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Jul
27

San Gabriel trench welcomes inaugural train service

The first train service rolled through the San Gabriel trench earlier this week.

While full train service from Union Pacific Railroad and Amtrak has yet to begin, the trench's inaugural train signals the nearing completion of a five-year project that sought to mitigate the impact of rail line traffic on the community.

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Jul
27

San Gabriel trench welcomes inaugural train service

The first train service rolled through the San Gabriel trench earlier this week.

While full train service from Union Pacific Railroad and Amtrak has yet to begin, the trench's inaugural train signals the nearing completion of a five-year project that sought to mitigate the impact of rail line traffic on the community.

Continue reading
Jul
27

Bhavesh "Bob" Patel joins UP board of directors

Union Pacific Corporation elected Bhavesh "Bob" V. Patel to the company's board of directors.

Patel is chief executive officer and chairman of the management board of LyondellBasell Industries. He joined LyondellBasell in March 2010. Prior to being named CEO, Patel held a variety of senior leadership roles including senior vice president, Olefins and Polyolefins – Americas; senior vice president, Olefins and Polyolefins - Europe, Asia and International, based in the Netherlands; and executive vice president, Olefins and Polyolefins - Europe, Asia and International. Patel was named CEO and chairman of the company's management board in January 2015.

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Jul
27

Bhavesh "Bob" Patel joins UP board of directors

Union Pacific Corporation elected Bhavesh "Bob" V. Patel to the company's board of directors.

Patel is chief executive officer and chairman of the management board of LyondellBasell Industries. He joined LyondellBasell in March 2010. Prior to being named CEO, Patel held a variety of senior leadership roles including senior vice president, Olefins and Polyolefins – Americas; senior vice president, Olefins and Polyolefins - Europe, Asia and International, based in the Netherlands; and executive vice president, Olefins and Polyolefins - Europe, Asia and International. Patel was named CEO and chairman of the company's management board in January 2015.

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Jul
27

Bhavesh "Bob" Patel joins UP board of directors

Union Pacific Corporation elected Bhavesh "Bob" V. Patel to the company's board of directors.

Patel is chief executive officer and chairman of the management board of LyondellBasell Industries. He joined LyondellBasell in March 2010. Prior to being named CEO, Patel held a variety of senior leadership roles including senior vice president, Olefins and Polyolefins – Americas; senior vice president, Olefins and Polyolefins - Europe, Asia and International, based in the Netherlands; and executive vice president, Olefins and Polyolefins - Europe, Asia and International. Patel was named CEO and chairman of the company's management board in January 2015.

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Jul
27

Rising Stars: Robert Gordon, National Transportation Safety Board

Robert “Joe” Gordon, 39

Job description: Gordon has been involved in railroading since 2000. In 2014, he joined the NTSB, where he participates in or leads investigations into high-profile rail accidents, then presents the findings to the board. He also conducts outreach for the NTSB and provides training and guidance to the rail industry.

Education: Electrical apprenticeship, post high school; railroad industry training and education

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Jul
26

BART's 'Fleet of the Future' to launch service in September

Bay Area Rapid Transit's (BART) 'Fleet of the Future' rail cars are scheduled to begin carrying passengers in late September.

Since November 2016, the agency's 10 pilot cars have completed 42 weeks of testing on the main tracks during non-business hours. That was preceded by months of runs along test tracks at BART's Hayward Maintenance Facility beginning in April 2016.

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Jul
26

San Gabriel trench opens to train traffic

Alameda Corridor-East Construction Authority (ACE) representatives and other civic and private-sector officials gathered earlier this week to mark the opening of train service in a newly built trench in San Gabriel, California.

Construction began on the $313 million project in 2012 and final completion is scheduled for early next year.

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Jul
26

PATH logs ridership surge during Penn Station repairs

Rail News Home Passenger Rail 7/26/2017 Rail News: Passenger Rail
Through the end of June, PATH averaged 277,000 weekday riders.Photo – Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

During the first two weeks of Amtrak's emergency repairs at New York City's Penn Station, the Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) rail system carried an average of more than 22,000 additional weekday riders.

Most of those riders normally use New Jersey Transit's Midtown Direct service but are being diverted to the Hoboken Terminal for the duration of the repair work, according to a PATH press release.

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Jul
26

NTSB: SUV driver's actions led to deadly Metro-North accident

An SUV driver's actions are the probable cause of a fatal 2015 collision between the vehicle and an MTA Metro-North Railroad train at a grade crossing in Valhalla, New York, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced yesterday.

The collision resulted in the deaths of the SUV driver and five passengers on the train in the Feb. 3, 2015, accident. The passengers were killed when 343 feet of the third rail, which powers the train, penetrated the floor of the first rail car and struck passengers, NTSB said in its final report on the accident investigation.

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Jul
26

AAR calls on STB to withdraw proposed new regs

Rail News Home Federal Legislation & Regulation 7/26/2017 Rail News: Federal Legislation & Regulation
Ed HambergerPhoto – AAR

Association of American Railroads (AAR) President and Chief Executive Officer Edward Hamberger yesterday testified before the Surface Transportation Board's (STB) regulatory reform task force on proposed regulatory measures.

In prepared remarks, Hamberger reiterated AAR's call for the STB to promote and defend the economic regulatory structure Congress established through the Staggers Act, which deregulated aspects of railroad pricing and routing.

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Jul
26

Lhota unveils plan to tackle NYC subway problems

Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Chairman Joseph Lhota yesterday unveiled an action plan aimed at stabilizing and improving MTA New York City Transit's subway system.

The plan's initial phase will focus on the key drivers of nearly 80 percent of the major incidents that cause delays on the system. Those incidents include problems with signals, track and power, MTA officials said in a press release.

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Jul
26

AAR Reports Weekly Rail Traffic for the Week Ending July 22, 2017

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending July 22, 2017.

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Jul
26

CN's Q2 profit jumped 20 percent on volume growth

CN logged "solid" second-quarter 2017 financial results on strong volume growth across most commodity groups, the Class I reported yesterday.

CN's Q2 net income surged 20 percent to CA$1.03 billion, or CA$1.36 diluted earnings per share, compared with CA$858 million, or CA$1.10 diluted EPS, in the same period a year ago, according to a CN press release.

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Jul
26

CN's Q2 profit jumped 20 percent on volume growth

CN logged "solid" second-quarter 2017 financial results on strong volume growth across most commodity groups, the Class I reported yesterday.

CN's Q2 net income surged 20 percent to CA$1.03 billion, or CA$1.36 diluted earnings per share, compared with CA$858 million, or CA$1.10 diluted EPS, in the same period a year ago, according to a CN press release.

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Jul
26

Norfolk Southern's Q2 net income surges 23 percent

Norfolk Southern Corp. second-quarter 2017 net income rose 23 percent to $497 million, or $1.71 per diluted share, compared with the same quarter a year ago, the Class I reported this morning.

The profit growth was driven by a 15 percent increase in railway operations income, and an all-time record operating ratio of 66.3 percent, according to an NS press release.

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Jul
26

Norfolk Southern's Q2 net income surges 23 percent

Norfolk Southern Corp. second-quarter 2017 net income rose 23 percent to $497 million, or $1.71 per diluted share, compared with the same quarter a year ago, the Class I reported this morning.

The profit growth was driven by a 15 percent increase in railway operations income, and an all-time record operating ratio of 66.3 percent, according to an NS press release.

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Jul
26

Driver at fault for 2015 fatal vehicle-train collision, says NTSB

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found yesterday that the probable cause of a deadly collision between an SUV and a Metro-North commuter train at a grade crossing in Valhalla, N.Y., in 2015 was due to the actions of the SUV driver.

The NTSB's investigation found the driver of the SUV moved her vehicle into the path of Metro-North commuter train 659 on February 3, 2015. The NTSB says investigators found traffic at the Commerce Street grade crossing was congested when the driver entered the boundary of the grade crossing and stopped. The grade crossing warning system activated properly and a gate came down, striking the rear of the Mercedes-Benz ML350. Witnesses said the driver exited the vehicle and examined where the gate hit the SUV. She then got back into the driver's seat and moved onto the railroad tracks and into the path of the oncoming train.

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Jul
26

Driver at fault for 2015 fatal vehicle-train collision, says NTSB

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found yesterday that the probable cause of a deadly collision between an SUV and a Metro-North commuter train at a grade crossing in Valhalla, N.Y., in 2015 was due to the actions of the SUV driver.

The NTSB's investigation found the driver of the SUV moved her vehicle into the path of Metro-North commuter train 659 on February 3, 2015. The NTSB says investigators found traffic at the Commerce Street grade crossing was congested when the driver entered the boundary of the grade crossing and stopped. The grade crossing warning system activated properly and a gate came down, striking the rear of the Mercedes-Benz ML350. Witnesses said the driver exited the vehicle and examined where the gate hit the SUV. She then got back into the driver's seat and moved onto the railroad tracks and into the path of the oncoming train.

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Jul
26

Driver at fault for 2015 fatal vehicle-train collision, says NTSB

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found yesterday that the probable cause of a deadly collision between an SUV and a Metro-North commuter train at a grade crossing in Valhalla, N.Y., in 2015 was due to the actions of the SUV driver.

The NTSB's investigation found the driver of the SUV moved her vehicle into the path of Metro-North commuter train 659 on February 3, 2015. The NTSB says investigators found traffic at the Commerce Street grade crossing was congested when the driver entered the boundary of the grade crossing and stopped. The grade crossing warning system activated properly and a gate came down, striking the rear of the Mercedes-Benz ML350. Witnesses said the driver exited the vehicle and examined where the gate hit the SUV. She then got back into the driver's seat and moved onto the railroad tracks and into the path of the oncoming train.

Continue reading