It seemed transit’s biggest headlines in 2023 were generated for all the wrong reasons. Two systems in particular — the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority — continued to deal with major administrative and operational issues. On top of that, WMATA — facing a massive operating deficit — issued a budget […]
ROANOKE, Va. — Norfolk & Western No. 611, the Virginia Museum of Transportation’s celebrated Class J 4-8-4, has gained a new honor: a spot on the National Park Services’ National Register of Historic Places. The museum learned of the designation earlier this week, and plans an official celebration in the spring, according to social media […]
WASHINGTON —The National Transportation Safety Board plans to focus on New York City Transit’s internal oversight and worker protection procedures, and the external oversight provided by the Federal Transit Administration and the New York Department of Transportation, as it continues its investigation into a fatal accident involving a track worker on Nov. 29, according to […]
WASHINGTON — U.S. rail traffic continued its winning streak in a big way for the week ending Dec. 16, showing a 7.6% increase in volume compared to the same week a year ago. It is the sixth straight week that traffic has shown gains over the corresponding week in 2022. According to figures from the […]
NEW YORK — Up to $1.8 billion in accessibility work on the Long Island Rail Road and in the New York City subway system, mprovements at Metro-North Railroad’s Brewster Yard, and LIRR state-of-good repair work were among items addressed with contracts approved Wednesday by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority board. The board also approved the purchase […]
ADAMANA Ariz. — One locomotive and 21 cars of a BNSF Railway train derailed this morning in eastern Arizona, KNXV-TV reports. No injuries were reported and no hazardous materials were involved in the incident that occurred about 7:30 a.m. about 20 miles east of Holbrook, Ariz., and about 45 miles from the New Mexico border. […]
LOS ANGELES — Parallel Systems today for the first time demonstrated the platooning capability of the autonomous, battery-electric container cars that it is developing for short-haul intermodal service. The self-propelled cars lack traditional Janney railroad couplers. Instead, they can operate in platoons through bumper-to-bumper contact and coordinating tractive effort among all of the cars in […]
WASHINGTON — As the shutdown of the Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas, rail gateways enters its third day, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency has given no indication of when it will allow freight traffic to resume. Customs officials closed the gateways — the second and third busiest rail border crossings — at […]
WASHINGTON — The Federal Transit Administration has released a proposal requiring transit agencies to assess risk to their workers and identify strategies to improve worker safety. The proposed general directive, published today in the Federal Register, is open to comment through Feb. 20, 2024. “Assaults on transit workers are unacceptable,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said […]
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Fort Lauderdale city commissioners voted 3-2 on Tuesday night to accept a new bridge as the replacement for the existing downtown New River drawbridge used by Florida East Coast Railway and Brightline if a tunnel is too expensive, despite the ongoing concerns of the city’s mayor that the tunnel is needed […]
PITTSBURGH — The city’s transit agency has applied for a $100 million federal grant as part of its process to replace its current fleet of light rail vehicles, the Pittsburgh Union Progress reports. Pittsburgh Regional Transit is looking to replace its entire 81-car fleet of 53 cars built by Siemens AG in the 1980s, with […]
Add it up — a million here, a million there — and soon you’ve got some serious money. Looking back on 2023 in railroad preservation, the large sums secured for new museum facilities adds up to be the biggest story. The tally sheet shows the State of Nevada budgeted $23 million for a new visitors’ […]
