Railroad News

The North East Association of Rail Shippers announced last week it is recognizing North Shore Railroad Co. Chairman Emeritus Richard Robey as the Transportation Person of the Year.

"Dick was a true pioneer in the short-line industry at a time when few believed that railroading had much of a future," association officials said in a press release.

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) interim General Manager Steve Poftak over the weekend visited several infrastructure improvement project sites.

One stop included the site of a railroad drawbridge replacement in Beverly, Massachusetts. To accommodate the work, the MBTA on July 17 shut down Newburyport/Rockport Line service north of Salem, Massachusetts. Train service is slated to return to normal tomorrow, MBTA officials said in a press release.

Canada's Transportation Safety Board (TSB) has found that an August 2016 collision between two Canadian Pacific trains occurred when one of the trains ran a stop signal.

The investigation highlights the need for onboard voice and video recorders, TSB officials said in a press release.

The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) has arrested 536 fare evaders during a recent six-week crackdown, the agency announced late last week.

Over the past six weeks, plainclothes officers have actively monitored fare gates across MARTA's 38 rail stations for riders hopping on board without paying. The effort led to hundreds of arrests and suspensions from the agency's system, MARTA officials said in a press release.

CSX violated federal law by implementing a physical abilities battery that discriminates against women, according to a lawsuit field by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) last week.

The EEOC alleges that since at least 2008, CSX has conducted isokinetic strength testing as a requirement for workers to be selected for various jobs. Known as the IPCS Biodex, the strength test causes a discriminatory impact on women seeking jobs as conductors, material handlers/clerks, and a number of other job categories, the EEOC said in a press release.

Caltrain's board has awarded a $32 million contract to Proven Management Inc. for the South San Francisco Station improvement project.

The project involves track and signal work, along with the installation of a new 700-foot center boarding platform. The work also will provide a connection to a new pedestrian underpass from the platform to Grand Avenue/Poletti Drive.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao late last week informed Congress that the U.S. Department of Transportation has proposed nearly $79 million in grants for freight-related rail, port and roadway infrastructure projects under the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act.

The notification to Congress, sent Aug. 2, initiates a 60-day period in which Congress could vote to disapprove the proposed projects if it finds a project objectionable, according to a report by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO).

Myat Ohn, 34

Job description: Ohn serves as the deputy segment lead for the the San Jose-Merced section of California’s high-speed rail project. In her role, she manages the project’s scope, schedule, budget and sub-consultants. Ohn also designs the track plan and profile as track and guideway lead for the section. In addition, she coordinates with other rail agencies, cities, counties and stakeholders.

Education: Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering, University of California-Berkeley

U.S. Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) joined representatives of Omaha Track Inc. and local railroads to tour the company's facilities in Omaha this week.

Omaha Track President and Owner Terry Peterson led the tour, which included visits to the new corporate office and the Omaha Track Equipment facility, where maintenance-of-way equipment is custom built, fabricated and maintained.

Canadian Pacific yesterday released its 2016 corporate sustainability report.

The document outlines the railroad's commitment to "long-term value creation and sustainable operations," CP officials said in a press release.

Solaris Oilfield Infrastructure Inc. on Wednesday announced a new seven-year transloading agreement with an exploration and production operator in the Sooner Trend Anadarko Basin Canadian and Kingfisher Counties (STACK) oil play in Oklahoma.

Under the agreement, the operator will provide minimum quarterly proppant volumes through a new facility that Solaris is developing in Kingfisher, Oklahoma.

The California High-Speed Rail Authority has launched BuildHSR.com, a new website that provides updates about the 119 miles of construction underway in the state's Central Valley.

The site will be updated regularly with road and construction alerts, photos, videos construction milestones and events, CHSRA officials said in a press release.

Canada's Transportation Safety Board (TSB) yesterday recommended that Transport Canada incorporate predictive data on rail surface conditions to help improve track inspections.

The board's recommendation was part of its investigation into the March 2015 derailment and fire involving a CN freight train near Gogama, Ontario, TSB officials said in a press release.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) will award a $7.89 million grant to help fund a railroad bridge repair project in Maine, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) announced yesterday.

The grant is being awarded under the USDOT grant program known as Fostering Advancements in Shipping and Transportation for the Long-Term Achievement of National Efficiencies, or FASTLANE. The $7.89 million in funding will be provided to the Maine Department of Transportation (MaineDOT) for a project to repair and upgrade 22 rail bridges on the Madawaska Subdivision of the Maine Northern Railway, according to a press release issued by Collins' office.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has issued a record of decision for a project to replace Amtrak's Portal Bridge in New Jersey.

The document formally adopts the Federal Railroad Administration's (FRA) environmental impact statement for the project, which involves replacing a century-old swing bridge over the Hackensack River in New Jersey with a high-level fixed bridge.

Julie Mink, 37

Job description: As president of a small company, Mink is involved in every facet of the company. Her duties include establishing policies and procedures, implementing long-term planning and strategy, initiating employee development programs, generating marketing materials and developing business with existing and new customers to provide rail-car sales, rail-car leases, transportation consulting or management services.

Education: Studied journalism and business management at University of Northern Colorado; graduated from Metropolitan State University of Denver with a degree in business management.

MTA Metro-North Railroad on Aug. 23 will host a public hearing on a proposal to permanently increase service at two Harlem Line stations in the Bronx, New York.

The plan would make permanent a pilot program from October 2016. In an effort to build ridership and provide Bronx residents with more travel options, Metro-North previously implemented a program that provided hourly service at the Tremont and Melrose stations during off-peak and weekend travel times. The stations previously were served at two-hour intervals.

The Alberta Midland Railway Terminal Ltd.'s (AMRT) project to build a rail logistics center in Lamont County is well underway, the company announced earlier this week.

The facility will be located on CN's Prairie North Line between Edmonton and Winnipeg. It is designed to store up to 850 rail cars and is located next to customers in Edmonton who ship liquified petroleum gas, petroleum products and plastics, AMRT officials said in a press release.