Railroad News

U.S. Reps. Donald Payne (D-N.J.) and Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) are calling on U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and the Trump administration to commit to funding the Gateway project to build a new passenger-rail tunnel between New York and New Jersey.

In a letter sent to Chao last week, the lawmakers disputed Deputy Federal Transit Administrator Jane Williams' claim last month that the U.S. Department of Transportation did not have an agreement with New York and New Jersey state officials to share in the project's multi-billion-dollar cost.

MTA Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) has laid the final 5 miles of rail for its double-track project, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced late last week.

The $387.2 million project calls for adding a second track on LIRR's line between Farmingdale and Ronkonkoma, New York. With just one track along that 18-mile stretch at present, the LIRR can only operate a limited number of trains and lacks operational flexibility during disruptions.

Amtrak President and Chief Executive Officer Richard Anderson last week presented a status report to Oregon and Washington state officials on the railroad's plan for responding to last month's deadly derailment of an Amtrak Cascades train near DuPont, Washington.

Among its actions and plans, Amtrak is taking the lead in organizing a meeting of key decision-makers involved in implementing positive train control (PTC) in the area where the derailment occurred, Anderson said in a letter to the states officials. Those decision-makers include Amtrak, Sound Transit, host railroads and the Washington and Oregon departments of transportation.

Metra's new train station in Romeoville, Illinois, will open Feb. 5.

The station will be the first new stop on the Heritage Corridor Line since the railroad's formation in 1984, Metra officials said in a press release. Additionally, the station will be the first new stop on any Chicago-area Metra line since 2011.

Following a deadly Amtrak Cascades derailment in Washington state last month, a bill has been introduced in Congress to accelerate positive train control (PTC) implementation.

Introduced by U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.), the proposed Positive Train Control Implementation and Financing Act (H.R. 4766) would give railroads until Dec. 31, 2018, to implement PTC and would prevent the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) from granting extensions to railroads that want more time to implement the crash-prevention technology.

Nate Asplund has succeeded James Hertwig as president and chief executive officer of Florida East Coast Railway.

Asplund, who assumed his new role on Jan. 8, most recently served as president and CEO of the Red River Valley and Western Railroad (RRVW), a regional railroad serving North Dakota and Minnesota, FEC Railway officials said in a post on the company's website.

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

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

Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner trains have resumed service between Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, California, following deadly mudslides that shut down tracks.

Trains now are serving Ventura, Carpinteria, Santa Barbara, Goleta, San Luis Obispo and all other stations on the route, Amtrak officials said in a press release.

The Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) yesterday announced its 2018 roster of board members.

Adriene Bailey was elected to her second term as chairman, while Michael Wilson was named vice chairman.

Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR) and Rep. Michael Capuano (D-MA) introduced legislation Jan. 11 aimed at speeding up the implementation of positive train control (PTC) technology that could prevent catastrophic human-caused rail accidents.

CSX Corp. announced yesterday that it will host its investor and analyst conference March 1 at the InterContinental New York Barclay in New New York City.

CSX President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Foote and members of the senior management team will outline how the precision scheduled railroading model will "positively transform CSX's operations, improve customer service and drive long-term value creation for shareholders," company officials said in a press release.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao earlier this week shared details about the U.S. Department of Transportation's (USDOT) forthcoming policy for automated vehicles.

The policy will emphasize a unified, intermodal approach to automated driving systems policy, USDOT officials said in a press release.

CSX Corp. announced yesterday that it will host its investor and analyst conference March 1 at the InterContinental New York Barclay in New New York City.

CSX President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Foote and members of the senior management team will outline how the precision scheduled railroading model will "positively transform CSX's operations, improve customer service and drive long-term value creation for shareholders," company officials said in a press release.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) yesterday issued four safety recommendations after investigating two railroad accidents.

The recommendations stem from the board's investigations of a railroad employee fatality involving Union Pacific Railroad in Kansas City, Kansas, and a BNSF Railway Co. crude-oil train derailment near Heimdal, North Dakota.

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

MARTA, Atlanta's transit operator, plans to replace its entire railcar fleet, the single biggest item on its to-do list in 2018.