Trails and Rails volunteer Andy Selden describes wildlife along the Mississippi River on the ‘Empire Builder’ in 2014. Bob Johnston WASHINGTON – Amtrak’s decision to no longer furnish meals or lodging for “Trails and Rails” program volunteers continues to curtail commentary on rail routes that used to have it. However, a new five-year agreement between […]
Talgo-SYSTRA will rebuild at least 50, and as many as 121, Bombardier coaches — the white cars in this consist — for Metrolink at Talgo’s factory in Milwaukee. TRAINS: David Lassen MILWAUKEE — Talgo-SYSTRA will rebuild at least 50 passenger cars for Los Angeles-area commuter operator Metrolink, with the potential of rebuilding a total of […]
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Bowing to opposition from the communities of Glenview and Lake Forest, the Illinois Department of Transportation will no longer support plans for two sidings that are part of a plan to increase Amtrak Hiawatha service between Chicago and Milwaukee. Patch.com reports that acting IDOT Secretary Omer Osman said in a letter, released […]
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Months later than originally promised, but almost two weeks ahead of a more recent estimate, NJ Transit resumed rail service on its Atlantic City line on Sunday. But the service returned with a new schedule drawing some criticism. The route was shut down last Sept. 5 to allow for installation of […]
Amtrak’s Freighthouse Square station in Tacoma is awaiting the return of trains to the Point Defiance Bypass. The release of the NTSB’s report on a 2017 derailment could hasten that process. TRAINS: David Lassen WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board will release its report on the December 2017 derailment of an Amtrak Cascades passenger […]
SEATTLE — A Sound Transit committee has recommended removing the site of a recently opened hamburger restaurant from consideration as the site of a new maintenance facility. By a 5-0 vote last week, the System Expansion Committee recommended that the site of a Dick’s Drive-In and Lowe’s home improvement center in Kent, Wash., be dropped […]
Visitors look at models of CRRC equipment at InnoTrans in Berlin during the 2016 trade show. CRRC plans to bid for a Washington Metro equipment contract despite opposition from lawmakers. TRAINS: David Lassen WASHINGTON, D.C. — Chinese rail equipment manufacturer CRRC plans to bid on a contract for new equipment for the DC Metro rail […]
CHICAGO – Metra and other public transportation agencies are being confronted with funding needs that government cannot satisfy and more private investment is needed if these agencies are to survive, the head of Chicago’s commuter rail agency says. Norman Carlson, the chairman of Metra’s board, says that if transportation agencies like his are to be […]
NEW YORK – MTA New York City Transit has completed the implementation of “Automatic Train Operation” this week, a technology that helps enable faster and more reliable service, on the Flushing 7 Line in Queens. It is the second such line in the system, after the L Line. The news comes just months after the introduction […]
SAN FRANCISCO — Repairs on two cracked beams that led to the closure of the Transbay Transit Center have been completed ahead of schedule, setting the stage for reopening of the $2.2-billion facility. Officials with the Transbay Joint Powers Authority announced Thursday that the repairs were done, KTVU-TV news reports. Previously, the authority had indicated […]
PHILADELPHIA — A 57-year-old Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority conductor was shot in the hip Friday afternoon during an attempted robbery at a Regional Rail station, Philly.com reports. The conductor, whose name has not been released, was shot about 3:25 p.m. on a platform at the Carpenter station, according to SEPTA press officer Andrew Busch. Carpenter […]
NEW ORLEANS — Flooding has led to service disruptions on two Amtrak routes serving New Orleans, with the City of New Orleans and Sunset Limited both offering truncated service as a result. The triweekly Sunset Limited, which normally operates between Los Angeles and New Orleans, is currently unable to operate between Houston (or San Antonio) […]
