Railroad News

The Utah Transit Authority (UTA) today marks 20 years of operation of the TRAX light-rail service. 

In 1998, UTA opened its first rail station in Midvale, Utah, and received delivery of its first fleet of Siemens SD100 trains. By 1999, the first light-rail line opened to connect riders between Salt Lake City and Sandy.

The Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) is on track to exceed 4.6 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) for the first time in a calendar year, GPA officials announced this week.

That level of trade would represent a 14 percent increase over volume moved through Savannah three years ago, or an additional 550,000 TEUs. Over the same period, the GPA has increased the annual capacity at the Port of Savannah from 5 million to 5.5 million TEUs, GPA officials said in a press release.

The Regional Transportation District of Denver's (RTD) board will appoint an interim general manager by Jan. 20, 2020, to replace GM and Chief Executive Officer Dave Genova, who announced his retirement last month.

Genova will retain his position until the interim GM is appointed, completing a 60-day notice requirement that is outlined in his contract, RTD officials said yesterday in a press release.

Crews began dredging work at the Port of Virginia on Dec. 1, launching the first phase of a project to deepen the port to 55 feet to accommodate larger ships.

The digging began two-and-a-half years ahead of schedule, port officials said in a press release.

Sound Transit yesterday announced Mary Cummings' appointment as deputy chief executive officer and chief administrative officer.

Previously, Cummings held executive roles at Verizon during the company's startup and growth periods, including as vice president for Verizon Wireless Latin America. 

CN and mining company Teck Resources Ltd. today announced a long-term rail agreement for the shipping of steelmaking coal from Teck's four British of Columbia operations between Kamloops and Neptune Terminals, and other west coast ports.

The agreement, which runs from April 2021 to December 2026, will enable Teck to significantly increase shipment volumes through an expanded Neptune Terminals.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) has integrated real-time rail information into the Apple Maps mobile application, the agency announced last week.

WMATA riders using Apple Maps now will see detailed train schedules, live departure and arrival times and current train and bus locations.

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) will increase rail fares by 5.4 percent effective Jan. 1, 2020, to keep up with inflation and support capital needs, agency officials announced yesterday.

Under the fare hike, the price of short trips will increase by 10 cents and a longer trips will increase by 40 cents.

VIA Rail Canada Inc. logged a nearly 7 percent increase in ridership and a 1 percent increase in passenger revenue in third-quarter 2019 compared with the same period last year. 

VIA posted total passenger revenue of CA$113.4 million, an increase of CA$1.1 million compared with the previous year’s quarter. Total revenue reached CA$119 million, according to VIA Rail’s financial report.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) in October handled 666,381 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of cargo, a 1.2 percent increase over the previous October record of 658,708 TEUs set in 2018. 

The numbers also represent the third largest cargo volume handled in any month in the port's history, PANYNJ officials said in a press release.

CN announced today that its strike-recovery plan is on track and that the company is revising its 2019 full-year financial guidance to include the impact of the eight-day strike.

"Our discipline on our recovery plan is delivering results,” said JJ Ruest, president and chief executive officer of CN, in a press release. "While we expect to take some time and we remain dependent on favorable weather, we are pleased by how things are progressing."

Canadian Pacific last month broke another record for moving Canadian grain and grain products.

The Class I delivered 2.74 million metric tons (MMT) during November, beating the October 2019 all-time record of 2.66 MMT, CP officials said in a press release.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) is seeking public and stakeholder comments on how the department's new Non-Traditional and Emerging Transportation (NETT) Council can respond to the needs of industry and the public.

USDOT created the council in April to identify and resolve jurisdictional and regulatory gaps associated with non-traditional and emerging transportation projects pending before the department, including with respect to safety oversight, environmental review and funding issues.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) yesterday announced crews are prepared to deploy snow removal and de-icing equipment across its rail fleet in anticipation for harsh winter weather conditions expected to hit New York City.

All rail services, including MTA’s New York City Transit (NYCT) subway, the Metro-North Railroad and the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), will run normally today and will be monitored for schedule changes.

The Utah Transit Authority (UTA) last week launched a first- and last-mile solution to improve connections between the TRAX light-rail and FrontRunner commuter-rail system.

UTA on Demand by Via will offer riders in southern Salt Lake County an on-demand ride service that can be booked through the Via mobile application. The service area included in the program includes seven rail stations.

U.S. representatives and local officials last week marked the receipt of a $14.4 million federal grant to construct a new Metra commuter-rail station in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, the second busiest stop on the Union Pacific West line. 

In October, the Federal Highway Administration awarded the grant to the village through its Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement program, which funds transportation projects that improve traffic flow and decrease vehicle emissions. 

U.S. freight railroads logged 521,927 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Nov. 23, a 10.6 percent increased compared with the same week last year — which included the Thanksgiving holiday — according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

Total carloads for the week were 251,901 units, up 7.6 percent compared with the same week in 2018, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 270,026 containers and trailers, up 13.5 percent.

Gov. Tom Wolf announced late last week that he intends to nominate Yassmin Gramian to serve as the state's next secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT).

Gramian, who now serves as PennDOT's executive deputy secretary, will succeed Leslie Richards, who is leaving the department to become general manager of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) in January. Gramian will assume the role of acting secretary as of Dec. 6.