Railroad News

The Friends of the Brooklyn-Queens Connector (BQX) advocacy group yesterday unveiled a prototype vehicle for a proposed 14-mile streetcar line connecting the two New York City boroughs.

The National Mediation Board (NMB) has named two new board members: Gerald Fauth III and Kyle Fortson.

Fauth, who was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Nov. 2, will succeed Harry Hoglander as the board's chairman. Hoglander left the board Nov. 9.

Port of Oakland's board last week gave initial approval to a landmark agreement with CenterPoint Properties to develop a $52 million logistics center on port property that once served as a U.S. Army base in Oakland, California.

The agreement calls for CenterPoint to construct and manage the 440,000-square-foot facility, which would be the first phase of a planned seaport logistics complex that could eventually encompass nearly 180 acres.

The Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon (TriMet) and the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 757 late last week reached a tentative agreement on a new labor contract.

The pact covers terms for the period between December 2016 and November 2019. The agreement includes a 3 percent wage increase retroactive to December 2016 and an additional 3.25 percent increase in December 2017.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) has secured $382 million in federal loans to implement positive train control (PTC), the agency announced yesterday.

The federal Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) and Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF) programs issued the loans under a combined commitment agreement — a first for the federal programs, MBTA officials said in a press release.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) later this month will hold three community meetings to share updates on the Cotton Belt commuter-rail project.

The events will feature presentations about the project, which calls for establishing passenger-rail service on the 26-miles Cotton Belt Corridor between Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Plano, Texas.

The first five of San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency's (SFMTA) latest generation light-rail vehicles have been cleared for passenger service, the agency announced last week.

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

The Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) today approved rail and gate expansion projects aimed at increasing capacity at its Garden City Terminal in Savannah.

The board approved $42.27 million in expenditures as part of GPA's $128 million Mason Mega Rail Terminal. The project not only will expand the Port of Savannah's on-dock rail capacity by 100 percent, but position Savannah to rapidly increase service to an arc of inland markets from Memphis to Chicago, port officials said in a press release.

Former U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has called for a dedicated regional source of capital funding for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority's (WMATA) aging infrastructure.

LaHood made the recommendation as part of his report on the agency's funding and governance. In March, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe appointed LaHood to head an independent review of WMATA.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) and Massport have applied for three federal Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grants for capital projects that would include upgrading the New England Central Railroad's capacity.

The grant proposals are part of Massachusetts' efforts to improve the state's freight transportation system, state officials said in a press release. The three INFRA applications involve:
• MassDOT's proposal to upgrade more than 31 miles of rail and 20 bridge structures on the Massachusetts portion of the New England Central Railroad, a regional rail corridor between Connecticut and Canada. The line serves several key employers in Massachusetts. The upgrade will allow shippers and receivers to use full carrying capacity of each rail car in order to lower their costs.
• Massport's request of $63.33 million to complete the Revitalize New England’s Maritime Gateway Project. Of the grant request, $57.93 million would be used to fund design and construction of Berth 10 and the GateVision operating system, and $5.4 million would fund design and construction of the Cypher-E Freight Corridor.
• MassDOT's request of $33 million in funding to complete the Interstate 495 Corridor Improvement Program.

Metra's board has approved a 2018 operating budget that includes fare increases and service cuts to help close a $45 million funding gap.

Under the $797 million budget, the cost of a one-way ticket will increase 25 cents in all zones, beginning in February. Service on a number of weekday trains will be curtailed or eliminated on the North Central Service, SouthWest Service and Rock Island Line routes.

STV served as the lead designer for California's Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) District's commuter-rail system, which began revenue service in late August. As part of a design-build team led by a Stacy & Witbeck/Herzog joint venture, STV provided engineering services for all rail, civil and structural improvements for SMART's 43-mile initial operating segment connecting the Sonoma County Airport to San Rafael, California. The firm also oversaw the rehabilitation or replacement of 41 miles of track and designed the boarding platforms for 10 stations, STV officials said in a press release. STV also incorporated "gauntlet tracks," which overlap with the main line to give wider freight trains more clearance to pass safely through passenger platform areas.

PTSI Transportation has completed its digital Route Learning System™ for New Jersey Transit's Newark light-rail line. The system is an operations training program used to teach the physical characteristics of a railroad to operating employees, rail or transit police and first responders. The Route Learning System consists of digital maps and charts, as well as a video of the railroad taken from the engineer's/ operator's perspective. The tool can be used in a training center, taken home for personal study or viewed on a screen in the operating cab to "enhance situation awareness," PTSI officials said in a press release.

California state and high-speed rail officials yesterday unveiled a plan to assume federal environmental responsibilities for the state's high-speed rail project.

The move is aimed at streamlining reviews and approvals of the environmental documents needed to advanced the high-speed rail program and related rail projects, California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHRSA) officials said in a press release.

Ceres Solutions Cooperative Inc. has been awarded a $350,000 state loan for a rail project that's part of a feed-mill expansion in White Cloud, Michigan.

The company obtained the loan from the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) Office of Rail's Freight Economic Development Program (FEDP), which provides low interest loans to rail-served businesses in the state.

Western Forest Products Inc., a Canadian forest products company, announced this week that it would close its Englewood logging train on Northern Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

The company will shut down its train operation and ship logs by truck to save money and increase competitiveness, according to a Western press release.