Monday morning rail news in brief: Equipment update reports 51 cars for Amtrak regional service built or under construction; first Charger due in early 2021 Fifty-one Siemens cars in the order for Amtrak state-supported service in California and the Midwest have either been completed or are under construction, according to the end-of-June report by the […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak President and CEO William Flynn has told members of Congress that proposed funding for fiscal 2021 “would enable us to avoid frequency reductions on our Long Distance routes, as well as minimize further impacts to our workforce.” In a letter to the chairman and ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee’s Subcommittee […]
Saturday morning rail news: TSB report cites CN crew error in sideswipe accident with VIA train The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has released its report on a September 2019 sideswipe collision between a VIA Rail Canada train and two tank cars in Ernestown, Ontario, finding that switching moves by a Canadian National crew caused […]
Thursday morning rail news in brief: UP says it will end some support of Metra in August, would quit running trains in 90 days if it wins suit Union Pacific says it will stop providing some support services for Metra at the end of August and would stop operating trains for the commuter railroad within […]
More Thursday morning rail news in brief: Appropriations bill would block Amtrak service reductions Amtrak and public transportation would receive at least $26 billion in emergency aid under the fiscal 2021 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development funding bill proposed by the House Appropriations Committee — but the money for Amtrak would be tied to a […]
More Wednesday rail news in brief: Metra tests ridership dashboard Metra has joined the list of commuter railroads providing online ridership information to help passengers make decisions on finding less-crowded trains. The ridership dashboard, a test program, will classify trains according to four levels of occupancy: low (green), with an average of less than 50 […]
Tuesday morning rail news in brief: Inspector general: Amtrak needs to better define role of its police Amtrak needs to define the role and priorities of its police department before it can determine the optimum size of the force and determine if it is being used efficiently and effectively, according to an audit from the […]
More Monday morning rail news in brief: Lac-Megantic bypass work to begin in 2021, government says The government of Quebec announced Sunday that construction of a rail bypass around the town of Lac-Mégantic will begin in 2021. The Montreal Gazette reports that the 8-mile line relocation of the Canadian Pacific, away from the site of […]
Commuter rail news in brief for July 6: In pilot program, GO Transit to introduce plastic dividers between seats Toronto area transit agency Metrolinx will introduce clear plastic dividers between seats on some GO Transit trains this week, expanding a pilot program that has placed similar dividers on 30 GO Transit buses. Five trains are […]
Still more Monday morning rail news: Dow to sell rail operations to Watco Dow Inc. will sell its rail infrastructure and operations at six sites to Watco for more than $310 million, the chemical giant announced today. The two companies will also enter long-term service agreements to continue to provide service to Dow businesses at […]
Evening rail news in brief for a very busy Monday: Court orders North Dakota pipeline to shut down; crude-by-rail could benefit Crude-by-rail business could see a surge in business following a court ruling that will shut down the largest pipeline serving North Dakota crude production. The New York Times reports the Dakota Access Pipeline must […]
Rail news in brief for a busy holiday weekend: Forest Service stops Durango & Silverton fire mitigation effort The U.S. Forest Service has halted a fire mitigation program by the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad over concerns about the number of trees being cut down. The Associated Press reports the project cleared 100 feet […]
