BALTIMORE — A member of Baltimore’s city council has questioned the failure of Maryland’s environmental agency to monitor methane levels at CSX Transportation’s Curtis Bay Coal Piers, and is calling for the immediate suspension of operations at the facility. WJZ-TV reports the comments of Councilwoman Phylicia Porter came Wednesday during a council hearing on the […]
WINNIPEG, Manitoba — The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has called for implementation of a form of positive train control on Canadian railroads and new crew training measures as a result of its investigation into a 2019 collision of two Canadian National trains near Portage la Prairie, Manitoba. The TSB found that factors in the […]
WASHINGTON — The parties in the dispute over Amtrak’s effort to launch Gulf Coast service have asked the Surface Transportation Board to extend the period for board-sponsored mediation by 30 days. In a joint motion filed Wednesday, Aug. 24, by CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, Amtrak, and the Alabama State Port Authority, the parties say “an […]
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — For the second time, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority will launch a pilot program offering extensive weekday commuter rail service to the Foxboro station, which generally has only seen service for events at the adjacent Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots. The one-year pilot will offer 11 inbound trips and […]
WASHINGTON — In a rare occurrence for 2022, U.S. freight rail traffic for the week ending Aug. 20 was up over the same week a year ago — albeit by the barest of margins. According to statistics from the Association of American Railroads, traffic for the week was 501,548 carloads and intermodal units — an […]
BREMERVORDE, Germany — Germany’s pioneering hydrogen-fuel-cell powered passenger trains have achieved the next step in their launch, fully handling service on their Cuxhaven-Bremervörde-Butexhude route as of today. Alstom, manufacturer of the 14 Coradia iLint trainsets, called the 100% hydrogen operation of the route a “historical milestone” in a press release. The trains had begun operation […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway executives have thanked customers for their patience regarding the limited embargo on carload traffic bound for California that began on June 27 and is now set to expire next month. “Beginning Monday, Sept. 5, shipments may move into California without a permit. We recognize the embargo has led to […]
BETHESDA, Md. — Work on Maryland’s long-delayed Purple Line light rail project should resume in earnest after Labor Day, WTOP radio reports. Laborers’ International Union of North America has signed a collective bargaining agreement with Maryland Transit Solutions, the new contractor set to finish the line, with the union’s business manager, Steve Lanning, telling the […]
KEYTESVILLE, Mo. — A Missouri circuit court judge has denied requests to delay lawsuits over the June derailment of Amtrak’s Southwest Chief while the National Transportation Safety Board investigation into the accident remains active. KOMU-TV reports Judge Terry Tschannen ruled Monday that, while certain information may not be disclosed while the NTSB is investigating, the […]
PARSONS, Kan. — Watco will become the rail operator for the Great Plains Industrial Park in Parsons, a 6,800-acre facility with more than 26 miles of rail line, following the transportation company’s selection by the Great Plaines Development Authority. Watco will provide switching, transload, warehouse, material handling, truck, and logistics services for rail and non-rail […]
TULSA, Okla. — OmniTRAX has been named excusive rail partner for the Tulsa Port of Catoosa, an inland port which provides barge access to the central U.S. The long-term agreement became effective Aug. 18. The new Port of Catoosa Industrial Railroad becomes the second OmniTRAX property in Oklahoma, and in the Tulsa area, joining the […]
BOSTON — The Boston area’s first weekday commute since the shutdown of the rapid transit Orange Line went relatively smoothly Monday, according to news reports, with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority gearing up repair work along the 11-mile line that will be closed for 30 days. Boston.com reports that MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak, in […]
