Railroad News

The Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority (CCJPA) yesterday released a draft business plan, which outlines the California agency's rail-service improvements and funding requests for the next two fiscal years.

The draft plan estimates the operating budget for fiscal-year 2020-2021 to be about $32.7 million, a 1.4 percent decrease compared to the FY2019-2020 operating budget. The FY2021-2022 budget is projected to be nearly $33.7 million, according to the draft plan document.

Select Sands America Corp. has completed its acquisition of a rail loading facility in Diaz, Arkansas, and has begun a project to reconfigure it.

The Diaz rail facility connects to a Union Pacific Railroad mainline.

New Jersey Transit last week announced the agency will replace 20 aging diesel engines in its River Line light-rail fleet to align with current emissions standards and realize as much as 15 percent in fuel savings.

The 15-year-old Tier I engines now operating on River Line light-rail vehicles have reached the end of their useful life and will be replaced with Tier IV diesel engines from Cummins, NJ Transit officials said in a press release. 

The U.S. freight-rail traffic slump is continuing, with volume down 9.6 percent to 501,624 carloads and intermodal units during the week ending Jan. 11 compared with the same week in 2019, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

Total carloads for the week fell 10.1 percent to 239,119 units, while intermodal volume declined 9.1 percent to 262,505 containers and trailers.

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s (WMATA) Metrorail posted a 4 percent increase in passenger trips last year, ending a downward ridership trend that lasted most of the past decade. 

Riders took 182 million trips in 2019 compared to 175 million in 2018, a net increase of 7 million trips, WMATA officials said in a press release.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), attorneys general from 16 states and at least two U.S. senators have filed concerns about what they believe is a risk to public safety and the environment under a proposed rule that would allow trains to transport liquefied natural gas (LNG) in rail tank cars.

On the other side of the issue, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) and American Short-Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) say that transporting LNG by rail would improve transportation safety because of the rail industry's "strong safety record" on a ton-mile basis for transporting hazardous materials.

By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Senior Associate Editor

Trinity Industries Inc. named E. Jean Savage chief executive officer and president, effective Feb. 17. Savage has spent 17 years at Caterpillar Inc., currently serving as vice president of the surface mining and technology division. She previously served stints at Caterpillar’s Progress Rail subsidiary and Parker Hannifin Corp., and was an intelligence officer in the U.S. Army Reserves. Savage is a Trinity board member, a position she will retain upon her appointment, Trinity officials said in a press release.

Duos Technologies Inc. completed full-scale implementation of its Rail Inspection Portal (rip®) for CSX. This rip® installation allows automation of the railroad's rail-car mechanical inspections, which historically were conducted manually, Duos Technologies officials said in a press release. The next phase of this initial project includes the addition of artificial intelligence algorithms, which, when installed over the coming months, will mark the completion of the overall automation process, officials said. 

The Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) is studying transit options that include rail for reducing traffic congestion in Little Cottonwood Canyon.

The department is working with the Utah Transit Authority and the U.S. Forest Service on a plan for an integrated transportation system that would improve the reliability, mobility and safety for residents, visitors, and commuters who use State Route 210 into Little Cottonwood Canyon.

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker earlier this month refiled a $74.2 million supplemental budget bill to address critical funding needs, including $18 million to support Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) infrastructure and safety investments.

The investment would support additional staff, contractors and other resources necessary to expedite the completion of MBTA’s critical capital projects; enable proactive system inspections to detect and address safety and reliability issues before they impact rail service; and implement enhanced maintenance procedures, according to a press release issued by Baker’s office. 

The South Florida Regional Transportation Authority (SFRTA) last week announced that last year its Tri-Rail commuter-rail service logged its highest calendar year ridership with 4,495,039 passengers. 

Ridership in 2019 rose 1.8 percent over 2018 levels, marking an upward trend that the agency has logged for the past three years, SFRTA officials said in a press release. 

Reading & Northern Railroad (R&N) recently purchased two diesel-electric locomotives from Norfolk Southern Railway to use for a passenger excursion that will launch in April.

The "F units" date to the early 1950s, but were rebuilt by NS 15 years ago at the Class I's locomotive shop in Altoona, Pennsylvania, R&N officials said in a press release. The R&N acquired the units in late 2019.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) earlier this week selected five contractors to compete for the chance to help develop the Sepulveda transit corridor, a high-speed rail line that would connect the San Fernando Valley, Westside and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

Five developer teams met the agency’s initial qualifications for submitting a predevelopment agreement (PDA) proposal to assist with project planning and design. Now, each contractor has the potential opportunity to enter into an implementation agreement, LA Metro officials said in a press release.

By Mike Choat, chairman, National Railroad Construction & Maintenance Association Inc.

Happy New Year to everyone in the railway community and the best of luck in getting off on the right track for the 2020 construction and maintenance season!

The Orange County Transportation Authority's (OCTA) board yesterday selected Steven Jones as chair, and Andrew Do, vice chair, to guide transportation improvement projects and public transit in Orange County, California. 

Jones is mayor of Garden Grove, and served as OCTA vice chair in 2019. A board member since 2013, he has served in leadership roles on the authority’s transit and finance and administration committees.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) last week announced its 2020 targeted construction goals for the Purple Line Extension project.

In order to remain on schedule to complete the project in 2023, crews this year must tunnel west to Wilshire/La Cienega Station and add 3,280 more feet of tunnels; finish piling for the Wilshire/Rodeo Station; complete early utility relocation in Westwood; and start piling for the Westwood/UCLA Station, LA Metro officials said in a project newsletter.