CTA: New stop expected to open in 2011 in West Loop






Residents, commuters and
businesses in Chicago’s West Loop, which has undergone a transformation from
primarily a manufacturing district 15 years ago to a vibrant neighborhood with
condos, town homes, arty shops and hip bars, are looking forward to a new
elevated train station, the Chicago Tribune reports. Allyson Holleb, owner of a
handbag shop near the proposed Chicago Transit Authority station at Lake and
Morgan Streets, hopes it will bring even more people to the neighborhood.
Construction could be a nightmare, she said, but it would be worth it to get a
station.

Joint venture wins New York tunneling project

A $659-million railway-tunneling
contract has been won by a joint venture comprised of Granite Construction
Northeast, Traylor Bros. and Frontier-Kemper Constructors, according to International
Construction.

The contract was awarded
by New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Capital Construction
company and involves building the Queens bored tunnels and structures for Long
Island Rail Road’s East Side Access project in New York.

Inaugural intercity train to stop in Manassas, Va.






An inaugural train set to
usher in new intercity rail service in Virginia will stop Sept. 30 in Manassas,
local media report. The train, billed as taking a whistle stop tour, will leave
Washington’s Union Station at 8:30 a.m. bound for Lynchburg. It is scheduled to
arrive in Old Town Manassas at 11:40 a.m.

BNSF engineering team completes major projects in 96-Hour window






In just 96 hours recently,
the BNSF engineering team completed several projects on the Lafayette
Subdivision in Louisiana, according to the company newsletter. Considered an
engineering "blitz," the team aimed to maximize track work and minimize
disruption for community members, all while making sure safety was a top
priority. The work window was granted from 6 a.m. Monday, Sept. 21, through 6
a.m. Friday, Sept. 25.

L.B. Foster awarded $2.1-million DART rail products contract






L.B. Foster Company of Pittsburgh
has been awarded a contract to supply direct fixation fasteners and bonded
insulated joints for the first phase of the new Dallas Area Rapid Transit
(DART) Orange Line from the city center of Dallas to Irving, Texas. L.B. Foster
is coordinating product shipments to the Northwest Corridor Expansion project
to meet the scheduling requirements of the general contractor joint venture,
Kiewit/Stacy and Witbeck/Reyes/Parsons Corporation.

Iowa officials reopen Waterloo Bridge damaged in 2008 floods






Iowa Governor Chet Culver joined
Congressman Bruce Braley in Waterloo to reopen the Iowa Northern Railway
bridge, a freight line that was damaged when the Cedar River flooded in 2008.
The reconstruction project is funded through $1 million in Culver/Judge I-JOBS
funds, and $2.1 million in federal railroad funds, secured by Congressman
Braley. The bridge is completely repaired except for the laying of the tracks.

Metrolink responds to L.A. Times article






Doug Smith’s article ("Metrolink
system’s toll: 244," 9/25) regarding the history of incidents and fatalities on
the Metrolink rail network was long on damning rhetoric and data but short on
reporting progress on a critical national matter – improving the safety of a
rail system that is shared by freight trains, Amtrak and commuter trains.
Railroad safety is a shared responsibility of regulatory agencies, railroad
owners and operators and the local jurisdictions with streets that cross
tracks.

Norfolk Southern launches TheFutureNeedsUs.com Website






Norfolk Southern has
launched a new Website focusing on the benefits of its corridor and
public-private partnership projects. The Web site, TheFutureNeedsUs.com <http://www.thefutureneedsus.com/>, describes projects to increase rail freight transportation
capacity and improve mobility and the environment. Information is provided for
projects in Alabama, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West
Virginia, where governors Riley, Barbour, Rendell, Bredesen, Kaine and Manchin
are leaders in supporting transportation solutions.

National Gateway Honored as “Competitiveness Project of the Year”






The National Gateway
coalition has been honored as "Competitiveness Project of the Year"
by the North American Strategic Infrastructure Leadership Forum, a leading infrastructure
identification and development group. The award recognizes the National Gateway
as the "project that contributes most to the [North American] region’s
capacity for global competitiveness."

Forum: Rail plan must help businesses






At
the public’s first opportunity to weigh in on the immediate future of Maine
railroads, the message was clear: Make them work for Maine businesses, the
Bangor Daily News reports. About 25 people from railroads, economic development
groups and government agencies gathered in Bangor to discuss the development of
the Maine Rail Plan. The state has hired consulting firm HNTB Corp. to formulate
a blueprint for improving rail access in Maine, for both freight and
passengers.

Caltrain construction, maintenance update, Sept. 26 – Oct. 2






Work on Caltrain’s Grade
Crossing Improvement Program, which will enhance safety at 25 grade crossings
in San Mateo County, continues at Broadway and Oak Grove Avenue in Burlingame.
The work will take place from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1, between the hours of 8 p.m.
and 4 a.m. Throughout the project area, at least one lane of the impacted
street will remain open.

RailComm recognized by Inc. 5,000






RailComm, a leading
provider of software-based train control and railroad/passenger rail management
information systems, has been ranked by Inc. magazine’s Inc. 5,000 list of the
fastest-growing private companies in the country. RailComm was recognized based
on its revenue growth of 208.2 percent from 2005 to 2008 and ranked 1,528 on
the overall list. RailComm was also ranked 93rd amongst the top
software development companies. This is RailComm’s third year in a row to be
recognized on the Inc. 5,000 list. 


Environmental assessment for Chicago-Iowa City passenger service






The Iowa Department of
Transportation, in cooperation with the Illinois Department of Transportation,
is seeking public input concerning the environmental assessment of proposed
routes for intercity passenger rail service between Iowa City and Chicago.
Released for public review on Sept. 25, the EA will be presented and discussed
at a public input meeting Tuesday, Sept. 29, in Moline, Ill.

STB completes Northern Rail Extension Final EIS






The federal Surface
Transportation Board has completed the Final Environmental Impact Statement for
the Alaska Railroad Corporation application to construct and operate a rail
line between North Pole and Delta Junction. Known as the Northern Rail
Extension, the project would offer safe freight and passenger rail service to
communities southeast of North Pole; support agricultural, mining and
petrochemical industries; and provide year-round reliable access to military
training areas.

Bob Baer to head St. Louis Metro






The St. Louis Metro’s
Board Chairman, Jeffrey Watson, said that the Board of Commissioners reached an
agreement with Bob Baer to become the Agency’s permanent chief executive.

TIGER Grant applications showcase demand nationwide






The U.S. Department of
Transportation received nearly 1,400 applications from all 50 states,
territories and the District of Columbia vying for a share of $1.5 billion the
department will award for innovative transportation projects that show
significant economic and environmental promise for the nation, a region, or
metropolitan area, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said.

CP eyes new $400-million rail tunnel to Detroit






Canadian Pacific Railway
has been quietly advancing plans for a new $400-million rail tunnel under the
Detroit River and will probably start digging two years from now, the Canwest
News Service reports. A construction permit for the tunnel has already been
issued in the U.S., sources said, but the environmental assessment process has
just begun on the Canadian side and will take up to 18 months.


Connecticut seeks grants to renovate freight rail






 

In the biggest move in
decades to renovate Connecticut’s freight rail system, the state is seeking
more than $109 million in grants to refurbish or rebuild deteriorated tracks in
Middletown, Hartford, East Windsor, Danbury and elsewhere, according to The
Hartford Courant.

Union Pacific sets ribbon cutting for Boone, Iowa bridge






On October 1, Union
Pacific Chairman and CEO Jim Young, Director of Iowa Department of
Transportation Nancy Richardson and Boone Mayor John Slight will officially
open and name the new railroad bridge just west of Boone, Iowa, that is one of
the highest double-track railroad bridges in North America coming in at 2,813
feet long and 190 feet high above the Des Moines River.  After remarks from Young, Director
Richardson and Mayor Slight at the UP depot in Boone, officials and media will
board a train to go look at the new bridge close up. The public is invited to
attend the remarks at the UP depot.