Railroad News

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) won the Rail Transit Team Achievement Award at the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA) International Rail Rodeo, which was held June 21-22 in conjunction with the association’s 2019 Rail Conference in Toronto.

The award is given to the system with the highest rail operator and maintainer team combined score. The winning team members were Joshua Vining, Justin Strong, Gary Crandall, Steven Dore and Erroll Luciano.

Utah Transit Authority's (UTA) board announced yesterday it selected Carolyn Gonot as executive director, effective Aug. 19.

A 25-year transit professional, Gonot will join UTA after 22 years at the Santa Clara Valley Transit Authority. There, she led the funding and planning for the 16-mile, six-station extension of the Bay Area Rapid Transit system into San Jose, California, UTA officials said in a press release.

Virgin Trains USA officially broke ground yesterday on an extension of its privately funded passenger-rail line from West Palm Beach to Orlando, Florida.

Formerly Brightline, Virgin Trains is developing 170 miles of new track into the completed intermodal facility located in the new South Terminal at Orlando International Airport as part of the second phase of the expansion into central Florida.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) last week unveiled a $1 billion plan to increase capacity and reduce delays on the Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) rail system by 2022.

The capacity increases rely on more than $1 billion in capital investment — the ongoing $750 million investment in a new signal system that enables PATH to run more trains per hour; a prior commitment of $215.7 million for 72 new rail cars that will be delivered in 2021-2022; and a new capital commitment of $80 million for station modifications to enable nine-car trains on the Newark-to-World Trade Center (WTC) line.

Prompted by a fatal Amtrak train derailment in 2017, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is calling on the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to implement a passenger-rail operations safety program "without further delay."

The NTSB statement followed the release yesterday of its final report on the agency's investigation into the Amtrak derailment that occurred in DuPont, Washington.

The Little Rock Port Authority's board has elected Melissa Hendricks to a second term as chair. Her term will run from July 2019 through June 2020.

Hendricks was first appointed to the board in September 2011. During her tenure, she has served as treasurer, vice chair and chair of the external affairs committee.

The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System's (SDMTS) board earlier this month approved a transit-oriented development (TOD) near the Grantville light-rail station in San Diego, California. 

The housing development would include 156 affordable units built by Affirmed Housing, 254 market-rate, student-oriented units built by Greystar and 96 parking spaces for SDMTS commuters, according to an SDMTS press release. 

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) will resume on July 7 the automatic door-opening feature on Red Line trains.

The feature, which has been tested throughout the system since February, is part of Metrorail's original design. But it was discontinued years ago due to a decline in reliability, WMATA officials said in a press release. 

The Twin Cities & Western Railroad Co. (TC&W) has promoted Tina Ryberg to assistant vice president of administration and operations.

Based at TC&W's headquarters in Glencoe, Minnesota, Ryberg oversees the railroad's transportation operations, maintenance of way, mechanical, safety, accounting, human resources and administration departments.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom last week announced the appointment of Harriet Richardson as the Bay Area Rapid Transit’s (BART) first inspector general. 

In her new role, Richardson will plan, direct and manage the independent oversight of BART operations to ensure the effective use of resources and compliance with federal and state laws. Richardson may also conduct independent audits and investigations, and provide reports of findings to BART’s board, the California State Legislature and the public.

By Vesna Brajkovic, Associate Editor 

Amtrak is on track to introduce new high-speed trains for revenue service on the Northeast Corridor (NEC) from Washington, D.C., to Boston as early as 2021. 

The Dallas Area Rapid Transit's (DART) board last week approved a new name — the Silver Line — for its future commuter-rail service running on the Cotton Belt.

The planned 26-mile line will extend between the Dallas/Fort Worth International (DFW) Airport in Dallas and Shiloh Road in Plano, Texas, and traverse five other cities including Grapevine, Coppell, Carrollton, Addison and Richardson.

Vossloh North America has expanded its Memphis, Tennessee, manufacturing plant. The project included installation of new machinery to increase manufacturing capabilities and improvements to office space, according to a Vossloh press release. The company also announced plans to hire new employees and management personnel over the next two years to support operational growth.

Nomad Digital was selected by the Capitol Joint Powers Authority (CCJPA) to install, test, operate and maintain the WiFi network on Capitol Corridor trains, including those operated by CCJPA and Amtrak. Over the initial five-year contract, Nomad will create a technical roadmap for the wireless infrastructure that will evolve over the contract's term, according to a Nomad press release.

Caltrain last week reopened the refurbished 22nd Street Station in San Francisco. 

In February, the Dogpatch and Northwest Potrero Hill Green Benefits District (GBD) began the project to resurface the station’s plaza and walkway, create seating, improve fencing, enhance landscaping and install new lighting, Caltrain officials said in a press release.

The Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority (CCJPA) earlier this week named Rob Padgette its managing director of management and operations of the Capitol Corridor train route between San Jose and Auburn, California. 

On July 1, Padgette will succeed David Kutrosky, who is stepping down after nearly 10 years.

The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) has named Christopher Connor as its next president and chief executive officer.

The former global CEO of Wallenius Wilhemsen Logistics (WWL), Connor will begin his new role on Sept. 23. He will succeed Kurt Nagle, who plans to retire this fall.

Legislation that would extend the 45G short-line maintenance tax credit was favorably voted out of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee yesterday, the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association reported.

The Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2019 (H.R. 3301) would provide certainty for a number of tax credits, including the short-line credit, through 2020.