Safety

IDOT grant awarded to OmniTRAX affiliate

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) has awarded an Illinois Competitive Freight Program (ICFP) grant to the City of Peru, Ill. and OmniTRAX, Inc.-managed Peru Industrial Railroad (PIR) to help fund the Peru Intermodal, Safety, Congestion and Energy Security Project (PISCES). The funds will be used to improve the PIR, which operates a small but vital three miles of track, providing switching services for the Peru Industrial Park, part of the City of Peru Enterprise Zone. PIR interchanges with OmniTRAX-managed Illinois Railway and BNSF.

Acting FRA chief Hall resigns

Heath Hall, the acting administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration, the nation’s rail safety watchdog, resigned Feb. 11 amid allegations that he was working a second job as a public relations consultant.

Avante offers rail visibility safety solutions

Avante International Technology has developed a series of patented and patent-pending systems for rail visibility and safety, which are cost- effective in implementation without interfering with daily operations of trains. Avante’s Switch-Point Monitoring System provides supplementary and independent monitoring of switch point positions to central command and oncoming trains within three to six miles.

Zarembski recognized for contributions to track engineering

Dr. Allan M. Zarembski, Professor of Practice and Director of the University of Delaware Railroad Engineering and Safety Program, has received the 2017 Fumio Tatsuoka Best Paper Award from the journal Transportation Infrastructure Geotechnology. He was recognized for four papers that made significant impact on geotechnology in railway engineering, specifically in the realms of track geometry defects and track substructure.