Port starts repair work on Oregon rail line






The Oregon International
Port of Coos Bay will begin repairs this week on a series of tunnels whose
deterioration led to the September 2007 closure of the 110-mile Coos Bay line
formerly operated by Central Oregon & Pacific Railroad, The News-Review in Roseburg, Ore.,
reports. The work is the first stage of a rehabilitation project to get the
rail line back in operational shape. Officials hope the line could be running
again by the second or third quarter of next year.

Railroad relents on Illinois platform, tower project







Union Pacific railroad
officials responded to Braeside neighborhood residents’ concerns and agreed to
move the massive platform and communications tower being built next to the
railroad tracks on the south east side of Highland Park, Ill., Pioneer Press
reports. City leaders requested a meeting with the railroad company after a
group of residents attended the Aug. 24 City Council meeting and spoke against
the construction that created an unsightly streetscape along the once heavily
tree-lined railway.

CTA approves cameras for all train stations






The CTA moved to equip all
144 rail stations with security cameras, the Chicago Tribune reports. The
agency’s board approved a $4.3-million contract with Teleste Corp. of
Georgetown, Texas, to install cameras and related equipment.

Gov. Doyle unveils Southeast Wisconsin regional transit proposal






Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle revealed
a framework of a proposal crafted with legislators from southeastern Wisconsin
on a plan to improve bus and rail service in Milwaukee, Kenosha and Racine
through a Regional Transit Authority, according to The Business Journal of
Milwaukee. The proposal would give Milwaukee County the authority to raise
local sales taxes by 0.5 percent to fund local transit and a commuter rail
line.

 

SEPTA begins work on Route 102 trolley






SEPTA began a massive
overhaul Sept. 8 of the Route 102 Sharon Hill Line-the first phase of various
improvements of two trolley lines funded with $34 million in federal stimulus
grants, the Delaware County Daily Times reports.

MTA Metro-North renews study of Penn Station access






MTA Metro-North Railroad
is streamlining its study of how best to provide direct train service from its
New Haven and Hudson lines into Penn Station in New York City via the east
Bronx and Manhattan’s West Side. An environmental review began a decade ago
with the intent of developing a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for a
"Preferred Alternative" pursuant to the National Environmental
Protection Act. Through two screening processes, an initial list of 22 service
alternatives was narrowed to four "Build" alternatives, two
alternatives for Hudson Line service to Penn Station and two alternatives for
New Haven Line service to Penn Station.

B.H.I.T., Inc., acquires The Wood Energy Group






B.H.I.T., Inc., a publicly
traded
railroad support services company headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla., has acquired 100 percent of
the equity securities of The Wood Energy Group, Inc. for $6.4 million, plus
customary closing adjustments.

Los Angeles Metrolink struggles with reforms






As the anniversary of the
Sept. 12 Chatsworth train disaster approaches, officials with Southern
California’s sprawling commuter rail service are facing a vexing array of
technical, financial and potential legal challenges as they struggle to deliver
on pledges of trailblazing safety reforms, The Los Angeles Times reports.

Fight imperils high-speed rail in Illinois






Springfield, Ill.,
officials’ public fight against additional train traffic along the Third Street
corridor could derail the entire plan to provide high-speed rail service
between Springfield and Chicago, a vice president of the Union Pacific Railroad
told the State Journal-Register. Alternatively, railroad vice president John
Rebensdorf warned in an Aug. 28 letter to U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the
railroad could carry out its plans unilaterally, and Springfield could "become
the bottleneck of the new high speed passenger rail route."

"

Celebrating 100 years of Canada’s Spiral Tunnels






Canadian Pacific and the
Royal Ontario Museum celebrated the 100th birthday of the Burgess Shale and the
Spiral Tunnels – two national icons in Yoho National Park of Canada. 1909 marked a year of
incredible discovery and an awe-inspiring engineering marvel leading to 100 years of successful railway operations through Kicking Horse Pass in
Yoho National Park.

Maryland has plans for bigger BWI rail station






Every day, 1,800 passengers
head to the rail station next to BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport, local media
report. Every day, they board more than 40 trains headed for Washington,
Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and destinations all along the Northeast Corridor.
It’s the 15th busiest station in the Amtrak network. Now, the Maryland
Department of Transportation wants to study the idea of doubling the station’s
size and recently applied for a $10-million federal grant for a detailed
engineering study.

 

South Shore schedules work Sept. 12-14






The South Shore is alerting
passengers to a series of planned temporary weekend construction outages. The
second of five weekend outages is scheduled for September 12-14, 2009. South
Shore trains will not operate trains in either direction between South Bend,
Ind., and Gary, Ind., Metro Center on the following weekends from 2:30 a.m.
Saturday thru 3:00 a.m. Monday: September 12-14 and 26-28, October 10-12 and October
31-November 2. The South Shore will
operate regular weekend train service between Gary Metro Center and Chicago.

DM&E will likely rise again, and conditions may be different






The Dakota Minnesota
& Eastern Railroad said last week it is suspending its planned $6 billion
project to ship Wyoming coal across South Dakota and Minnesota, due to the poor
economy, noted an editorial in the Madison, S.D., Daily Leader. A controversial
proposal for more than a decade, the DM&E’s expansion was effectively put
on hold when it dropped its condemnation lawsuits against some landowners where
the trains would have run.

Study to estimate repairs at Kansas depot






Commissioners unanimously
agreed to spend about $25,000 to study what repairs are needed at the BNSF
Depot at Seventh and New Jersey streets, the Lawrence, Kan., Journal-World
reports. Commissioners agreed to hire Lawrence-based Hernly Associates to
conduct the assessment.

County commissioners derail support for track relocation






Colbert County, Ala.,
Commissioners will not be writing a letter of support for a proposed project to
relocate the Norfolk Southern tracks that run through Sheffield, Muscle Shoals
and Tuscumbia, according to the Florence Times-Daily. An item seeking support
from the commission was removed from the Sept. 8 meeting agenda by Commission
Chairman Roger Creekmore at the request of Commissioner Emmitt Jimmar, who
questioned why the commission was even involved in the issue.

Maine city pins hopes on N.B. rail link






The coastal city of
Eastport, Me., sees its future economic prosperity linked to a 30-kilometre (18.6-mile)
railway connection leading to the Canadian border at St. Stephen, N.B., the
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported. The Maine city needs a railway to
carry cargo to and from its deep-water port to other markets in Canada and the
United States.

D.C. Metrorail schedules Columbus Day Weekend track work






On the Washington, D.C.,
Metro, the Waterfront-SEU and Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter Metrorail
stations will be closed and the Green and Yellow Lines also will be closed at
the L’Enfant Plaza Metrorail station from 9:30 p.m., on Friday, Oct. 9, through
Monday, Oct. 12, with no Green or Yellow Line service at these three stations
at that time. Service will resume at 5 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 13. There will be
no Yellow Line service in the District of Columbia or Maryland during the
Columbus Day holiday weekend, with service available only between the
Huntington and Pentagon Metrorail stations. 



BNSF, IDOT to pay for Burlington, Iowa, crossing closures

At a meeting September 8,
the Burlington, Iowa, City Council is expected to approve a financial agreement
with BNSF and the Iowa Department of Transportation for the closure of three
downtown grade crossings, according to the Burlington Hawkeye. Under terms of
the agreement, BNSF will pay the city $65,500, with IDOT providing $22,500
toward the closure of Third, Seventh and Eighth streetsCity officials had
intended to address those crossings in 2010 as part of a plan to silence noise
from train horns approved by the Federal Railroad Administration. The quiet
zone plan also includes safety upgrades and modifications at seven additional
downtown crossings.