Search Results for: track maintenance

Denver Light Rail turns 15






This month, Denver’s
Regional Transportation District is marking the 15th anniversary of light rail
opening in the metro area. Since RTD opened the 5.3-mile Central Light Rail
Line October 7,1994, RTD’s 35-mile light rail system has carried nearly 150
million passenger trips. The light rail network carries an average of about
60,000 passenger trips every weekday, ahead of ridership projections. All four
of RTD’s light rail lines were built on time and on budget, and each exceeded
ridership projections. 

IBM signs contracts with three commuter agencies






IBM said the Long Island Rail Road will deploy IBM Maximo
software to manage and maintain approximately 1,180 rail cars, locomotives and
their associated components to improve operations and passenger safety. As part
of a project, expected to be completed in 2012, IBM will assist the LIRR in
expanding its asset management system to include facilities, bridges, tunnels
and linear assets such as rail.

NMRX enhances safety with new signaling system






Various construction crews
are working on the last 13 miles of railroad track in the New Mexico Rail
Runner Express corridor replacing the train’s current system of signals with a
new Centralized Traffic Control System. The CTC will assist train dispatchers
in moving trains more efficiently, thus enhancing the safety of the corridor
while also improving on-time performance for the New Mexico Rail Runner
Express.

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.

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.

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.

Massachusetts finalizes agreement with CSX Transportation






Mass. Lieutenant Governor
Timothy Murray said that the Commonwealth’s comprehensive multi-year rail
transportation agreement with CSX Transportation, the national freight carrier
serving Massachusetts, has been finalized. Lieutenant Governor Murray, who has
been working on this agreement since he was Mayor of Worcester, led the
negotiations for this agreement on behalf of the administration with critical
support from the Governor, Senator John Kerry and Congressman Jim McGovern. Many
of the agreement’s major elements were resolved last year; however, the long-standing
debate concerning liability remained unresolved.

 

Study predicts nearly 500,000 Ohio rail riders






As the deadline to apply
for a piece of $8 billion in stimulus funding for passenger rail service
approaches, Ohio officials have cleared a major hurdle with the delivery of a
ridership study that projects annual demand for rail service at nearly half a
million Ohioans, the Dayton Business Journal reported.

BMWED system federations merge






The governing bodies of
the Consolidated Rail System Federation and the Nickel Plate – Wheeling &
Lake Erie Federation, of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division
finalized a merger between the two federations. The newly merged federation will
retain the name, Consolidated Rail System Federation.

ICC approves rail safety improvements at three grade crossings






The Illinois Commerce Commission has granted
approval for the installation of automatic
flashing light signals and gates at the Triumph Road grade crossing of Dakota
Minnesota & Eastern track near Leaf River, Ogle County. The total estimated cost to install the
new automatic warning devices is $162,363.
The Grade Crossing Protection Fund will be used to pay 95 percent of the warning device installation costs, not to exceed
$154,245. DM&E will pay all
remaining installation costs, as well as all future operating and maintenance
costs. 

CTA temporarily suspends service in Blue Line’s Dearborn Subway

Rail service between the
Blue Line’s Western/Milwaukee and Washington stations temporarily will be
suspended from 10 p.m. Friday, August 28 until 4 a.m. Monday, August 31 as work
continues in the Dearborn subway to reduce slow zones. In addition, a single
track will be in effect between the UIC-Halsted and LaSalle stations from
midnight until 2 a.m. on Monday, August 31.  Eastbound customers at the UIC-Halsted, Clinton and LaSalle
stations must board and exit trains from the westbound side of the platform.

CN to fix Hafenrichter Road crossing

Canadian National plans
to repair the Hafenrichter Road crossing just southeast of Aurora, in
unincorporated Wheatland Township, local newspapers report. The crossing, which
lies along the suburban Elgin, Joliet and Eastern tracks, will be shut down for
four days next month, from Sept. 21 to 25.

NS hub to have berms near school

Preliminary designs of
Norfolk Southern’s $112-million Alabama cargo-loading rail hub call for 15-foot
berms next to McAdory Elementary School and a 16-foot sound wall along the
access road behind the Sadler Ridge subdivision, the Birmingham News reports. The
design will be shown at a public meeting Norfolk Southern is holding at the
Bessemer Civic Center. Some residents of the area and parent of students at the
school are vehemently opposed to the project.

NS provides Grant for railroad engineering degree program

The Norfolk Southern
Foundation has given $100,000 to Penn State Altoona to assist in the
development of a four-year Rail and Transit Engineering (RTE) degree program.
This innovative Bachelor of Science program will include existing Penn State
civil engineering courses, coupled with new customized courses in rail
business, mechanical systems, track, operations, communications, and
regulation. The program is designed to produce graduates who will quickly
acclimate to the rail industry and its suppliers.

 

Rail workers blend old technology with new


Allen Jones has found out
that no matter how sophisticated the world is, working for the railroad still
requires the use of a sledgehammer and a switch broom, the Morning Sun of Blue
Springs, Mo., reports. These two hand tools are still the most frequently used
implements when doing track work. The sledgehammer, of course, is for driving
steel, pushing rails wider and setting flags. The switch broom has a hoe-like
end for removing rocks from between the rails at railroad switches. The broom
end of this tool is used to sweep dirt, leaves and snow from between the rails.

 

Statement from D.C. Metro Chief Safety Officer

”I would like to clarify
and correct some information contained in a Washington Post article entitled “Metro
Safety System Failed in Near Miss Before June Crash.” However before doing so,
I want to assure the public that our Metrorail system is safe and to let you
know that I personally continue to use it regularly,” said Alexa Dupigny-Samuels,
chief safety officer for the Washington, D.C., Metro.