Drivin’ that train on El Chapo’s cocaine supply chain: Witness
Accused drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman used the North American rail network to move cocaine from Mexico to the United States for distribution.
Progressive Rail to pick up BNSF lines in NE Washington
Progressive Rail is poised to take control of 83 miles of railroad owned by BNSF Railway in northwest Washington state.
NYCT: It’s about time
MTA New York City Transit announced Dec. 10 that as part of its Save Safe Seconds campaign to safely improve subway performance, a multidisciplinary team of engineers and safety officials, working closely with the agency’s unionized signal maintainers, have begun raising “antiquated” speed limits on certain track segments and repairing faulty speed restriction signals throughout the subway system.
Caltrain increasing Stadler EMU order
Caltrain is acquiring 37 additional Stadler double-deck EMU cars for the San Francisco – San Jose electrification project.
NJ short line operator expanding with Norfolk Southern lease
A new short line railroad operator has filed to lease track in northern New Jersey from Norfolk Southern as it continues to expand its footprint in the Garden State.
Matt Rose: “Less is NOT better”
Railway Age December 2018, Cover Story: BNSF Railway Co. Executive Chairman Matthew K. Rose will retire from the railroad in April of 2019, after 26 years of service. At the end of his tenure, Rose will have been Executive Chairman for six years, and CEO for the prior 13 years. He also served in senior marketing and operations positions at BNSF and predecessor Burlington Northern before assuming the CEO role in December 2000.
Reading & Northern bolsters senior management
Reading & Northern has selected Chris Goetz to serve as the regional railroad’s vice president, Maintenance of Way, and Erik Yoder as assistant vice president, Real Estate.
NJT: PTC 95%, new comms under way, powered Multilevels
New Jersey Transit announced Dec. 5 that Positive Train Control is “95% complete” toward meeting compliance with the Dec. 3, 2018 interim deadline. Concurrently, the agency launched “a new comprehensive communications initiative aimed at improving the customer experience” and announced a procurement for new multi-level railcars.
Tomlin joins Byford at NYCT
Long-time colleagues and fellow Englishmen Andy Byford and Pete Tomlin, who worked together on the London Underground and Toronto Transit Commission, will once again join forces, this time at MTA New York City Transit.
Texas Central trailblazing privately funded HSR
Despite producing more than one-third of U.S. crude oil output, urbanization, rapid economic growth and congestion mean Texans could be getting out of their cars and on to high-speed trains much sooner than most other Americans, if Texas Central Railway’s plan to link Dallas and Houston without one penny of public funding is successful.