Washington state port breaks ground on largest-ever capital project
The Port of Everett, Wash., hosted a groundbreaking to start construction on the Port’s $36 million South Terminal Modernization project, the largest capital project in its history.
Breaking News
Ports offer Congress funding compromise
The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) sent a letter to congressional appropriation leaders asking them to “provide adequate resources for three key federal programs that help fund multimodal port-related infrastructure in the United States.”
Hyundai Rotem closing Philadelphia plant
Hyundai Rotem will write the final chapter of an unhappy Philadelphia story when it closes its railcar plant later this month.
New sales chief for New York & Atlantic
New York & Atlantic Railway is promoting Charles Samul to director of sales and marketing, effective Sept 1.
TriMet steers onto Barbur Boulevard
The TriMet (Portland, Ore.) Southwest Corridor Light Rail project steering committee has voted unanimously in favor of the routing option that will place the new extension on Southwest Barbur Boulevard rather than Naito Parkway.
WSP USA’s Adams elected to COMTO board
The Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO) has elected WSP USA Vice President Community Relations and Diversity, Transportation and Infrastructure–Central Region Tanya Adams to its national board of directors. COMTO also recognized Adams’ contributions to diversity and the industry with the “President’s Excellence” award. She was previously honored as COMTO’s 2016 Corporate Executive of the Year.
CSS, Indiana commuter operator in double-track project agreement
An agreement on a project to improve commuter rail service on an historic route between Indiana and Chicago will have a follow-on economic benefit for a short line freight carrier, too.
Wallace to head FreightCar America leasing arm
FreightCar America, Inc. has named Dan Wallace as Vice President and General Manager, Leasing.
New Mid-Atlantic Rail King full-service distributor
Houston, Tex.-based Stewart & Stevenson Manufacturing Technologies, a Kirby Corp. company, has entered into an agreement with Eastern Lift Truck Co., Inc. of Maple Shade, N.J. naming Eastern Lift as the sole authorized dealership to market, sell and service Rail King® railcar movers within the Mid-Atlantic region.
GREX gets Wise
Railway supply industry veteran Bruce Wise has joined Georgetown Rail Equipment Company (GREX) as Director of Business Development. Wise “will focus on strategic accounts and new products as GREX continues to develop innovative track inspection and maintenance technologies for the rail industry,” the company said.
Opinion
Climbing out of a deep hole
It’s going to take a while for New Jersey Transit to dig itself out of the oversize trench that oversize-ego, oversize-mouthed “Bridgegate” Chris Christie gleefully dug for it during his eight interminably long, interminably loud and intrinsically corrupt years as governor of the Garden State. Meanwhile, NJT customers are enduring the effects of Christie’s transportation starvation diet—a locomotive engineer shortage, cancelled commuter trains, and a PTC implementation program that’s behind schedule.
Where are railroad medical standards?
Why don’t the railroads have comprehensive medical fitness-for-duty standards? Why does this persist, in spite of several train collisions and derailments attributed to medical issues like untreated obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)? This analysis of those questions considers the in-terests and relationships among the three primary interested parties: railroad management, railroad labor and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the regulator.
Book Review: EHH, a lean, mean street fighter
If ever there were a human equivalent to liver and onions—hated or loved, but no in-between—it was the late Ewing Hunter Harrison III, a chief executive of four major North American railroads, personally synonymous with the term “Precision Scheduled Railroading,” and whose mention invokes often disquieting debate on theories of management and how best to deliver shareholder value in the short- and long-term.
Asking the difficult question
You know what? I kind of like National Transportation Safety Board member Earl F. Weener, who has been an NTSB member since 2010.
The thing about good news …
I thought I’d chance watching the video recording of NTSB’s July 10-11, 2018 Investigative Hearing: Managing Safety on Passenger Railroads.