Railroad News

Metrolink Chief Executive Officer Art Leahy late last week announced he will retire Jan. 4, 2019.

A 47-year transportation industry veteran, Leahy became Metrolink's CEO in 2015 after leading the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

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U.S. Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-Minnesota) this week visited Meyer Contracting Inc.'s headquarters in Minnesota to discuss rail-related legislative issues with company, local and industry officials.

During his visit, Paulsen learned about Meyer Contracting's business operations and its impact on the state economy. He also toured the firm's headquarters and manufacturing shop in Maple Grove.

Alstom, software publisher IGE+XAO Group and aerospace-component maker Safran S.A. today announced plans to establish a Center of Excellence in Toulouse, France, for the engineering of onboard rail electrical systems. Located on Safran's site, the center will accommodate up to 100 engineers. Using software packages from IGE+XAO, center staff will develop the "railway electrical systems of today," Alstom officials said in a press release.

German rail company Deutsche Bahn (DB) has ordered 18 7-car ICE 4 trainsets and 50 more power cars from Siemens Mobility. Bombardier Transportation will supply about one-third of the order, which is valued at $704 million, Siemens officials said in a press release. In total, DB will be receiving 1,511 cars it can configure into 12-car, 13-car and seven-car trainsets.

Skyfarm Strategic Capital yesterday announced completion of the first phase of development on its rail-served Florida Commerce Park in Indiantown, Florida.

Located along State Road 710, the planned-unit development industrial site features a 4,000-foot CSX siding. The first phase involved grandfathering all entitlements and completion of horizontal infrastructure, including site work and grading, irrigation, and electrical and fiber optic work.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) today will break ground on a project to prepare its Orange Line bus rapid transit line for eventual conversion to light rail.

The project includes installation of four-quadrant gates at up to 35 busway intersections along the bus line's exclusive right of way between North Hollywood and Chatsworth, California. Metro also plans to build aerial bridges and stations at Van Nuys and Sepulveda boulevards.

The U.S. Commerce Department's Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding $10 million in grants to Texas to improve critical port infrastructure to support business development and disaster resiliency following Hurricane Harvey.

The projects are expected to create and retain more than 15,000 jobs and spur $9.8 million in private investment, according to an EDA press release.

TransLink next month expects to issue its first-ever green bonds, the agency announced this week.

Bond proceeds will fund projects in the agency's 10-Year Vision, the largest transit expansion in Vancouver, British Columbia. The plan includes SkyTrain's Broadway subway extension and construction of the new Surrey light-rail line.

BNSF Railway Co. and the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District have been preliminarily awarded a $22.6 million grant from the California Air Resource Board to pilot emissions-reducing technologies in and around rail yards.

BNSF will collaborate with industry partners to test the feasibility of the technologies, company officials said in a press release.

Keolis Commuter Services — the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA) commuter-rail operator — next week will replace 30,000 ties between the Littleton/495 and Wachusett stations along the Fitchburg Line.

The project is slated to start Oct. 15 and will continue through November. The tie replacement is needed to help ensure a "smooth and comfortable ride for passengers," Keolis officials said in a press release.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) in New York City yesterday launched the Transit Tech Lab, an accelerator program for startups looking to solve public transit challenges.

Early- and growth-stage tech companies can submit ideas to address the lab's two challenges: determining a way to better predict subway incident impacts, and finding a way to make buses faster and more efficient.

Canadian Pacific has released the Canadian and U.S. schedules for its 2018 Holiday Train.

Beginning Nov. 25 and 27, two CP trains — decorated with thousands of colorful, glittering lights — will leave Montreal to visit 164 communities along CP's network.

The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) has announced the winners of its President's Safety Awards in the Southern Region.

The awards recognize outstanding safety records of smaller railroads that have achieved either a 0.0 accident frequency rate, or the best safety rate as measured by the lowest accident frequency rate per man-hour of operation below the industry average, according to the ASLRRA.

U.S. rail traffic rose 1.2 percent to 554,238 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Oct. 6 compared with the traffic during the same week a year ago, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

Railroads reported 269,634 total carloads for the week, up 0.7 percent compared with the same week in 2017. Intermodal volume inched up 1.8 percent to 284,604 containers and trailers compared with a year ago, according to an AAR press release.

Metra's 2019 budget proposals came with a stark warning about the railroad's continued deterioration and budget shortfalls.

The railroad on Monday proposed a $185.6 million capital budget that falls "far short" of its needs, Metra officials said in a news release. The budget is funded through $173.6 million in federal funds, $5 million in local Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) funds and $7 million in fare revenue.

Texas Central, developers of the proposed Dallas-to-Houston bullet train, has selected international railway company Renfe as the railroad's operating partner.

Based in Spain, Renfe has more than 25 years of experience operating high-speed trains in Europe and other countries, Texas Central officials said in a press release.

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