Railroad News

Caltrain released a draft framework of policies to provide guidance as the agency works to ensure the California passenger-rail service's availability during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The framework outlines policy recommendations for the system that will make it more accessible and connected, as well as expand service to low-income individuals and communities of color that historically have been under- represented in the system’s ridership, Caltrain officials said in a press release. 

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) announced that long portions of steel rails were delivered last week to Addison, Texas, for the agency’s planned Silver Line, a regional-rail service between Plano and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. 

Manufactured by Steel Dynamics Inc. in Indiana, the rail arrived in north Texas by special train as part of an overall shipment of 50 rail segments. 

A majority of U.S. adults agree that the freight-rail industry is critically important to the nation's economy, according to a new poll conducted on behalf of the Association of American Railroads (AAR).

Conducted by Morning Consult, the poll also found that 75 percent of respondents view the freight-rail industry as safe, AAR officials said in a press release.

A coalition of the nation's largest transit agencies yesterday requested $36 billion in emergency federal funding as part of a new COVID-19 pandemic relief bill.

In a virtual press conference and "rally" held yesterday, public transportation industry leaders said that the $25 billion agencies received under the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act in March is running out and more funding will be necessary to help them continue providing passenger-rail and other transit services.

Dachser Peru has delivered two locomotives to a major railroad customer in Peru. The units initially were received at the Port of Houston and then delivered to the customer facility in Lima. “Managing all the steps of this type of heavy-lift cargo project can be quite challenging; however, Dachser was able to manage the transport and delivery process without any issue to the full satisfaction of our customer,” said Eduardo Rey, managing director of Dachser Peru, in a press release.

Colliers International has completed the acquisition of a controlling interest in Maser Consulting P.A., an engineering design and consulting firm. The business will be rebranded as Colliers Engineering Services by first-quarter 2021. Maser’s senior leadership will remain significant shareholders of the business. Colliers is a global commercial real estate services and investment management firm.

Metrolinx crews this month completed renovations of a rail bridge over Rodgers Road in northwest Toronto. 

After 13 months of work, crews completed repair of the steel and concrete structures of the bridge to support the future installation of a second track, Metrolink officials announced last week on the agency blog.

Metrolink last week completed installation of two hand sanitizing stations on each of the Southern California’s 215 passenger-rail cars.

The sanitizer installation was prompted by rider requests. In a recent survey, Metrolink officials found that having hand sanitizers on all cars was the top requested amenity necessary to help make passengers feel comfortable while riding trains during the COVID-19 pandemic, Metrolink officials said in a press release.

Amtrak will serve a new federally and state funded transit hub now under construction in Jacksonville, North Carolina.

Located at Marine Boulevard at Thompson Street, the 15,000-square-foot Jacksonville Transportation Hub will be the city's first building designed to house many public transportation services and be "heavily resistant" to hurricanes, Jacksonville officials said in a press release.

The Regional Transportation District of Denver (RTD) last week launched a rider survey to determine what future services the agency should provide with its limited resources due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

RTD officials will incorporate the public input gathered from the survey, along with data and budget information, into a system optimization plan. 

A new report commissioned by the Coalition Against Bigger Trucks (CABT) highlights how legislation allowing bigger and heavier trucks on the nation's highways would result in a "major diversion" of freight from rail to roads.

The study shows some scenarios in which intermodal traffic would be reduced by 20 percent to 25 percent and railroad carload traffic by as much as 20 percent. Other scenarios show that both intermodal and certain railroad traffic could be reduced by nearly 60 percent, CABT officials said in a report summary.

The Port of Pascagoula, Mississippi, is slated to receive $6.6 million in Gulf Coast restoration funding for the Jackson County Port Authority's North Rail Connector project.

The award stems from state legislation that details projects to benefit from BP oil spill funding. The North Rail Connector is new construction of 4,300 feet of rail to connect the rail bridge over the Escatawpa River to the recently relocated Mississippi Export Rail Line, which is now completed, port officials said in a press release.

New Jersey Transit last week began deploying handheld mobile fare validators to its commuter-rail crews on the Raritan Valley Line (RVL).

Crews can use the devices to scan paper and electronic tickets, eliminating contact while validating fares. The devices also display information about potential service disruptions to crews members.

Caltrain’s board last week awarded Elevate Sports Ventures LLC a consulting contract to manage the agency’s naming rights opportunities. 

The contract calls for Elevate to identify and evaluate potential naming rights assets, create marketing and sales plans and guide Caltrain through the sales and negotiation process. 

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) announced in a brief last week that it has launched an investigation after cracks were found on four wheels on three separate Ottawa Light-Rail Transit (OLRT) vehicles during maintenance activities and inspections.

The TSB described its action as a Class 3 investigation, which means it will analyze a "small number" of safety issues.

Alaska-Alberta Railway Corp. (A2A Rail) has commissioned HDR Inc. to begin preparing a detailed land survey along the Alberta segment of the railway's proposed route.

HDR will work with local contractors and subcontractors, including Quantum Spatial, a geospatial analytics company, and Lawson, a certified Indigenous owned and controlled surveying firm, A2A Rail officials said in a press release.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and Transit Innovation Partnership last week launched a "COVID-19 Response Challenge" calling for the private tech industry to submit innovative solutions that could make public transit safer during the pandemic. 

The challenge calls for companies to submit proposals by July 30 that address critical pandemic-related health and safety objectives for New York City's regional mass transit network.