Railroad News

The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) has named Elizabeth O'Neill interim general manager and chief executive officer.

A 22-year MARTA veteran, O'Neill currently serves as the agency's chief legal counsel. She will succeed Keith Parker, who last week announced he will resign to accept a position as president and CEO of Goodwill of North Georgia.

To mark its 30th anniversary, Montana Rail Link (MRL) this month will conduct eight employee appreciation train trips across its network in and around Missoula, Helena, Livingston, Billings and Laurel, Montana.

The railroad launched business on Oct. 31, 1987, with more than 500 employees who joined the company from more than 30 different railroads, according to an MRL press release.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo yesterday unveiled a "Keep It Clean" initiative aimed at discouraging subway littering in New York City.

The campaign features a new public service announcement that warns riders about the dangers of leaving trash on the system. The ad also notes that passengers who litter will receive $100 fines.

Caltrain has released a report to summarize and highlight its sustainability achievements between fiscal years 2010 and 2016. It’s the first time the commuter railroad has issued a sustainability report.

Over the past several years, the railroad has experienced "unprecedented ridership growth," which helps keep vehicles off the road and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions in the San Francisco Bay area, Caltrain officials said in a press release.

CN officials yesterday unveiled the renamed Claude Mongeau National Training Center in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

The Class I announced earlier this year that it would name its national employee training center after former President and Chief Executive Officer Claude Mongeau, who stepped down from his post for health reasons in June 2016.

The House has passed an amendment that would provide funds to support medical fitness standards for rail workers.

Introduced by U.S. Rep. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.), the amendment calls for setting aside $1 million for the Federal Railroad Administration to establish medical fitness standards for critical safety personnel at railroads.

Canadian Pacific and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference — Train & Engine division (TCRC-T&E) have agreed on a one-year renewal of an existing collective agreement, the railroad announced yesterday.

If ratified by members, the pact would offer the Class I's Canadian conductors and engineers a number of benefits and certainty over the next year, while also protecting the interests of customers and future customers, CP officials said in a press release.

CSX this week began operations at its new Pittsburgh intermodal terminal in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, the railroad announced yesterday.

The terminal offers shippers a new transportation option to move freight to and from Western Pennsylvania, CSX officials said in a press release.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today released a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) for a proposed higher-speed rail route between Washington, D.C., and Richmond, Virginia.

That 123-mile section is part of the larger 500-mile Southeast High-Speed Rail Corridor that will from D.C. to Atlanta. The completion of the draft environmental report moves the project one step closer to the construction phase of the Southeast Corridor, FRA officials said in a press release.

Milwaukee's Department of Public Works (DPW) has selected Transdev Services Inc. as the operations and maintenance contractor for the Milwaukee Streetcar.

Under the agreement, Transdev will be responsible for all day-to-day operations, as well as vehicle and facilities maintenance. The firm also will hire and train staff, maintain track and implement safety programs.

Union Pacific Railroad expects lost business during Hurricane Harvey and costs associated with storm cleanup to reduce third-quarter earnings by 5 cents a share, the company's top executive said yesterday.

UP Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Lance Fritz told the news agency Reuters that pent-up demand from manufacturers in the Houston area and recovery efforts should help boost the railroad's fourth-quarter.

U.S. railroads logged a 2.6 percent increase in combined carload and intermodal traffic in August compared with the same month last year, according to the Association of American Railroads (AAR).

A 5.6 percent increase in intermodal containers and trailers helped push the railroads' total combined traffic to 2,744,486 million units for the month compared with August 2016. But total carloads last month slipped 0.3 percent to 1,343,405 units, AAR officials said in a press release.

Hawaii Gov. David Ige on Tuesday signed a bill that extends through 2030 a tax surcharge to pay for the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transit's (HART) planned passenger-rail system.

The law extends Oahu's general excise tax surcharge three additional years and increases the state's hotel room tax by 1 percent for the next 13 years, according to a press release issued by Ige's office.

The National Hurricane Center's latest projected track of Hurricane Irma has prompted the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to postpone its Sept. 12 listening session concerning CSX's rail service issues, the board announced yesterday.

The center has projected landfall in southern Florida early on Sept. 11. CSX's headquarters are based in Jacksonville, Fla.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) yesterday announced the availability of $500 million in discretionary grant funding through the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) program.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2017 set aside $500 million for National Infrastructure Investments, also known as TIGER grants, according to a USDOT press release. As with previous TIGER rounds, funds will be awarded on a competitive basis for projects that have a significant impact on the United States, a metropolitan area or a region.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority's (WMATA) rail system and the Virginia Railway Express (VRE) provide more than $600 million each year to Virginia's general fund, the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) announced yesterday.

The figure comes from a new report that evaluated the economic value of the two rail systems.