Ansaldo STS gets Taipei Metro order
Ansaldo STS has received an order worth 220 million euros (284 million) to supply electromechanical equipment for the Taipei Metro in Taiwan’s capital. The project, which also includes AnsaldoBreda in the vehicles
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Funds flow for Detroit’s M1-RAIL streetcar
Detroit’s Downtown Development Authority voted March 12 to contribute $9 million to help build M1-Rail, a proposed $120 million, 3.4-mile streetcar route for Downtown Detroit that has incorporated details from two separate streetcar proposals.
High Speed Rail Canada to host second symposium
Canadian efforts to build momentum for high speed rail, particularly between Montreal and Toronto, will be the focus of a second HSR symposium April 25, at the University of Toronto’s Bahen Center in Canada’s largest city.
As traffic stabilizes, re-reg concerns deepen
Railroad officers attending the JP Morgan Transportation conference in New York Wednesday expressed optimism that the slide in railroad traffic has been arrested, but in their presentations expressed deepening concern that re-regulation sentiment is growing in Congress and could slow railroad recovery.
March freight traffic: More lamb than lion
U.S. freight traffic completed the first week of March with an estimated volume of 29.2 billion ton-miles, off 13.9% from the comparable first week of March 2008, the Association of American Railroads reported. U.S. carload freight declined 15.0% for the week ended March 7 compared with the comparable period of one year ago, slipping 11.9% in the West and 19.5% in the East. U.S. intermodal volume declined 12.7% compared with year-ago levels.
Amtrak’s Boardman paints a bright picture
Following an infusion of $1.3 billion in capital (over and above the $13 billion over five years authorized last year) and indirect access to $8 billion in state-administered funds under President Obama’s economic stimulus program, Amtrak President and CEO Joseph Boardman is faced with determining how best to invest this near-windfall within a relatively short time frame.
Arlington County presses streetcar preliminary design
Virginia’s Arlington County, west of Washington, D.C., is set to commit $3 million for environmental planning and preliminary design of the Columbia Pike Streetcar, expected to cost $120 million. The county board is expected to approve the measure.
Antitrust bill “terrific,” says Obama nominee
Christine Barney, a former Federal Trade Commissioner who has been nominated by President Obama to be the chief antitrust enforcement officer at the Department of Justice, thinks legislation to take away the railroads’ remaining antitrust exemptions is “terrific.”
Grenade thrown at Kyiv rail station injures seven
An unknown assailant threw a handgrenade from a passing car into the Kyiv-Pasazhyrsky rail station in Kyiv (Kiev), Ukraine, early Wednesday morning, March 11, 2009, according to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). Seven people were injured by the explosion, and were hospitalized, but no fatalities resulted, SBU said.
Bill to block Montana short line growth stalls
Montana House Bill 422, advanced by those seeking to weigh down short line Tongue River Railroad’s efforts to extend its right-of-way to coal deposits, has stalled. The bill, backed by some state landowners and by environmentalists, seeks to make eminent domain procedures more difficult.
STB approves Pan Am Southern transaction
The Surface Transportation Board on March 10 approved the formation of Pan Am Southern LLC, which Norfolk Southern Railway Company and Pan Am Railways, Inc. (including Pan Am subsidiaries Boston and Maine
P&W aids New England effort on diesel emissions
The Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management (NESCAUM), in partnership with the Providence & Worcester (P&W) Railroad, will install auxiliary power units on 17 locomotives built between 1969 and 1988. Designed to reduce unnecessary idling, the new units will cut the amount of particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) released into the air. Reducing fuel consumption will also reduce carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 1,700 tons per year.
Hirschmann names new premier dealers
Hirschmann Automation and Control (PAT), Chambersburg, Pa., has named Laguna Crane & Field Service (Aransas Pass) and Universal Crane (Huntsville) Premier Dealers for the state of Texas. Both companies are full service
STB to examine chlorine-move obligations
The Surface Transportation Board announced March 10 that it has instituted a proceeding responding to a Union Pacific request that the board “determine the extent of the common carrier obligation to quote rates for new, lengthy movements of chlorine, a toxic inhalation hazard (TIH).”
Indiana Harbor Belt taps RailComm
RailComm, Inc. has been selected to provide a wireless remote control derail system at Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad’s RIP Track Facility. A customized Local Control Panel located within the shop will provide wireless remote control to the derails.
South Ferry Station (finally) set to open
Manhattan’s redesigned and repositioned South Ferry subway station, the recipient of $530 million in rehabilitation, will open March 16, New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority says.
South Dakota OKs DM&E land acquisition effort
Manhattan’s redesigned and repositioned South Ferry subway station, the recipient of $530million in rehabilitation, will open March 16, New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority says. The upgraded station, served by the No.
EMD to slash Illinois work force
Electro-Motive Diesel Inc. plans to eliminate 347 jobs at its McCook, Ill., plant as early as April, according to a layoff notice filed with the state of Illinois. The move follows previous plans announced earlier to cut 600 jobs at EMD’s London, Ontario, facility.
Fortune acclaims UP as “Most Admired” railroad
Fortune magazine has awarded Union Pacific the title of “Most Admired” railroad in its annual survey of American companies, Fortune said. UP scored first among all railroads in the key areas of innovation, people management, use of corporate assets, social responsibility, quality of management, financial soundness, long-term investment, and global competitiveness.
Signal engineers meeting at RSSI Expo
On May 18, 2009, the Institution of Railway Signal Engineers-North American Section (IRSE-NAS) will hold its Annual General Meeting at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville, Tenn., in conjunction with the Railway Systems Suppliers, Inc. (RSSI) 2009 Exposition.