Railroad News

The Metropolitan Council has awarded $4.6 million to four transit-oriented development (TOD) projects along Metro Transit's Green and Blue light-rail lines.

The grants support development aimed at improving mobility via mass transit and generating economic investment and jobs.The council's investment leverages almost $216 million in private funds and nearly $26 million from other public sources, Met Council officials said in a press release.

Rail-car orders in the third quarter totaled 8,671 units compared with 17,665 units in the second quarter and 5,526 units in third-quarter 2016, according to statistics compiled by the Railway Supply Institute's American Railway Car Institute Committee (ARCI).

Car deliveries in Q3 rose to 11,015 units from 10,625 units in Q2, but were down from 15,375 units in Q3 2016.

The Merced County, California, Board of Supervisors earlier this week authorized a memorandum of agreement with the the Port of Los Angeles that calls for a joint business development plan.

The agreement will help open the door to "significant investment and development" in the Mid-California International Trade District located at Castle Commerce Center and Castle Airport in Atwater, California, county officials said in a press release.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority's (Metro) board has approved a staff recommendation to study proposed safety improvements that could lead to converting the Orange bus-rapid-transit (BRT) line to a light-rail line.

The study will examine the possible installation of railroad-style crossing gates at intersections along the Orange Line BRT route. The agency also will examine other possible grade separations at key locations along the 18-mile bus line, which has its own right of way.

Operation Lifesaver Inc. (OLI) President Bonnie Murphy will complete her term and leave the organization Nov. 1 to become a vice president of rail and railroad management at Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART).

Murphy, who joined OLI in January 2016, has more than 30 years of rail experience and 10 years of executive-level government experience.

Union Pacific Railroad and logistics service provider Katoen Natie this week broke ground on a new plastic packaging facility in south Dallas County, Texas.

The plant will be located at the 3,000-acre Prime Pointe Industrial Park, which is adjacent to UP's Dallas Intermodal Terminal.

U.S. railroads moved 559,989 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Oct. 21, a 3 percent increase over the same week a year ago, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

Total carloads for the week ticked up 0.2 percent to 268,943 units, while intermodal volume surged 5.6 percent to 291,046 containers and trailers compared with year-ago traffic results.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has awarded a $539.5 million contract to Cubic Transportation Systems to replace the agency's MetroCard with an electronic fare payment system.

The new system will enable riders to pay for rides using credit and debit cards or mobile devices instead of purchasing and adding value to a separate fare card.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has fully restored Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority's (WMATA) ability to receive automatic access to federal grant reimbursement, the agency announced yesterday.

The FTA's action comes after WMATA submitted 65 correction action plans to address recommendations in a 2014 financial management oversight report. The completion of those action plans marks the final step in fully restoring WMATA's ability to receive federal funds.

Union Pacific Railroad today reported better-than-expected third-quarter earnings and revenue despite the Class I's business disruptions caused by Hurricane Harvey.

UP announced third-quarter net income increased to $1.2 billion, or $1.50 per diluted share, compared with net income of $1.1 billion, or $1.36 per diluted share, in the same period a year ago.

GE Transportation yesterday introduced its EdgeLINC™ software for device management and streaming analytics. The software streamlines the collection of "edge-level" sensor data and enables faster aggregation and integration into other cloud and enterprise systems, company officials said in a press release. Compatible with GE's GoLINC platform and third-party devices, the software enables users to control configuration, telemetry and alerts. An undisclosed North American Class I has deployed EdgeLINC on more than 1,000 locomotives.

Pentair plc is launching an electrical company known as nVent Electric plc. Pentair will split into two independent, publicly traded companies. One will handle Pentair's electrical business, while the other will oversee the water business. The separation is slated to be completed by second-quarter 2018, Pentair officials said in a press release. Meanwhile, Beth Wozniak was named chief executive officer of nVent, while Stacy McMahan was appointed chief financial officer.

Ontario will set up an advisory board to provide strategic support for the province's high-speed rail plans, Premier Kathleen Wynne announced earlier this week.

The board will engage with the private sector, stakeholders and indigenous communities about the project, according to a press release issued by Wynne's office. Ontario is considering providing high-speed rail service between Toronto and Windsor.

The Societe de transport de Montreal (STM) has put into service two of its Azur subway trains on the Green Line.

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has chosen Matt Williamson, manager of environmental and industry safety for CSX Corp., to receive the 2017 Professional Environmental Excellence Award.

The award recognizes an individual who has demonstrated outstanding performance in environmental awareness and responsibility during the year. Considered the highest honor for environmental professionals in the rail industry, the award was presented to Williamson at the annual Railroad Environmental Conference at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) yesterday marked the completion of seven grade separation projects along a BNSF Railway Co. line running through Fullerton, Anaheim and Placentia, California.

The $663 million effort involved building vehicular bridges and underpasses to separate motorists and pedestrians from the rail line, which is used by at least 70 trains daily.