WASHINGTON — A coalition of labor unions representing railroad shop workers has asked the Federal Railroad Administration and Surface Transportation Board to take five steps to improve safety and service on the Class I railroads. In an 81-page letter posted on the STB website this week, the unions say the implementation of the low-cost Precision […]
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court has elected not to hear Ohio’s appeal of a decision overturning a state law regulating blocked railroad grade crossings, WFIN radio reports, leaving stand precedent that local regulation is preempted by federal regulation of interstate commerce. Ohio’s Supreme Court had struck down the law, which prohibited railroads from blocking […]
CHICAGO — Amtrak has announced a significant number of cancellations beginning Thursday, Jan. 11, for long-distance and state-supported trains serving Chicago in anticipation of a major winter storm expected to hit the Midwest Friday and Saturday. The majority of cancellations are Friday and Saturday. Also affected are St. Louis-Kansas City trains and, on the West […]
BROOKLYN — The New York City subway system has experienced its second derailment in a week, as a Manhattan-bound train derailed on an elevated portion of the F line in Coney Island this afternoon (Wednesday, Jan. 10). The incident occurred about 12:25 p.m. between stations near Neptune Avenue and West 6th Street. The Fire Department […]
WASHINGTON — A conductor entered the “red zone” where there was an increased likelihood of being struck by equipment, and an engineer did not follow operating procedures to stop his train after failing to hear instructions from the conductor, the National Transportation Safety Board said in determining the probable cause of the fatal Oct. 28, […]
WASHINGTON — As the next mix of high winds, rain, and snow moved up the East Coast, Amtrak cancelled frequencies for trains departing late today (Tuesday, Jan. 9) and early Wednesday but managed to preserve some service on all Northeast routes. This was the same scenario the company used earlier in the week when some […]
RICHMOND, Va. — A Virginia legislator is re-introducing regulations that would require two-person crews, cap train lengths, and limit the amount of time trains could block grade crossings in the commonwealth’s House of Delegates. HB385 is sponsored by Delegate Shelly A. Simonds (D-Newport News). It will formally be introduced on Wednesday, Jan. 10. It would […]
Discounts have been announced on regional corridors throughout the U.S. for winter coach-class rail travel. As expected, there are restrictions, and in certain cases booking codes need to be input to take advantage of lower fares. Such discounts help establish a ridership base on departures where demand is light, allowing carriers to raise prices as […]
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Charlotte Area Transit System has taken about half its light-rail fleet out of service after because of a wheel issue that led to the rapid development of a flat spot on one car, WCNC-TV reports. The North Carolina Department of Transportation ordered 22 of the older cars to be taken out […]
MIAMI—South Florida commuter operator Tri-Rail will begin expanding its ridership base by initiating service to Brightline’s center-city Miami terminal next Saturday, Jan. 13, but Amtrak continues to delay moving its long-distance Silver Star and Silver Meteor from an isolated facility 80 blocks north of downtown at Hialeah to a modern Miami International Airport station that […]
NEW YORK — Full service has been restored on New York City Transit’s 1, 2, 3 subway lines on Manhattan’s West Side following Thursday’s low-speed collision between two trains, which derailed both and blocked the route adjacent to the 96th Street station. The resumption of service was announced on the NYC Transit Subway X site […]
SACRAMENTO — Alstom Transportation and Siemens Mobility are the two potential suppliers of trainsets for the California high speed rail project, the California High-Speed Rail Authority announced Friday. Their identification as qualified bidders follows the authority’s release of a Request for Qualifications in August 2023 and precedes the release of the Request for Proposals and […]
