Phase 1 and Phase 2 of a major upgrade of the Seattle Maintenance Facility in Washington State has been completed by Amtrak and its partners. The facilities support Amtrak operations and maintenance agreements in the Pacific Northwest for the Empire Builder, Coast Starlight, Amtrak Cascades and Sounder commuter trains.
Las Vegas Railway Express, Inc. (X Train), the company building a luxury passenger train with planned rail service between Southern California and Las Vegas, Nev., selected R&O Construction as the general contractor for the X Train’s Las Vegas Station. R&O Construction is a national general contractor firm.
Caltrain will receive $3.2 million in U.S. Department of Transportation grant funds to install an advanced signal system needed to support modernized Caltrain service and the eventual addition of high-speed rail.
L.B. Foster Company has been awarded a contract to provide 89,175 of its CXT Concrete Ties for the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) project.
The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) has awarded an on-call contract to Parsons Brinckerhoff for construction services in support of the agency’s efforts to implement accelerated rail services along a high-speed rail corridor between Pontiac/Detroit, Mich., and Chicago, Ill.
The completion of the work to rehabilitate seven stations along the West End D Line in Brooklyn, N.Y., is now complete.
For the first time in the nearly 150-year history of the railroad, San Francisco Bay-area’s Caltrain average weekday ridership is more than 50,000, according to the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board.
Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Metro-North Railroad is refurbishing two bridges in Mount Vernon, N.Y., this summer, one that carries cars over train tracks and one that carries train tracks over cars.
Siemens has received a multi-million dollar order from Ansaldo Honolulu JV to electrify the track for the new Honolulu rail transit system. The rail system is the first for the state and is scheduled to be completed in 2019. It will span 20 miles from East Kapolei to Ala Moana Center with 21 stations along the route, including Pearl Harbor and the Honolulu Airport.
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority recognized agency-wide contributions to a safer work environment at the 15th annual Chairman’s Safety Awards last week. At a ceremony in Grand Central Terminal’s Vanderbilt Hall, MTA leaders recognized team achievements within the MTA and its operating agencies.
Miami-Dade Transit opened its 23rd Metrorail station, the new Miami International Airport (MIA) Station on July 28.
In Dallas, Texas, Dallas Area Rapid Transit’s long-anticipated Orange Line to Irving opened on July 30.
New York City Transit’s intense maintenance and clean-up program, FASTRACK, wrapped up a weeklong stint along the Sixth Avenue B, D, F and M lines. Once again, hundreds of transit workers inspected, repaired, maintained, cleaned and painted subway infrastructure in stations and tunnels between 59th Street-Columbus Circle and West 4th Street.
Bay Area Rapid Transit in the San Francisco Bay area is looking to give small businesses a boost by increasing contracting opportunities within the transit district. At a recent board of directors meeting, BART’s Office of Civil Rights outlined a comprehensive strategy to change the agency’s processes in awarding contracts to small businesses, especially socially and economically disadvantaged businesses and those who employ disabled veterans. The plan was met with enthusiasm from the community during the meeting with one observer calling it a model for the Bay Area and even the nation.
Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority was honored by the American Public Transportation Association with the 2012 Outstanding Public Transportation System Achievement Award for efforts to enhance service, efficiencies and overall effectiveness.
The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority said that on Monday, Molina, the tunnel boring machine digging the last of the four East Side Access tunnels in Queens, came to a halt six feet underneath the Long Island Rail Road mainline in Long Island City, completing its run. The milestone marks the end of tunnel boring for the East Side Access project and all MTA megaprojects.
Phoenix Arizona’s Valley Metro received regional approval from the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) on the route and transit mode for the Phoenix West extension. Light rail will be extended 11 miles from downtown Phoenix, through the State Capitol area, to approximately 79th Avenue and the I-10 West freeway. This is Valley Metro’s first freeway corridor project, providing the growing West Valley with a higher-capacity and more efficient transit option by 2023.
TriMet in Portland, Ore., received a delivery of 64 steel girders for the Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail Transit Project. The girders will support the Project’s Harbor Structure decking that will carry the light rail over and under several roadways in South Waterfront.
Metrolinx in Toronto, ON, Canada, is moving forward on its plans for a new Acton GO Station.
Amtrak has released a Master Plan to revitalize the terminal at Washington Union Station.