Tuesday morning rail news:
MTA to open subway for two additional hours overnight
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will increase overnight New York subway service, cutting the time the subway is closed nightly from four hours to two as of Feb. 22. The system, currently closed from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. for nightly cleaning, will now be closed between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. “The partial late-night reopening of the subways will support the Governor’s gradual reopening,” MTA CEO Patrick J. Foye said in a press release, “as we are seeing positive trends with the deployment of the vaccine, lower infection rate, the resumption of indoor dining and extended hours for bars and restaurants. The suspension of service for two hours will enable the MTA to continue the most aggressive cleaning and disinfecting regimen that has led the subway to be the cleanest it has ever been.” The subway, historically a 24-hour operation, began closing overnight last May 6.
Detroit streetcar plans to reopen in late summer
Detroit’s QLine streetcar, shut down since last March 29, will resume service in late summer. The Detroit News reports M-1 Rail CEO Matt Cullen wrote in a letter to donors that the relaunch of service will depend on factors including COVID-19 virus containment, return to office work for major employers along the route, stores and restaurants reopening without restrictions, and the resumption of attendance at sporting and entertainment events. The 3.3-mile streetcar line received $1.3 million in federal coronavirus relief funds.
Another fire breaks out during cleanup of Normal, Ill., derailment
For the second straight day, a fire broke out as cleanup continued of a derailed Union Pacific intermodal train in Normal., Ill. The Bloomington Pantagraph reports the fire involving spilled cargo from the derailment was brought under control about 11:30 a.m. Monday, with firefighters staying on the scene and working with Union Pacific crews to spread the debris so it could be fully extinguished. Some 16 cars of the train derailed about 5 a.m. Saturday; two trailers caught fire during salvage work on Sunday [see “Trailers catch fire during cleanup …,” Trains News Wire, Feb. 15, 2021].
