Railroad News

Transport for London has awarded a $149 million contract extension to Bombardier Transportation to service trains operating on the London Overground network. The agreement extends the length of an existing train services contract from December 2023 to May 2030. Bombardier will provide maintenance and support services for its Electrostar Class 378 fleet. Maintenance will occur at four locations in and around London, Bombardier officials said in a press release.

Alstom has completed its first all-electric locomotive at its plant in Madhepura, India. The unit is part of a $4.33 billion order for 800 electric double-section locomotives. Signed in 2015, the agreement is one of the biggest contracts in Alstom's history. Each 12,000-horsepower locomotive has a hauling capacity of 6,000 metric tons and speed of 75 mph. The units were developed with the support of six Alstom sites in France, according to a company press release.

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) next week will kick off a project to renew 1970s-era track along its Route 36 trolley line.

Slated to run through June 9, the project will take place on Elmwood Avenue between 59th and 65th streets in Philadelphia. The street structure supporting the tracks has deteriorated due to weather, traffic and the age of the road surface, SEPTA officials said in a press release.

Metra next month will replace 17,000 ties over a 17-mile single-track span along the Milwaukee District North Line.

The Chicago commuter railroad also will replace five switches, perform brush clearing and continue to upgrade the signal system in preparation for a positive train control (PTC) system.

The North County Transit District (NCTD) late last week marked the 10th anniversary of its Sprinter light-rail system.

Since Sprinter opened a decade ago, it has provided more than 23 million trips, NCTD officials said in a press release.

The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) has raised concern over the small amount of transit projects that received federal funds in the U.S. Department of Transportation's latest round of Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant awards.

The department recently announced the fiscal-year 2017 TIGER awards, with only 3.6 percent going to public transit projects, said APTA President and Chief Executive Officer Paul Skoutelas in a prepared statement issued yesterday.

By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Senior Associate Editor

The Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners has appointed Darrin Lambrigger director of construction management.

He had been serving as acting director of construction management since June 2017. As part of the role, he oversees construction of Port of Long Beach projects, including the $1.5 billion Middle Harbor redevelopment program, which calls for a major on-dock rail yard expansion.

Texas Central Partners officials are striking back at comments made last week by SNCF America Inc. about the private Texas-based company's plans to build a Dallas-to-Houston bullet train service.

In a statement issued in response to the Federal Railroad Administration's (FRA) draft environmental impact statement on Texas Central's proposal, SNCF officials claimed the project would "doom Texas' passenger-rail future." SNCF is the national operator of France's passenger rail service and a global operator of high-speed rail.

Watco Cos. LLC will soon provide stevedore and terminal services directly for customers at its Greens Port Industrial Park at the Houston Ship Channel in Harris County, Texas.

Effective April 1, Watco will provide the services for bulk customers and, on May 1, for breakbulk commodities, company officials said yesterday in a press release.

Metrolinx and Infrastructure Ontario have awarded a CA$254.5 million contract to EllisDon Transit Infrastructure (EDTI) to design, build and finance station improvements along GO Transit's Stouffville rail line.

The project includes upgrades to tracks, platforms and amenities at the Milliken, Agincourt and Unionville GO stations on the line. In addition, the project calls for a rail overpass bridge as part of a grade separation at Steeles Avenue in Toronto's Scarborough area.

This year's Railroad Day on Capitol Hill — held last week in Washington, D.C. — attracted a record attendance of nearly 700 rail industry representatives, the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) announced yesterday.

ASLRRA hosted the event, which is held annually to offer rail industry representatives a chance to meet with members of Congress and their staffs to discuss legislative issues of interest to their companies and associations.

The Virginia General Assembly has passed a bill that will provide $154 million annually for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA).

The amount is Virginia's share of the $500 million that WMATA has said it needs to address its capital needs, according to a press release issued by the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC). Commission officials hope that Maryland and Washington, D.C. — WMATA's other two jurisdictions — will pass legislation to cover the balance.

By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Managing Editor

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) late last week unveiled eight winners of the MTA Genius Transit Challenge, a competition that called for new ideas to fix New York City's subway system.

The winners were collectively awarded $2.5 million in prize money for their submissions. MTA held the competition as soaring ridership continues to strain the subway system's aging infrastructure.

The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) last week released its 2018 customer charter, which includes a pledge to boost streetcar service.

As part of the charter, TTC will add service on up to 20 bus and streetcar routes to help reduce overcrowding during peak capacity. The agency also plans to roll out two-hour, time-based transfers to make multiple short-distance trips more affordable.