Kentucky Steam Heritage Corp.
Thursday morning rail news:
Kentucky Steam facility to be centerpiece of development effort
A former CSX Transportation rail yard in Estill County, Ky., owned by Kentucky Steam Heritage Corp. will be turned into a multipurpose development featuring food, arts, music, and a heritage rail facility. With the help of a $120,000 contribution by the Commonwealth of Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet and investments and support by local industries, the facility between Irvine and Ravenna, Ky., will be turned into “The Yard,” a 40-acre development. Along with a 4,500-seat multi-purpose facility for concerts and other events, the development will feature the shop building being used by Kentucky Steam Heritage to restore C&O 4-8-4 No. 2716, moved to the facility in 2019 from the Kentucky Railway Museum [see “C&O 2716 restoration effort gets several boosts,” Trains News Wire, July 29, 2019]. The shop will be open as an interactive museum and will be available for area vocational schools to help students learn a trade. More information is available at the Kentucky Steam website.
CTA to offer vending machines selling COVID-19 protective gear
The Chicago Transit Authority is joining the list of agencies offering vending machines selling personal protective equipment at some stations as part of measures to deal with COVID-19. Later this year, the CTA will introduce the machines at six stations — Belmont, Roosevelt, and 79th Street stations on the Red Line, Midway on the Orange Line, Jefferson Park on the Blue Line, and Kedzie on the Green Line. Items will be priced from $3.75 to $10. “The addition of these new vending machines is a reflection of our unwavering commitment to seek out tools and resources to help reassure our customers that we are doing everything we can to keep customers healthy during this ongoing pandemic,” CTA President Dorval R. Carter Jr. said in a press release.
REMSA offers COVID-19 webinar
The Railway Engineering-Maintenance Suppliers Association is offering a webinar on safe practices in addressing COVID-19 as part of its continuing webinar series. “Let’s Do This Right the First Time: Safely Returning to Work in the Time of COVID-19” will be offered Tuesday, Oct. 27 at 2 p.m. Eastern Time, featuring guest speaker Tony Dublino of SafeRack loading rack technologies. More information and registration is available at the REMSA website.
