Railroad News

The Railway Association of Canada (RAC) has released the latest edition of its annual Rail Trends report.

The new report summarizes the 2016 performance of Canada's railroad industry, from safety and fuel efficiency to infrastructure investment and productivity.

Caltrain's board late last week adopted a new policy that reduces fines for riding without paying fares.

Under the new ordinance, fines will be decreased from $250 to a $75 administrative penalty. The policy also establishes a "standardized electronic issuance procedure" for conductors, Caltrain officials said in a press release.

Ontario Minister of Transportation Steven Del Duca yesterday held an official opening ceremony for the GO Transit Downsview Park train station in Toronto.

The station, which began serving riders Dec. 30, 2017, provides a direct transfer between GO Transit's Barrie rail line and the Toronto Transit Commission's (TTC) new Line 1 subway extension.

Amtrak last week reached a tentative contract agreement with the Transportation Communications Union (TCU) representing carmen, clerks, on-board service workers and supervisors.

The agreement calls for "significant" percentage wage increases and protects health care benefits, according to a press release issued by the union.

CSX Corp. yesterday announced Edmond Harris has been named executive vice president of operations.

Harris has more than 40 years of experience in the railroad industry in an operating capacity, including nearly two decades at the Illinois Central and CN railroads, where he helped E. Hunter Harrison transform their operating models to one based on precision scheduled railroading.

Bombardier Transportation has received a repeat order for 32 OMNEO double-deck trainsets from French national railway company SNCF Mobilites. Valued at US$444 million, the 256-car order is part of a contract signed in 2010 to provide up to 860 double deck trains to French regions, Bombardier officials said in a press release. The Centre-Val de Loire Region plans to roll out the new trains on its Paris-Orleans-Tours, Paris-Bourges and Paris-Montargis-Nevers lines. The units have 373 seats and feature baggage racks, passenger information screens and a space for wheelchairs and bicycles. The first trains will be delivered in 2020.

The Greenbrier Cos. Inc. reported first-quarter fiscal-year 2018 net income of $26.3 million, or 83 cents per diluted share, compared with $25 million, or 79 cents per diluted share, for the same period in the previous fiscal year. The company's first quarter of FY2018 ended Nov. 30, 2017. Greenbrier logged $559.5 million in first-quarter revenue, compared with $552.3 million in the first quarter of FY2017. Additionally, the company received orders for 3,200 diversified rail cars valued at more than $290 million, marking an increase from orders for 2,400 rail cars valued at more than $230 million in the same quarter in the previous fiscal year. Although the market for new rail cars in North America is challenging, broad-based demand for Greenbrier's products and services "remains steady," said Greenbrier Chairman and Chief Executive Officer William Furman in a press release.

Red River Valley & Western Railroad Co.'s (RRVW) board has named Victor Meyers president and Mark Wegner chief executive officer.

Most recently, Meyers served as vice president of operations of Twin Cities & Western Railroad (TC&W) in Glencoe, Minnesota, where he oversaw the transportation/operations, maintenance of way, mechanical, safety, accounting, human resources, administration and information technology departments.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has authorized the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA) to move its Main Street streetcar extension into the project development phase.

The agency now will develop refined capital and operating costs, estimate ridership, assess environmental impacts and create a detailed funding plan, KCATA officials said in a press release. The work will include an HDR Inc.-led study now underway.

New Jersey Transit Executive Director Steven Santoro has announced plans to step down in April.

Since taking the helm 15 months ago, Santoro has renewed the agency's focus on safety, customer service and communication, NJ Transit officials said in a press release.

BNSF Railway Co. and the Port of Portland have begun offering a new service at Terminal 6 that enables shippers to move their products on a rail shuttle to the Puget Sound ports.

The new partnership will move containers between Portland and Seattle/Tacoma, where goods can be loaded onto ocean carriers. The rail service will operate five days a week.

The San Mateo County Transit District's (SamTrans) board has elected Charles Stone chair.

Stone, who serves as mayor of Belmont, California, represents the Central Judicial Cities on SamTrans' board. Last month, the agency tapped Charles Stone to serve as a representative on the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board.

OmniTRAX Inc. affiliate Sheffield Crossing LLC is selling an 18-acre property to the city of Sand Springs, Oklahoma, for a retail development.

The lot is part of OmniTRAX's Sand Springs Railway Co. and the adjacent 146-acre former steel mill site, which the short-line holding company purchased from Gerdau in 2014.

Canadian railroads remain on track to meet greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets set by the rail industry and the federal government, according to the latest Locomotive Emissions Monitoring (LEM) Program report.

Released by the Railway Association of Canada (RAC) this week, the report summarizes the railroads' progress in 2015 toward reducing GHGs and criteria air contaminants from locomotives operating in Canada. The document also highlights initiatives that the rail industry has taken to reach its emissions reduction goals.

Class Is employed 145,952 workers in the United States as of mid-November, down 0.27 percent since mid-October's employment figure and down 3.66 percent compared with mid-November 2016's level, according to Surface Transportation Board data.

Four out of six employment categories reflected workforce decreases in November compared with October's levels. Those categories were executives, officials and staff assistants, down 0.07 percent to 8,211 employees; professional and administrative, down 0.12 percent to 12,182; maintenance of way and structures, down 0.63 percent to 33,059; and transportation (train and engine), down 0.37 percent to 60,200.

The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) has completed a $3.9 million project to replace the State Route 7 bridge over Norfolk Southern Railway tracks in Worcester.

Work began in March and was completed in November. Construction of the new multi-girder bridge was expedited and completed in one construction season, NYSDOT officials said in a press release.

An Amtrak Cascades derailment near DuPont, Washington, last month caused $40.4 million in damage, according to the National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSB) preliminary accident report.

Issued yesterday, the report provides a few additional details about the fatal accident, which occurred Dec. 18 on the inaugural run of a new bypass on the Amtrak Cascades service between Seattle and Portland, Oregon.