Thursday morning rail news: Metra, Amtrak ask Surface Transportation Board for more mediation time Saying they have made progress in their dispute over Metra’s lease at Chicago Union Station, Metra and Amtrak have requested more time from the Surface Transportation Board for mediation. In a letter filed Nov. 2, Metra’s attorney, filing on behalf of […]
Thursday afternoon rail news: Long Island sets schedule changes for Nov. 9 to accommodate trackwork, leaf season The Long Island Railroad will make schedule changes as of Monday, Nov. 9, to accommodate track work, the Main Line Expansion Project, and slippery-rail issues that come with autum leaf falls. The Ronkonkoma Branch will see slight adjustments […]
Three local measures to fund rail agencies or construction have passed in Tuesday’s election, with voters saying yes in Austin, Texas; the San Francisco Bay Area; and Fairfax County, Va. A measure in the Portland, Ore., area was turned down while one in Gwinnett County, Ga., has yet to be decided. Voters in Austin approved […]
As transit agencies plot their recovery from the devastating effects of the 2020 pandemic, a common denominator is emerging: more riders need city buses than suburban trains. The revelation portends diminishing investment in rail. Commuter rail systems typically serve affluent suburban residents, more of whom work in office environments. In large part, those offices have […]
Notable federal results with transportation significance from Tuesday’s election: — The three leadership figures on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure all won reelection. In Oregon, Democrat Peter DeFazio, chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, defeated challenger Alek Skarlatos to win the state’s 4th Congressional District with 58% of the vote, according […]
Wednesday morning rail news: Metrolink to make schedule changes Nov. 16 Six of Metrolink’s seven lines will see schedule adjustments on Nov. 16, with a total of nine trains on the LA-area commuter rail system dropped because of low ridership. Three trains will be added; other changes include creation of two express trains and some […]
More Wednesday midday rail news: Huron Central gives employees notice of job termination, still hopes for government support Huron Central Railway, the 179-mile Genesee & Wyoming short line between Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury, Ontario, has given employees formal notice that their jobs will be terminated with the end of railway operations on Dec. 18. SooToday.com says […]
WASHINGTON — Overall U.S. intermodal and carload rail traffic continued creeping upward in the week ending Oct. 31, while statistics for October as a whole showed a similar increase. Statistics released by the Association of American Railroads show a total of 520,778 carloads and intermodal units moved in the week, a 2.1% increase over the […]
Tuesday morning rail news: Evacuation lifted around KCS derailment; cleanup continues The remaining evacuation area around last week’s Kansas City Southern derailment in Mauriceville, Texas, was lifted Monday night, and local elementary and middle schools will return to class today. KBMT-TV reports that only three houses had remained inside the evacuation area before two railcars of hazardous […]
More Tuesday morning rail news: Domestic traffic boosts third-quarter intermodal volume North American intermodal volume rose 1.2% in the third quarter of 2020 compared to the same period a year earlier, thanks to the strength of domestic container and trailer traffic, according to figures from the Intermodal Association of North America. Domestic volume increased 9.8% […]
More Tuesday morning rail news: Artists surprised whale’s tail sculpture, made of thin composite material, supported train The whale’s tail sculpture that supported a Rotterdam metro train after it overran the end of an elevated track in the suburb of Spijkenisse, Netherlands, is a hollow plastic structure with a skin that’s just 6 millimeters (less […]
SUNOL, Calif. — The boiler of Southern Pacific 2-6-0 No. 1744 has been moved to the Stockton Locomotive Works shop in Antonito, Colo., for restoration, concluding the move portion of the Pacific Locomotive Association effort to return the 1901 Baldwin-built locomotive to service. Work on the running gear for the locomotive, which operated out of […]
