Railroad News

U.S. railroads' traffic volume fell 2.4 percent to 526,141carloads and intermodal units for the week ending April 20 compared with the same week in 2018, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

Railroads logged 262,011 carloads, down 0.9 percent, and 264,130 containers and trailers, down 3.9 percent compared with a year ago.

HNTB Corp. has hired Alexa Gangemi as the firm’s transit and rail senior project manager and associate vice president. Gangemi has more than 20 years of experience and has worked for transit agencies in Maryland, New York, Texas and Virgina. She also previously served as director of strategic planning for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. Gangemi’s background includes the implementation of technologies used for fare collection, rail crew management, dispatching and timekeeping processes, HNTB officials said in a press release.

IntegriCo Composites now is offering IntegriTies™, a composite tie produced from landfill-bound recyclable plastics. The ties offer a more environmentally-friendly alternative to wood ties, according to an IntegriCo press release. One mile of track typically has about 3,650 ties, which means at least 912 trees are needed to produce the ties; alternatively, IntegriCo converts 765,000 pounds of plastic into IntegriTies that would be installed on one mile of track, company officials said.

Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD) officials last week announced construction will begin soon to add a second entrance and exit at the East Chicago Station platform.

To start April 29 and conclude in December, the project calls for converting the low-level platform on the station's east side into a covered walkway to access a new head house, stairwell and tunnel leading to the eastern parking lot. The upgrades will help accommodate the large influx of South Shore Line passengers at the station, NICTD officials said in a press release.

OmniTRAX Inc. and the Stockton Terminal and Eastern Railroad yesterday unveiled a new environmentally friendly locomotive at the railroad's depot in San Joaquin County, California.

The KLW SE10B T4L unit built by Knoxville Locomotive Works in Tennessee complies with the Environmental Protection Agency's Tier 4 emission standard. It was purchased with the help of a grant from the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Central District, according to an OmniTRAX press release.

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) and Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) officials on Monday announced the South Coast Rail Program has reached two critical first-phase milestones.

A finance plan now is complete for the more than $1 billion first phase, which will be fully funded in the commonwealth's capital investment plan, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has approved the final federal permit required for the program to advance, MBTA and MassDOT officials said in a press release.

The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay announced the Coos Bay Rail Line swing-span bridge will be turned and tested this week.

After a scheduled inbound vessel passes today, the port will move the bridge to the open position for railroad traffic. The bridge will remain open for two days to allow for necessary alignment of the north and south railroad approaches, port officials said in a press release.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) recently approved the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority's (Metro) request for a letter of no prejudice for the Purple Line extension’s third section between Century City and Westwood, California.

LA Metro now can proceed with a contract it awarded earlier this year to Tutor Perini Corp. for stations, trackwork, systems, testing and related section 3 activities, authority officials said in a blog. To be completed in 2026, section 3 of the subway extension will run 2.56 miles from the Century City Station to two stations in Westwood, one at Wilshire and Westwood boulevards and the other in front of the Westwood VA Medical Center.

Canadian Pacific reported first-quarter 2019 revenue of CA$1.77 billion grew by 6 percent and earnings rose about 3 percent during what company officials described as the one of the most challenging winters for the railroad in decades.

CP posted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of CA$3.09 (up 28 percent) and adjusted diluted EPS of CA$2.79 (up 3 percent). Operating income climbed 1 percent to CA$543 million, while net income rose 25 percent to CA$434 million versus the same period in 2018.

Norfolk Southern Corp. today reported first-quarter 2019 net income rose 23 percent year over year to $677 million, as a result of a 16 percent increase in income from railway operations and a boost in other income.

Diluted earnings per share jumped 30 percent to $2.51 compared with Q1 2018. The Class I logged operating revenue of $2.8 billion, a first-quarter record and a 5 percent year over year increase. NS attributed the revenue growth to a rise in revenue per unit, resulting from higher rates and fuel surcharges.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) yesterday announced the creation of a five-year initiative to reduce energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions.

As part of its Energy Action Plan, WMATA will invest $65 million from its capital budget by 2025 in energy efficient technology and modernized operations, according to a WMATA press release.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) last week relaunched a $5.6 million safety awareness campaign urging people to take greater care at grade crossings.

In 2018, 270 people were killed at railroad crossings. Of those, 99 people died — a 10-year high — after the vehicle driver drove around lowered crossing gate arms, according to an FRA press release.

U.S. Class Is employed 144,948 people in mid-March, down 0.58 percent compared with mid-February's level and down 0.11 percent compared with March 2018's count, according to Surface Transportation Board (STB) data.

On a month-over-month basis, four of six employment categories posted decreases. They were: executives, officials and staff assistants, down 2.45 percent to 7,928 employees; professional and administrative, down 2.33 percent to 11,424; maintenance of equipment and stores, down 1.86 percent to 26,478; and transportation (train and engine), down 0.28 percent to 61,673.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) yesterday issued a request for proposals to lease the roof space of seven MTA properties for solar power development. 

MTA will lease the real estate to companies that would use the roof space to install solar panels and generate electricity to sell back to the municipal grid, MTA officials said in a press release.

Union Pacific Railroad is "pausing" construction of its new $550 million Brazos Yard in Robertson County, Texas.

The Class I will shift remaining funds planned for the Brazos construction in 2019 to siding extensions on UP's Sunset route — which runs between Los Angeles and El Paso, Texas — and a block-swap yard in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, a move that will add to UP's network flexibility, Chief Operating Officer Jim Vena told analysts during a first-quarter 2019 earnings conference call last week.

Amtrak has appointed Dennis Newman executive vice president, planning and strategy, railroad officials announced yesterday.

Newman will be responsible for corporate planning and strategy, schedule and consist planning, services and host groups, and the railroad's participation in the Gateway program, Amtrak officials said in a press release.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) is soliciting applications for $900 million in fiscal-year 2019 funding through the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grants program, the department announced yesterday.

The grants for surface transportation infrastructure will be awarded on a competitive basis to projects that will have a significant local or regional impact, USDOT officials said in a press release. Grants can be used to support road, bridge, transit, rail, port or intermodal projects.

The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (SDMTS) last week began rolling out its new generation of light-rail vehicles (LRV) on the UC San Diego Blue Line that operates between downtown San Diego and San Isidro, California, at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The S700 LRV is part of a 46-car order from Siemens that SDMTS placed in 2016, according to a SDMTS press release. 

Trinity Metro in Fort Worth, Texas, last week announced Jon-Erik Arjanen has been named vice president and chief operating officer for rail. 

Arjanen previously served as VP and general manager for Martin Marietta Materials subsidiary Rock & Rail LLC in Lakewood, Colorado, according to a Trinity Metro press release.

The Regional Transportation District (RTD) of Denver last week tested trains along the North Metro rail line, a future commuter-rail line under construction. 

“The testing process, referred to as systems integrated testing, evaluates all the elements [of the system] to verify that the construction produced a safe and reliable operating rail line,” said Chuck Culig, RTD North Metro rail-line project manager in a press release.