Railroad News

Positive train control (PTC) systems are operating on about 56 percent of freight railroads' route miles that are required to be governed by PTC systems, up from 45 percent in third-quarter 2017 and 16 percent on Dec. 31, 2016, the Federal Railroad Administration announced yesterday.

Passenger railroads have made less progress, with PTC systems in operation on 24 percent of required route miles as of Q4 2017 — the same as in Q3 2017, FRA officials said in a press release.

Metra next week will launch a $2.95 million project to renovate the LaSalle Street Station concourse in downtown Chicago.

Crews will replace the 20,000-square-foot concourse surface, as well as support pillars.

The Pacific Harbor Line (PHL) this year marks its 20th anniversary.

The Anacostia Rail Holdings-owned short line held a ceremony last month to mark the occasion. The event included a tour of PHL facilities aboard a special train, Anacostia officials said in a press release.

The Canadian government will provide the funding to replace VIA Rail Canada Inc.'s fleet in the Quebec City-Windsor corridor, Canada's Minister of Transport Marc Garneau announced yesterday.

The existing rolling stock in the corridor is reaching the end of its useful life and needs to be replaced to help maintain passenger safety for the next 30 years, Transport Canada officials said in a press release.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has certified transit-rail state safety oversight (SSO) programs in Massachusetts and Hawaii, the agency announced yesterday.

FTA Acting Administrator K. Jane Williams made the announcement at the American Public Transportation Association's legislative conference in Washington, D.C.

President Donald Trump's proposed funding cuts for transit capital projects would jeopardize $38 billion worth of planned projects, according to an analysis commissioned by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).

The study's findings were highlighted yesterday by transit-industry leaders during a press briefing held at APTA's legislative conference in Washington, D.C.

The Surface Transportation Board (STB) is asking all Class Is to send the board their service outlooks for 2018.

The request, which the board sent to all Class I executives last week, was made in response to concerns the board has received from two major rail shipper associations about deteriorating service.

Advanced Rail Systems

Advanced Rail Systems (ARS), which provides automated yard switches and devices, manufactures the YM-16 electro-hydraulic switch machine. The YM-16 needs “virtually no maintenance” — no greasing, lubricating or replacement of wear parts is required, according to the company. It also has enough power to throw #24 turnouts and turnouts with welded heel blocks.

The Fort Worth Transportation Authority earlier this month took delivery of the second trainset for its TEXRail commuter-rail system.

The Vancouver-area Mayors' Council on Regional Transportation and the province of British Columbia late last week agreed to provide CA$2.5 billion in regional funding for Translink's rail expansions.

To deliver projects in the second phase of Translink's 10-year infrastructure plan, the mayors and the province have proposed a 2 percent increase in transit fares over two years, beginning in 2020. They also proposed increasing parking fares and property taxes.

The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) and CSX recently executed a final contract amendment that will enable construction of a new Virginia Railway Express (VRE) station in Prince William County, Virginia.

The new station will be a key component of Potomac Shores' emerging town center. Situated on the banks of the Potomac River 30 miles south of Washington, D.C., the 1,920-acre community is being developed by SunCal, a real estate development company that focuses on large-scale, mixed-use master-planned communities. SunCal is sponsoring the new VRE station's construction.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) have called on Amtrak to rename its intermodal station in Rochester after the late U.S. Rep. Louise Slaughter.

Slaughter (D-N.Y.) died last week after sustaining injuries from a fall at her home in Washington, D.C. She was 88 and in the midst of her 16th term representing upstate New York in Congress.

The governments of Canada and Ontario late last week signed a bilateral agreement that will provide more than CA$11.8 billion for infrastructure projects over the next decade.

The funding includes up to CA$660 million for the Scarborough subway extension in Toronto, according to a press release issued by the Ontario Ministry of Transportation.

The Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) last week opened the 9.3-mile LYNX Blue Line light-rail extension.

The largest infrastructure project in Charlotte's history, the $1.1 billion extension runs from the 7th Street Station in the Center City area to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte campus. The project features 11 new stations.

By Michael Popke

Pandrol has signed a contract to manufacture fastening systems for Shanxi Jingshen Railway Co. Ltd. as part of a national infrastructure project in China. Under the agreement, Pandrol will manufacture FC-16 fastenings to cover 144 miles of track  through Menghua to Central china, Pandrol officials said in a press release. In total, the project involves nearly 880,000 fastening rail sets. Financial details of the contract weren't disclosed.

Stantec has opened an office in the town of Whitby in Ontario's Durham Region. The office will offer infrastructure consulting services in the land development, transportation and water sectors. Experts in the Whitby location also will provide building condition audit and environmental services. Stantec's work in the Durham Region include serving as technical adviser on GO Transit's Bowmanville rail expansion and providing engineering peer review for Whitby.