NTSB issues final report on collision between UP maintenance machine, Capitol Corridor train

Badly damaged piece of maintenance equipment

WASHINGTON — The operator of a piece of maintenance-of-way equipment moved onto unprotected track for unknown reasons, the National Transportation Safety Board said in determining the probable cause of a July 2022 collision between a Union Pacific roadway maintenance machine and an Amtrak Capitol Corridor train in Oakland, Calif. The NTSB completed its final accident […]

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Amtrak projects receive almost $200 million in CRISI grants

WASHINGTON — Amtrak received almost $200 million in the Federal Railroad Administration’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements grants announced Monday, a list of awards highlighted by the more than $178 million for the restoration of Gulf Coast passenger service [see “Federal Railroad Administration awards more than $1.4 billion,” Trains News Wire, Sept. 24, 2023]. […]

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Amtrak GE P30CH locomotive

Silver-and-black Amtrak GE P30CH locomotive leads passenger train under highway bridge

  The Amtrak GE P30CH locomotive is the spiritual successor to the GE U30CG passenger locomotive of 1967. Amtrak acquired 25 of the P30CH model, Nos. 700-724, between August 1975 and January 1976. The model designation led to the units’ nickname: “pooch.”   It was essentially a U30C freight locomotive with a cowl body and […]

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$178 million CRISI grant awarded for Gulf Coast rail

Amtrak logo.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration announced today $178 million in Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Program funding to restore Amtrak service from New Orleans to Mobile, Ala. The funding will help to build a platform for the Mobile end of the service, as well as additional track upgrades. “We’ve been fighting to […]

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Amtrak goes outside for new chief commercial officer

Headshot of Amtrak executive. Amtrak goes outside for new chief commercial officer.

WASHINGTON — Seeking “to lead our continued transformation of the customer experience,” according to Roger Harris, Amtrak president, in an announcement Monday, Amtrak has hired Eliot Hamlisch to a position once held by current CEO Stephen Gardner. As the company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, Hamlisch will oversee corporate marketing, sales distribution, network […]

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Hudson River rail tunnel project starts … again

Train running through a tunnel. Hudson River rail tunnel project starts … again

NEW YORK — Following a 13-year delay, it appears construction will begin in October on the initial steps leading to a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River to Midtown Manhattan, according to a story in the New York Times.  The Gateway Program, which will address infrastructure needs on 10-miles of the Northeast Corridor, is […]

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Amtrak awards two contracts for Frederick Douglass Tunnel project

An Amtrak Acela train exits a tunnel in a mountainside. Amtrak awards two contract for Frederick Douglass Tunnel project.

BALTIMORE – Clark Construction/Stacy and Witbeck Joint Venture has been selected by Amtrak as the construction contractor for the Southern Approach Package (package B) of the Frederick Douglass Tunnel Program, according to an Amtrak news release. This is one of three major contracts to be awarded in work on the tunnel project. The Frederick Douglass […]

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Amtrak IG assesses company’s spending plans

Passenger train near station among trees in fall.

WASHINGTON — Amtrak’s Office of Inspector General on Wednesday released a report detailing the steps the company says it is taking to use, account for, and report on the $22 billion it is slated to receive directly from Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funding [see “Infrastructure bill addresses Amtrak priorities, congressional requirements,” News Wire, […]

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