Railroad News

Amtrak and New Jersey Transit earlier this week began work to update a ticketed waiting area at New York Penn Station. 

As part of the $7.2 million joint investment, the seating area at the Amtrak Concourse on the station's upper level and 8th Avenue side will feature new furniture, fixtures, USB outlets, LED lighting, an information desk and a family area with a nursing mothers’ pod. The upgrade will also remove a midpoint barrier and create a second entrance to the space for easier access, Amtrak officials said in a press release.

Wabtec Corp. announced yesterday it acquired RELCO Locomotives for $29 million.

RELCO is in the locomotive leasing, rebuilding and repairing business, with operations in Albia and Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont and AT&T announced earlier this week a public-private partnership that will provide cellular service along the MTA Metro North Railroad’s New Haven Line between New Haven and the state’s western border.

The partnership calls for AT&T to install small cells along the commuter-rail line to enable expanded internet access and offer uninterrupted cellular service to riders. 

U.S. freight railroads started out the new year the same way they ended the old one — with a dip in weekly traffic volume.

U.S. rail traffic declined 5.1 percent to 414,014 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Jan. 4, compared with the same period last year, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

Shuttlewagon, a division of Nordco Inc., added seven SWXe series compact electric rail-car movers to its portfolio of electric and diesel rail-car movers. Shuttlewagon is collaborating with Colmar Technik SpA to provide the offering, which includes models that range from 310 tons of towing capacity up to 4,000 tons, Shuttlewagon officials said in a press release.

Ondas Networks Inc. has completed deployment of its FullMAX software-defined radio (SDR) platform for an undisclosed North American Class I. The railroad is using the platform for fixed and mobile data applications in multiple U.S. regions as part of a pilot program. The multiphase program is designed to use 125 kHz of spectrum in the licensed 900 MHz frequency band and test multiple data applications, Ondas officials said in a press release.

The Regional Transportation District of Denver's (RTD) board yesterday elected five executive committee officers, including Angie Rivera-Malpiede as chair.

Rivera-Malpiede will succeed Doug Tisdale, who served as chairman for the past two years, RTD officials said in a press release. 

Canadian Transport Minister Marc Garneau yesterday announced the award of CA$225,330 in funding for programs to educate and raise public awareness about the safe transportation of dangerous goods.

The Chemistry Industry Association of Canada will receive $219,750 over three years for its Transportation Community Awareness and Emergency Response initiative to construct a new safety train, a railway tank car that will be converted into a classroom on wheels for the training of emergency responders; develop virtual reality educational tools that can be used in remote communities; and deliver training sessions for communities and emergency responders using those tools.

The Surface Transportation Board (STB) has named member Martin Oberman the agency's vice chairman.

Oberman succeeds Patrick Fuchs, who continues to serve as a board member, STB officials said in a Jan. 6 press release.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) yesterday announced it will install its One Metro New York (OMNY) contactless fare payment system at 60 MTA New York City Transit (NYCT) subway  stations this month. 

The OMNY system enables riders to enter the subway system by tapping a contactless prepaid card, mobile phone or smart watch against a payment reader. 

R. J. Corman Railroad Group LLC has hired Alin Campian to serve as vice president of commercial strategy and yield management.

A business development and finance leader, Campian has more than 15 years of experience maximizing return-on-investment in infrastructure, logistics and transportation space, R. J. Corman officials said in a press release.

Reading & Northern Railroad (R&N) logged a 6 percent increase in carloads in 2019 compared with 2018, the Pennsylvania-based regional announced yesterday.

Last year, the railroad broke previous records for carloads, freight revenue and excursion ticket sales, company officials said in a press release.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) yesterday unveiled a new interactive map that shows where federal dollars are invested in major infrastructure projects in rural and urban areas described as "opportunity zones."

The information in the map is intended to encourage further economic investment, USDOT officials said in a press release.

Caltrain last week began a week-long construction period to advance an improvement project at South San Francisco Station, a grade separation at 25th Avenue in San Mateo, California, and electrification work across its system.

Through Friday, crews will perform demolition work at the South San Francisco rail station to make way for a new pedestrian entrance on the corner of Grand Avenue and Airport Boulevard, as well as perform utility potholing on the east side of the tracks near the station, according to Caltrain’s construction notice email alert.

The MTA Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) ended 2019 having completed almost two dozen construction projects as part of its program to rebuild the commuter railroad in New York.

The program included 14 stations enhancements, including upgrades to LED lighting, USB charging port, Wi-Fi, interactive digital kiosks, wayfinding signage and accessibility upgrades at Baldwin, Bayside, Bellmore, Brentwood, Deer Park, East Hampton, Farmingdale, Great Neck, Merrick, Northport, Port Jefferson, Stewart, Syosset and Valley Steam stations, LIRR officials said in a press release.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) yesterday awarded Stadler US Inc. a $112 million, 15-year contract to maintain the eight FLIRT trains and equipment maintenance facility in Irving, Texas, that the company designed for the agency in June 2019.

The vehicles will operate on DART’s future Silver Line, a regional rail line that will connect Plano, Texas, and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in December 2022.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) in November 2019 handled a record 599,626 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of cargo, a 4 percent increase over the previous November record of 583,880 TEUS set in 2018.

Also in November, the port’s ExpressRail system set a record, handling 54,096 containers compared to 53,609 containers in November 2018, PANYNJ officials said in a press release.

North Carolina Railroad Co. (NCRR) President and Chief Executive Officer Scott Saylor has announced he will retire in July following a 31-year career with the railroad.

President since 2001, Saylor was hired in 1989. He informed the board of his retirement plans in a letter, NCRR officials said in a press release.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo yesterday announced a plan to add eight new tracks to New York Penn Station's 21-track layout, which would increase capacity at the station by 40 percent.

The proposal would create what the governor called an "Empire Station Complex," a 21st century transit complex, on Manhattan's west side.