BALTIMORE – Maryland’s Purple Light Rail Line would begin carrying passengers in the Washington suburbs over four years late and cost an additional $1.4 billion to build under a proposed contract to complete the project, Maryland transportation officials said this week. The state’s cost of a broader agreement for a private concessionaire to build, operate, and […]
NEW YORK – New York City’s subways and commuter railroads will receive a $6 billion lump sum payment in federal COVID-19 relief funds, New York Sen. Chuck Schumer announced. New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority has received the money as part of more than $14.5 billion in overall federal relief aid. It is the largest one-time […]
PUEBLO, Colo. – A new high-tech railcar developed by the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Department of Energy is moving from Oregon to the Association of American Railroads Transportation Technology Center test track near Pueblo for multiple-car testing. The Rail Escort Vehicle is designed to transport security personnel during the shipment of spent nuclear fuel and high-level […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak today unveiled a specially painted P42DC to mark the 50th Anniversary of Operation Lifesaver. P4DC No. 203, repainted with the message, “See Tracks? Think Train!” was released into service today during a ceremony at Washington Union Station. The black-and-yellow locomotive commemorates the 50th anniversary of Operation Lifesaver, the nonprofit organization dedicated to […]
NEWARK, N.J. – NJ Transit has awarded contracts for two station renovation projects in Newark and Trenton. In Newark, the agency has approved an all-inclusive professional services contract to perform master planning, design services, and construction support services as part of a long-term project for the restoration and renovation of Newark Penn Station. NJ Transit’s […]
WASHINGTON – Railroads have not been immune to the skyrocketing number of COVID-19 cases across the U.S. as the more contagious Omicron variant spreads nationwide. The number of railroad employees infected with COVID-19 reached its highest point of the pandemic in the week ending Jan. 1, according to Federal Railroad Administration data released on Friday. […]
DENVER – Alpenglow Rail, a Denver-based firm specializing in investment, operating, and growing rail businesses, in partnership with Connor, Clark & Lunn Infrastructure, will acquire Orange Rail Inc. from LJA Investments, Inc. Orange Rail is a newly constructed rail terminal in Orange, Texas, with access to Union Pacific and BNSF Railway. Orange Rail consists of a […]
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — David McKenna has been named president and chief executive officer of Rocky Mountaineer. McKenna began his new duties Jan. 4. McKenna has extensive experience in Canada’s tourism industry. Prior to joining Rocky Mountaineer, he was president of the Banff Jasper Collection by Pursuit where he led tourism expansion and acquisition projects […]
PERTH, Australia — Fortescue Metals Group announced today it has purchased two new battery-operated locomotives from Progress Rail to haul ore from mine to port in northwest Australia. The new eight-axle locomotives will have an energy capacity of 14.5 megawatt-hours and will be built at Progress Rail’s facility in Sete Lagoas, Brazil. Fortescue Chief Executive […]
WASHINGTON – Canadian Pacific today won Amtrak’s support for its proposed merger with Kansas City Southern after CP and Amtrak reached a deal to expand passenger service in the Midwest and South. CP agreed to more frequent Amtrak service on the Hiawatha route linking Chicago and Milwaukee, as well as extending the corridor to St. Paul, […]
BNSF Railway led the big six Class I railroads in growth in 2021, a year in which rail volume rebounded from the pandemic-related lows of 2020 yet struggled to overcome kinks in the global supply chain. BNSF’s traffic was up 7.4% for the year, with intermodal surging 8.3% and coal up nearly 11%. CSX Transportation […]
LAKE OSWEGO, Ore. – The adoption of precision scheduled railroading may be causing railroads to downsize their locomotive and car fleets, but freight carbuilder Greenbrier Cos. still received new orders of 6,200 units valued at $670 million for the first fiscal quarter of 2022. Car orders include intermodal, boxcars, gondolas, tank cars, covered hoppers, and automobile carriers. […]
