Detroit City Council gave unanimous approval of construction and operating agreements, putting construction of the M-1 Rail 3.3-mile streetcar project in motion this July.
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has awarded a $1.8-million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant to rehabilitate 12 miles of track on the state-owned rail line located between Erick and Sayre, Okla., that will enable faster speeds and increases in freight service along the line.
Keolis Commuter Services (KCS) has reached agreement with all 14 of the labor unions representing its employees for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) commuter rail service, which Keolis begins operating on July 1.
Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph Szabo called on elected officials and transportation planners in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia to develop a shared vision of rail service along the Southeast High-Speed Rail Corridor (SEHSR) between Washington, D.C., and Atlanta, Ga.
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) plans to open the Silver Line July 26, 2014, according to General Manager and Chief Executive Officer Richard Sarles.
Alaska Railroad (ARRC) crews continue to make progress on plugging an 80-foot-long washout following high waters at Skookum Creek (ARRC milepost 59.7).
The incident began about 7:30 a.m. June 17, when high water eroded the trackbed, leaving the track suspended over the water. Alaska Railroad track maintenance crews, heavy equipment and a rockhauling work train have been working round-the clock for three days to plug the gap and re-route a high volume of water.
“Earlier this week, this area experienced significant isolated rainfall that measured as much as a half inch every 10-15 minutes for a sustained period,” said ARRC Vice President Engineering Clark Hopp. “We are essentially dealing with a new river channel that did not previously exist.”
While freight traffic is not affected, passenger train traffic southbound from Anchorage has been suspended since the incident occurred. A decision to restore passenger service will be made at 7p.m. on June 20 and is based on the progress of the repair efforts.
The railroad has not yet determined the final financial impact of the outage. However, ARRC says revenue losses are expected to reach tens of thousands of dollars due to refunds and cancellations. Track repair expenses will also be considerable, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Virginia’s Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) approved a $13.1 billion, six-year improvement program, which allocates
$3.2 billion for rail and public transportation projects.
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) Board of Directors has awarded a $210-million contract for the South Coast Rail Project to Vanasee Hangen Brustlin/HNTB Corporation, officially moving the project from planning into construction.
The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) is launching an emergency project on June 20, 2014, to repair the light-rail tracks and prevent further erosion of land around the Cold Spring Station due to heavy rains. Emergency work will require the temporary closure of the Mt. Washington, Cold Spring and Woodberry stations for approximately three weeks and MTA anticipates the project should be complete by July 11, 2014, weather permitting.
Alaska Railroad passenger train traffic southbound from Anchorage was interrupted June 17 due to high water damage to the track at Skookum Creek, located between Luebner Lake and Portage.
The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (SCVTA) says its Bay Area Rapid Transportation (BART) Silicon Valley Project, Phase II, is well positioned to receive unanticipated funding through the state’s Cap and Trade Program, included in the 2014-15 state budget spending plan.
The California General Assembly and Gov. Jerry Brown reached a budget deal that will includes a $250 million appropriation for high-speed rail in the next fiscal year, which begins July 1.
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) celebrated the completion of tunneling work for the Central Subway Project, the extension of the Muni Metro T Third Line.
The Honolulu rail transit project has completed the first 100 support columns of the planned elevated rail system.
Metro Transit‘s METRO Green Line Light Rail Line, which links St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minn., improving access to jobs and other opportunities, is now open to passengers.
GrandLinq, a public-private partnership (PPP) in which AECOM Technology Corporation participates, has been awarded a contract by the Region of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada.
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Metro-North Railroad has issued its 100-Day Report on the Action Plan established by President Joseph Giulietti, which focused the railroad’s efforts on improving safety, restoring reliability and improving communications.
Working to improve rail service, reliability and address a longstanding bottleneck along Amtrak’s busy Northeast Corridor (NEC), the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) and Amtrak are advancing an engineering and environmental study to examine various
The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is taking the next steps in modernizing the Red Line by awarding two station construction contracts.
The CTA Board approved the award of two contracts for the Wilson and 95th/Dan Ryan stations, projects that will replace and expand existing stations and provide customers with a convenient, 21st Century transit experience.
The U.S. House of Representatives approved the fiscal year 2015 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) funding bill on a vote of 229-192. The legislation includes funding for the Department of Transportation, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and other related agencies.