Long delays, late trains mark start of Maya Train service

Train passing through shower of confetti

CANCÚN, Mexico — Long delays and unfinished facilities marked the first day of regular operations of Mexico’s Maya Train Saturday, a day after President Andrés Manuel López Obrador inaugurated the service with a trip on the 298-mile initial segment between Campeche and Cancun. The Associated Press reports departure delays of up to 5 hours for […]

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Metrolink, Amtrak prepare for four-day shutdown of tracks at LA Union Station

LA_UnionStation_2_Lassen

LOS ANGELES — Commuter rail operator Metrolink has offered more details on its upcoming four-day service shutdown to accommodate major track and signal work at Los Angeles Union Station, and has developed a list of transit options for riders during the rail outage set for Dec. 26-29. The work at Union Station will also affect […]

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Pennsylvania DOT awards $42.5 million to fund 25 freight rail projects

Logo of Pennsylvania Department of Transportation

HARRISBURG, Pa. — The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has awarded $42.5 million to help fund 25 freight rail infrastructure projects on short lines and with shippers within the state, the agency announced on Wednesday. The state’s share in the projects ranges from $7.6 million to $84,000 and will be funded through the Rail Transportation Assistance […]

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Portland transit agency announces plans for six-week shutdown of major light-rail hub

Aerial view of light rail station at junction, surrounded by bus bays

PORTLAND, Ore. — The Gateway Transit Center, a hub for the MAX light rail system’s Red, Blue, and Green lines in eastern Portland, will be closed to rail service Jan. 14 to Feb. 25 of next year to allow for construction, transit agency TriMet has announced. The resulting service disruption will include a suspension of […]

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More time needed to repair gauge issues on Green Line extension, MBTA says

Green and white light rail vehicle at station

BOSTON — Work to repair track that was built out-of-gauge on the Green Line extension that opened last year will not be completed by Monday, Dec. 11, as originally projected, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has announced. Project builder GLX Constructors, or GLXC, which requested additional repair time, has been granted an additional seven nights, […]

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FRA announces $8.2 billion in Federal-State Partnership passenger grants (updated)

Passenger train with converted locomotive cab car leading.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration has selected 10 projects for grants under its Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail grant program, according to a list released today (Friday, Dec. 8) on the FRA website. The U.S. Department of Transportation announced the grants in a press release that linked those awards with the selection of […]

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NTSB recommends backup cameras for maintenance machinery as a result of fatal accident

Diagram showing position of spiking machine before and after fatal accident

WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board is calling for backup cameras on maintenance-of-way machinery, as well as other safety recommendations, as a result of a fatal accident involving a Norfolk Southern track gang at Reed, Pa., in December 2021. The NTSB issued its final report on that accident on Thursday (Dec. 7). The probable […]

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Federal grant to upgrade Empire Builder route in Montana

BNSF Railway logo

WASHINGTON — BNSF Railway will receive a federal grant for $14.9 million toward infrastructure improvements in and around Malta, Mont., U.S. Sen. Jon Tester announced Thursday. The money, from the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Grant Program, is to improve service on the route of the Empire Builder. Specifically, it will help with final […]

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Long Bridge, other Virginia passenger projects land $729 million grant

Rendering of twin two-track railroad bridges and pedestrian bridge

WASHINGTON — Construction of a new Long Bridge across the Potomac River will be the largest beneficiary of a $729 million grant for Virginia rail projects announced today by members of the state’s congressional delegation, the latest in a series of major awards nationally under the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passsenger Rail grant program. U.S. […]

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Pittsburgh-Harrisburg route improvements to receive $143.6 million federal grant

Passenger train with blue and red locomotive passes freight train

WASHINGTON — Infrastructure improvements to accommodate a second daily round trip of Amtrak’s Pennsylvanian between Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, Pa., will receive more than $143 million in federal funding, the state’s two U.S. senators have announced, while the Pittsburgh-Philadelphia corridor is among those selected for the Corridor Identification and Development program for a study of increased […]

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MBTA completes Green Line work, eliminating 12 speed restrictions

Maintenence workers in tunnel

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has eliminated 12 speed restrictions on the rapid-transit Green Line following nine days of maintenance that began Nov. 27 and concluded on Tuesday, Dec. 5, the agency announced Wednesday. The total of 12 restrictions eliminated is two more than had been planned. Another two restrictions were reduced in […]

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Raleigh-Richmond passenger project to receive $1 billion grant

Map of planned passenger rail line between Raleigh, N.C., and Richmond, Va.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Transportation is set to award a $1 billion grant for development of a new passenger rail line between Raleigh, N.C., and Richmond, Va., using CSX Transportation’s partially abandoned S-Line freight route between the two cities, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) announced on Tuesday. Tillis called the project “a big win […]

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