Inspections and Speed Restrictions After 4.8 Earthquake in NJ; Amtrak, CSX, MTA (UPDATED 4/8)
WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J. – After a 4.8 earthquake, Amtrak implements speed restrictions and performs track inspections. CSX inspected bridges and related structures.
Sound Transit’s Lynnwood Link Extension Launches August 30th
SEATTLE – Sound Transit will welcome riders onboard the Link 1 Line extension later this summer.
PUCO Approves $3M in Rail Crossing Upgrades in Pickaway County
COLUMBUS, Ohio – PUCO approved almost $3 million in grade crossing upgrades in Circleville, Ohio. Norfolk Southern will complete said upgrades.
George Smerk, Noted Indiana University Transportation Professor, Has Died
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. –– Railway Track & Structures recently learned that Indiana University Transportation professor Dr. George M. Smerk, Jr., died last year.
Minn. Senate Transportation Chair Dibble Supports Change of Responsibility From Met Council to MnDOT
MINNEAPOLIS – After rising costs and construction delays, Senate Transportation Chair Scott Dibble argues the MnDOT should oversee future light rail projects as opposed to the Met Council.
Metra Outlines 2024 Construction Plan
CHICAGO – Metra on April 3 detailed its construction program for 2024, covering station, track, road crossing, bridge, and signal/communications improvement projects along the Chicagoland commuter railroad’s 11 lines totaling nearly 500 route-miles. In addition
LA Metro Finishes 5 Years of Tunneling for D Line Subway Extension Project
LOS ANGELES – LA Metro has finished five years of tunneling. The Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) added nine additional miles to the D Line.
Metro Transit Will Upgrade Blue Line
MINNEAPOLIS – In a project that is reported to cost $120 million, Metro Transit will upgrade its Blue Line that has been in use for the last twenty years.
Ripple Effects of Baltimore Bridge Collapse on Rail Industry and Supply Chains
ATLANTA –– The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore last week is having a ripple effect on eastern railroads and supply chains.
STB Approves Savage Tooele Railroad Company to Construct 11 Miles of Rail in Utah
SALT LAKE CITY – Savage Tooele Railroad Company (STR) has approval to build and operate 11 miles of rail in Utah that will connect to Union Pacific Railroad.
PANYNJ Trains NJ Small Business Owners for AirTrain Newark Projects
NEWARK – At the Rutgers-Newark campus, the AirTrain Newark Business Training & Capacity Building Initiative will come together for an 8-week curriculum to train small business owners.
Innovate or Die –– From Our Colleagues at Railway Age
ATLANTA –– This commentary is from David Peter Alan, a Contributing Editor with Railway Age and is made available to RT&S through colleagues at our sister magazine.