Railroad News

Strato Inc. received TTX Co.’s 2019 Supplier Evaluation Committee Award for the 24th consecutive year. Strato was evaluated in two categories: coupler and yoke manufacturer and miscellaneous car part manufacturer, and component supplier. Starto received a “A” rating and the “Excellent Supplier” designation in all categories. TTX Co. rates suppliers on quality, cost, delivery, service, finance and administration.

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) purchased Miller Ingenuity’s ZoneGuard roadway worker protection system for employees working on mainline track. The system kit includes train detector modules, train alert modules and worker wearable devices. With the purchase, BART has fulfilled California’s state requirement for transit agencies to comply with roadway worker protection rules. One of those rules requires agencies to adopt “early warning alarm technology” to coincide with their existing protection procedures, Miller Ingenuity officials said in a press release.

Metro Transit-St. Louis on June 22 will offer light-rail riders the option to purchase fares through the Transit mobile application.

Offering the contactless fare option is part of a plan to adapt to the coronavirus, agency officials said in a press release. 

Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District’s (SMART) board earlier this week authorized funding the design and construction of a second commuter-rail station in Petaluma, California. 

SMART will use $8 million in proceeds from the sale of a downtown property to fund the construction of a new station and parking lot at Corona Road and North McDowell Boulevard, SMART officials said in a press release.

The Port of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) this week announced it handled dramatically low volumes at all of its facilities in April as the result of the COVID-19 crisis.

Cargo volumes at the seaport dropped 7.5 percent to 559,929 20-foot-equivalent units (TEUs) during the month compared with 605,263 TEUs in April 2019. The drop in cargo volume represented the smallest percentage decline at any of the PANYNJ facilities, port officials said in a press release.

The Chicago Plan Commission in May adopted the South Shore Corridor Study, a blueprint for transit connectivity, land use and housing for two corridors in the South Shore neighborhood, the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) announced Wednesday.

The study includes recommendations aimed at strengthening transit usage and making access safer and more efficient for residents of East 75th and East 79th streets, from Stony Island Avenue to Lake Michigan.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) yesterday announced it intends to award $906 million in Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grants to 20 projects in 20 states.

Funding will be used to pay for projects that will improve highways, bridges, ports and railroads to better connect communities, enhance safety and support economic growth, U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said in a press release.

The Massachusetts BayTransportation Authority (MBTA) today will begin infrastructure work on the Red Line between Braintree and Quincy Center stations on an accelerated 14-day schedule. 

Work includes replacement of 3,500 ties; concrete repairs, elevator structure work; track replacements, resurfacing and ballast work; and bridge inspections and related repairs on the Red Line.

U.S. Rep. Greg Pence (R-Ind.) on Tuesday introduced a bill that calls for improving grade crossing safety by allowing more flexibility in the use of funds allocated by the Federal Highway Administration's Section 130 program.

"Indiana is the crossroads of America. Blocked railroad-highway crossings pose a serious safety risk to Hoosiers and must be updated," said Pence in a press release.

The Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon (TriMet) yesterday announced it will reduce its transit police force and redirect $1.8 million in available funding to community-based public safety approaches. 

For the next fiscal year starting July 1, TriMet has committed to:

New Jersey Transit earlier this week released guidelines detailing its steps aimed at protecting riders and employees as the region reopens during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The guidelines provide “clear and simple” actions that riders and employees should take to contribute to a safe return to service, NJ Transit officials said in a press release.

Calgary’s City Council in Alberta earlier this week approved an updated alignment for the first stage of the planned construction of the Green light-rail line, as well as changes to construction staging.  

The approved alignment will connect 16 Avenue North to Shepard Southeast.

U.S. freight railroads hauled 449,291 carloads and intermodal units during the week ending June 13, a 14.9 percent decrease in traffic moved during the same week in 2019, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

Total carloads for the week fell 22.8 percent to 198,437, while intermodal volume fell 7.3 percent to 250,854 units. Only one of the 10 carload commodity groups — miscellaneous carloads — posted an increase during the week, up 1,030 carloads to 10,259.

ENSCO Rail Inc. has acquired an enhanced user license to the VAMPIRE® Pro vehicle and track interaction software. The software will integrate with the ENSCO Rail Autonomous Track Geometry Measurement System to provide automated vehicle dynamics simulations in near real time to conduct digital twin analytics. As track geometry data is streamed to ENSCO Rail's servers, vehicle dynamics simulations of the client's fleet will automatically be performed. Results are provided in an automated fashion, highlighting locations of concern for ride quality and derailment risk and producing data for track degradation and maintenance planning, company officials said in a press release.

APTIM Corp. named David Hecht director of sales in the Northeast. Hecht has more than 45 years of experience in the construction industry, working for construction management, general contractor and professional engineering firms. He has led program and construction management teams to win some of the Northeast's largest projects, including Amtrak’s $25 billion Gateway program, APTIM officials said in a press release. Hecht also has developed specialized business lines in estimating and scheduling, as well as storm recovery, winning assignments with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and MTA New York City Transit. 

Amtrak on Monday announced an update to its essential services plan drafted in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The national intercity passenger railroad noted that various states are undertaking safety precautions at stations for customers arriving from other states. Riders should check with each state for specific guidance, Amtrak officials said in a press release.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) on July 1 will begin a commuter-rail fare pilot to test new ways to accommodate riders as their travel patterns change during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Under the pilot, MBTA will offer a fare option good for any five days of travel within a 30-day period. The fare option was designed to coordinate with new staggered work schedules and telework policies that have become more common.