Committee approves Drake for FTA admin
The Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee voted to approve the nomination of Thelma Drake as Federal Transit Administrator.
Breaking News
Saving lives where road meets rail
Forty-five years of Gem State safety effort is reaffirmed by crew members and state troopers climbing aboard a pair of Union Pacific locomotives at Coeur d’Alene Junction, Idaho, on the morning of Sept. 13, 2017.
White paper delivers AAR tech message
The Association of American Railroads released a white paper highlighting technology’s role in making the U.S. rail network more efficient, reliable, and safer.
CN upgrade part of B.C. terminal plan
Western Canada is the latest location for development of an inland terminal as a strategic move to improve the supply chain to and from coastal facilities.
Positive (steam) Train Control
The Emery Rail Heritage Trust has awarded $60,000 in grants to Friends of the 261 and the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society (FWRHS) to fund Positive Train Control (PTC) on two historic steam locomotives: Milwaukee Road 261 and Nickel Plate Road 765. Each organization will receive $30,000 to launch individual fundraising efforts to cover the estimated $120,000 cost per locomotive for PTC implementation.
Brightline riders: Need a Lyft?
Lyft has been named the exclusive rideshare partner of Brightline. The partnership is the first-of-its-kind for Lyft in Florida and will launch Saturday, May 19, to coincide with the start of Brightline service to Miami.
CSS takes to the skies to market rail-served industrial sites
A Midwest short line thinks a drone’s-eye view will give potential rail shippers a fresh perspective on real estate development.
Hill moves up as WSP NYC area manager
WSP USA has promoted Maxine Hill to New York City area manager for transportation and infrastructure.
Canada commits C$1.53B to Calgary light rail
Canada has committed C$1.53 billion ($1.19 billion) in funding for Calgary’s Green Line Light-Rail Project, the largest-ever infrastructure investment made by Ottawa to the province of Alberta.
LA Metro awarded $703.6M in state grants
Los Angeles-area transit and rail freight transportation projects just got a generous public funding boost.
Opinion
Systemic problems are beyond Amtrak’s control
“Amtrak must be redefined” begs an immediate response, not just because of the attack on the stewards of Amtrak’s operation over the years, but due to a plethora of allegations lacking factual support.
Passenger service with 21st Century relevance
Freight railroads don’t prosper because shippers have affection for them. Instead, railroads profit when their services are economically relevant. When freight services net customers fewer benefits than the prices railroads need to charge, the customers disappear and, soon, so do the services. These outcomes are not unique to railroads. They hold for all profit-motivated commerce.
Amtrak must be redefined
Regarding Joe Boardman’s May 10 Opinion piece, the former CEO of Amtrak is railing against a situation he actually created. His actions left Amtrak in disrepair after eight years at the throttle.
Would you like some trains with your coffee?
Why doesn’t the United States have a big, fast, modern passenger rail system? Many passenger rail advocates claim it’s because passenger rail has enemies: The highway lobby. The auto industry. Big oil. The airlines. They don’t want trains because a successful passenger train system would damage their businesses.
A bright light in dark places
Joe Boardman was not my favorite person during most of his time as Amtrak President. When Boardman left Amtrak, friends wisely persuaded me to let it go. After he was gone, I said nothing negative about him. However, no one said not to praise him if he did something right. I did not expect that to happen.