Railroad News

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) this week urged the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to approve Amtrak's permit application for a one-time movement of its just-built high-speed train from the Alstom plant in New York to the agency's test track in Colorado.

In 2016, Amtrak's board finalized negotiations with Alstom to provide new, next-generation high-speed trains for Amtrak's Acela service. In order for the project to stay on schedule, and production of the remainder of the fleet to begin, critical testing must occur on the just-constructed train at the test track in Pueblo, Colorado.

Bay Area Rapid Transit’s (BART) board yesterday awarded a $798 million contract to Hitachi Rail STS USA Inc. to replace the agency’s 47-year-old, fixed-block train control system with a modern communications-based train control system (CBTC).

CBTC will enable BART to more precisely detect train location, allowing the agency to run more trains closer together. Doing so will effectively add capacity and decrease travel times, BART officials said in a press release. 

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) praised President Donald Trump's administration for its proposed National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) revisions aimed at speeding up the environmental review process for major infrastructure projects.

The White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) issued the notice of proposed rulemaking, which calls for modernizing NEPA. One proposed change would no longer require agencies to consider "cumulative" effects of infrastructure projects. Courts have interpreted that as meaning the study of how a project might contribute to the climate, such as by contributing to an increase in greenhouse gas emissions, The Hill reported.

The Port Authority of Allegheny County yesterday closed portions of the Mount Washington Transit Tunnel in Pittsburgh due to continued landslides caused by stormwater runoff. The tunnel is used exclusively by the authority’s light-rail and bus network.

Due to debris from the runoff and an unstable hillside, no light-rail service will operate on the outbound tracks of the tunnel until further notice, authority officials said in a press release.

MTA Metro-North Railroad officials yesterday announced the commuter railroad will make the Williams Bridge, Woodlawn and Wakefield stations in the Bronx, New York, accessible according to Americans with Disabilities Act standards.

The effort is part of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) 2020-24 capital plan. 

U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao yesterday announced updated federal guidelines for the development of automated vehicles (AV).

Chao unveiled the guidelines, titled "Ensuring American Leadership in Automated Vehicle Technologies: Automated Vehicles 4.0," during a speech at the CES 2020 gadget show in Las Vegas.

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.