Bi-State Development

Metrolinx has released an Initial Business Case on the feasibility of adding a Highway 7/Concord GO Station to the Barrie Line. (Metrolinx Photograph)

Transit Briefs: Metrolinx, NYMTA, St. Louis MetroLink, SMART, STM

Metrolinx considers adding a new GO rail station to the Barrie Line, north of Toronto. Also, New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) will start boosting subway train frequency this summer as ridership reaches record levels; St. Louis MetroLink will test metal detectors at stations; construction will begin this fall on a new Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) commuter rail station; and Société de transport de Montréal (STM) is deploying safety ambassadors, special constables and custodial employees to improve security and station cleanliness.

St. Louis Broadens Rail Freight Opportunities

The Bi-State Development agency’s St. Louis Regional Freightway initiative is “streamlining the site selection process for rail-accessible sites” across the bi-state Missouri/Illinois region.

Federal funding requests have been submitted for planning the return of Amtrak service between Louisville, Ky., and Indianapolis, Ind.

Transit Briefs: Amtrak, Bi-State Development, Metra, Metrolinx, Sound Transit

Will Amtrak service connecting Louisville, Indianapolis and Chicago return? Also, Bi-State Development advances the Jefferson Alignment MetroLink Expansion project in St. Louis, Mo.; Chicago’s Metra schedules Operation Lifesaver safety blitzes for 2023; Metrolinx installs traction power substations along Ontario’s future Hazel McCallion Line (formerly known as the Hurontario LRT project); and Seattle’s Sound Transit will receive millions in low-interest loans to support construction of the Hilltop Tacoma Link extension and a station along the Lynnwood Link extension.

  • M/W

Merchants Bridge Reconstruction Final Truss In Place

The $222 million project to replace the St. Louis Regional Freightway Merchants Bridge that links Missouri and Illinois near downtown St. Louis is nearing completion, as the third and final new steel bridge truss has been floated into place.

Brightline and contractor Kaufman Lynn on Aug. 16 hosted a “topping off” ceremony for the passenger rail system’s Boca Raton station and parking garage, signifying completion of structural work. (Photograph Courtesy of Brightline)

Transit Briefs: BART, Brightline, Metra, St. Louis Metro Transit

San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) shares how it uses earthquake early warning technology. Also, work progresses on Brightline’s Boca Raton, Fla., station, the fourth in the state for the private-sector passenger railroad; elementary and high school students in the Chicago area can ride Metra commuter rail and Pace buses for free on Aug. 22; and Metro Transit in St. Louis, Mo., is reporting that it will be “several months” before light rail service is fully restored due to flash flooding damage last month.

“The record rainfall in the St. Louis region is causing major service disruptions for MetroLink, and we are doing our best to keep to keep passengers moving,” Bi-State Agency’s Metro Transit is reporting on its website. (Photograph Courtesy of Metro Transit)

Transit Briefs: St. Louis Metro Transit, SEPTA

At Metro Transit in St. Louis, Mo., major light-rail service disruptions may last for weeks due to damage caused by flash flooding on July 26. Also, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) and Wawa have signed a naming-rights agreement for a new Regional Rail station that will open Aug. 21 as part of a multi-year project to restore rail service 3.5 miles west of Elwyn.

MTA New York City Transit on Oct. 14 set a new pandemic-era record of 3,236,904 subway riders, surpassing by nearly 50,000 the previous high set on Oct. 7.
  • News

Transit Briefs: NYMTA; St. Louis Metro Transit

At New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority, subway ridership is steadily climbing post-pandemic and two former Gov. Andrew Cuomo appointees are being forced out. In addition, behavioral health providers will ride St. Louis (Mo.) Metro Transit vehicles as part of a one-year pilot project.

St. Louis Regional Freightway Commits $2.75B to Infrastructure

The St. Louis Regional Freightway’s 2022 Priority Projects List features 21 projects worth $2.75 billion that “represent key infrastructure needs of the manufacturing and logistics industries in the Eastern Missouri and Southwestern Illinois area.” Many are rail-specific or rail-related. The most important is a major project to replace the Merchants Memorial Mississippi Rail Bridge, constructed in 1889.

How St. Louis Relies on a Port of Virginia Rail Connection

The St. Louis region relies heavily on its Norfolk Southern- and CSX-served rail connection with the Port of Virginia, hundreds of miles away on the East Coast, to maintain its position “as one of the premier multimodal freight hubs and distribution centers in the United States.” The relationship was discussed in detail during the FreightWeekSTL 2021 conference, hosted by Bi-State Development, which operates the St. Louis Regional Freightway.