CASSELMAN, Ontario — The Village of Casselman, a community of about 3,500 some 34 miles southeast of Ottawa, is in talks with VIA Rail Canada to increase rail service to and from the Canadian capital during the morning and evening rush hours. The CBC reports that Casselman Mayor Daniel Lafleur would like to see a […]
Work on the LA Metro Blue Line — to be renamed the A Line — is complete and the line will reopen Nov. 2. LA Metro LOS ANGELES — LA Metro has announced that full service on its oldest light rail line will resume Nov. 2, which will also mark the renaming of the former […]
A Union Pacific North train departs the Central Street station in Evanston, Ill., in December 2018. Metra ticket sales at the station will end Oct. 31. TRAINS: David Lassen EVANSTON, Ill. — Reflecting the continuing transition of passengers to mobile ticketing, Metra and Union Pacific will close the ticket office at the Evanston Central Street […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak could see notable financial gains from even a relatively slight improvement in on-time performance and significant gains with more substantial improvements, according to a report the passenger railroad has welcomed as an indication of the costs it incurs when host railroads fail to give its trains operating priority. The report by the […]
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Virginia Railway Express will begin a search for a new chief operating officer after announcing today that the VRE Operations Board and current CEO Doug Allen “have agreed to part ways.” Allen became VRE’s CEO in September 2012 after stints at Dallas Area Rapid Transit and Capital Metro in Austin, Texas. “Doug […]
A Coaster commuter train negotiates Miramar Hill on its way north from San Diego to Oceanside. Coaster and Amtrak service between Oceanside and San Diego will be shut down this weekend for track work. TRAINS: David Lassen SAN DIEGO — Amtrak Pacific Surfliner and Coaster commuter train service will not operate this weekend and next […]
HARTFORD, Conn. — Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont wants to reduce Metro-North travel times to and from New York by up to 15 minutes, part of a $5 billion plan to upgrade commuter rail service in the state, the Hartford Courant reports. The commuter-rail plan is part of a larger transportation package, yet to be unveiled, […]
CHICAGO — Metra is testing a new security screening system at several downtown Chicago stations this week, the Chicago Tribune reports. The heat scanner, on loan from the Transportation Security Adminstration, is being used today (Thursday, Oct. 17) at the Ogilvie Transportation Center after tests Tuesday and Wednesday at two Metra Electric stations, Millennium and […]
NJ Transit ALP-45DP 4508 leads an inbound Montclair-Boonton Line train at Montclair State University. Positive train control testing on this line and the Morris and Essex Line will be delayed because of PTC software issues. Ralph Spielman NEWARK, N.J. — NJ Transit’s challenges in implementing positive train controls have hit another snag, pushing back planned […]
SEATTLE — Sound Transit’s two light-rail systems are getting new names. Presently, the Seattle regional transit agency operates a 22-mile north-south line from the University of Washington through downtown to Angle Lake, south of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. It also operates a 1.6-mile light-rail line in Tacoma, from Freighthouse Square to downtown. But Sound Transit is […]
Four Northeast Corridor stations used by Amtrak and NJ Transit, including Princeton Junction, N.J., will receive makeovers in a program announced Tuesday. Here, a Princeton “Dinky” awaits departure to the Princeton University campus from Princeton Junction in August 2019. TRAINS: David Lassen NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. — Four stations used by NJ Transit and Amtrak on the […]
A Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway train prepares to leave the former Central Railroad of New Jersey station in downtown Jim Thorpe, Pa., on Oct. 24, 2018. The Lehigh Gorge Scenic has announced it will shut down in November. Scott A. Hartley PORT CLINTON, Pa. — The Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway announced it would cease operations […]
