TRAINS: David Lassen
More Monday morning rail news:
NJ Transit adjusts North Jersey Coast, Northeast Corridor schedules as derailment repairs continue
The Nov. 24 derailment of an NJ Transit commuter train on the North Jersey Coast Line continues to alter schedules, with modified schedules beginning today for both the North Jersey Coast and Northeast Corridor lines. An NJ Transit announcement says the revised schedules will be effective through the week. Trains may experience delays of up to 15 minutes as track repairs at the derailment site continue, and some trains will be departing earlier than usual. The modified North Jersey Coast schedule is here; the Northeast Corridor schedule is here.
Delivery of first new MTA subway cars pushed into 2021
The first cars in a 535-car Metropolitan Transportation Authority order of new subway and Staten Island Railway cars will not arrive until the first quarter of 2021, after initially being targeted for delivery this year. Nonprofit news website The City reports temporary shutdowns of Kawasaki Rail Car Inc. plants in Lincoln, Neb., and Yonkers, N.Y., have contributed to delays, along with pandemic-related supply-chain issues. The $1.4 billion order also includes an option to purchase up to 1,077 more cars, but that is in jeopardy because of the MTA’s financial crisis; an MTA spokesman told the news site the decision “is entirely dependent on whether or not the federal government helps us secure the fiscal aid we desperately need to keep our system afloat. That is true of virtually all major capital projects at this time.”
San Diego MTS awards five-year contract for rail maintenance program
San Diego’s Metropolitan Transit System has awarded Advanced Rail Management Corp. a five-year contract for a rail maintenance program including rail grinding for the San Diego Trolley system. The program will include a review of wheel-rail profile compatibility, analysis of rail profile and wear, and a grinding program to remove defects, enhance vehicle steering through curves, and reduce noise. “The ultimate goal of the current five-year grinding plan is to help the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System move from a corrective to preventive grinding plan,” said ARM President Gordon Bachinsky. “Along the way, the program will reduce rail and wheel wear, noise and vibration, and derailment potential. And it will improve ride quality for passengers.” ARM is a consulting/services company that specializes in providing expertise in all areas related to the wheel/rail interface to railways and transit systems.
