Railroad News

Railway Age has named Class III railroad Lake State Railway as its Short Line of the Year, and Class II Indiana Rail Road as its Regional of the Year.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Managing Editor

By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Managing Editor

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) late last week unveiled eight winners of the MTA Genius Transit Challenge, a competition that called for new ideas to fix New York City's subway system.

The winners were collectively awarded $2.5 million in prize money for their submissions. MTA held the competition as soaring ridership continues to strain the subway system's aging infrastructure.

The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) last week released its 2018 customer charter, which includes a pledge to boost streetcar service.

As part of the charter, TTC will add service on up to 20 bus and streetcar routes to help reduce overcrowding during peak capacity. The agency also plans to roll out two-hour, time-based transfers to make multiple short-distance trips more affordable.

The nation's major retail container ports handled 1.73 million 20-foot-equivalent units (TEU) in January, a 0.2 percent increase from December and 1.8 percent increase from January 2017, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF).

February's numbers are estimated at 1.66 million TEU, up 13.7 percent year over year. However, March is forecast at 1.53 million TEU, down 1.8 percent from the same month last year.

BNSF Railway Co.'s 2018 capital expenditure program will include $90 million for maintenance projects in Minnesota.

The largest component of this year's capital plan in the state will be replacing and upgrading rail, ties and ballast, the Class I announced in a press release.

BNSF Railway Co.'s 2018 capital expenditure program will include $90 million for maintenance projects in Minnesota.

The largest component of this year's capital plan in the state will be replacing and upgrading rail, ties and ballast, the Class I announced in a press release.

The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) late last week reopened the Metro SubwayLink network in Baltimore following emergency rail repairs that closed the entire system.

Trains began serving passengers on March 9, three days ahead of schedule, MTA officials said in a press release. Last month, the agency closed the subways due to unexpected rail wear throughout the system.

The cost to build California's planned high-speed rail system has soared from $64 billion to $77.3 billion, according to the California High-Speed Rail Authority's (CHRSA) 2018 business plan.

Key cost drivers include increased contingency funding for future risks and "escalation" tied to schedule adjustments, CHSRA officials said in the plan.

The Maryland Department of Transportation Maryland Transit Administration (MDOT MTA) reopened service along the entire system three days ahead of schedule on the morning of March 9.

Infrastructure Ontario (IO) and Metrolinx have awarded a fixed-price contract of CA$254.5 million (US$198.3 million) to EllisDon Transit Infrastructure (EDTI) to design, build and finance the Stouffville Corridor Stations Improvement project.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) released a list of recipients of the nearly $500 million in available Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants.

The U.S. Department of Transportation late last week announced the 41 recipients of nearly $500 million in discretionary grant funding for road, transit, maritime and rail projects through the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) program.

The list included more than $100 million in grants for rail-related projects. More than 64 percent of the funding was awarded to rural projects, a "historic number" that demonstrates the Trump administration's interest in supporting rural communities, USDOT officials said in a press release.

Union Pacific plans to invest $127 million into its Arkansas network in 2018. The Class 1 says the investment will enhance safety, operating efficiency and support customer service.

BNSF Railway is targeting a $90 million capital program for its Minnesota network in 2018. BNSF says maintenance will be the focus of the program with a special attention given to replacing and upgrading rail, crossties and ballast.

California's proposed high-speed rail system will cost $13 billion more and take four years longer to build than original estimates.