USA railroad industry news – Page 27
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Metro Report International
First Tempe Streetcar vehicle delivered
USA: Phoenix operator Valley Metro has taken delivery of the first of six Liberty NXT trams from Brookville Equipment Corp to work the 4·8 km Tempe Streetcar line which is scheduled to open this year. Ordered in 2017 at cost of $33m, the trams are fitted ...
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Metro Report International
Sustainability to be designed into Washington metro depot
USA: Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority has selected a partnership of architecture, engineering and sustainability company Stantec and construction firm Hensel Phelps to design and build a $225m heavy repair and overhaul facility in Prince George’s County, Maryland. The depot connected to the Orange Line will ...
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News
Transporting a locomotive from Kassel to New Jersey
USA: Universal Transport Group is managing the delivery of 25 ALP45-DP locomotives which NJ Transit ordered from Bombardier Transportation. The electro-diesel locomotives are being produced at the Kassel factory in Germany. Universal Transport Group’s project forwarder Züst & Bachmeier is responsible for organising and handling transport ...
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News
America Rescue Plan funding foreshadows Amtrak’s return to growth
USA: The passage through both houses of Congress of the America Rescue Plan Act in early March has been welcomed by Amtrak CEO Bill Flynn, with the national passenger rail company set to receive $1∙7bn in recovery funding.
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News
Gulf of Mexico train ferry fleet renewal
NORTH AMERICA: The first of two train ferries ordered for CG Railway’s route across the Gulf of Mexico has been launched by CSSC Huangpu Wenchong Shipbuilding Co in China. The CGR joint venture of Genesee & Wyoming and SEACOR Holdings transports 10 000 wagons/year between Mobile ...
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News
Amsted Digital Solutions acquires GeoMetrix Rail Logistics
NORTH AMERICA: US telematics company Amsted Digital Solutions has acquired Calgary-based fleet management software developer GeoMetrix Rail Logistics, as a ‘first milestone’ towards expanding its digital footprint. ‘Our vision is to create a seamless and single platform experience for our customers’, said ADS Chief Operations Officer ...
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News
AAR proposes transport decarbonisation initiatives
USA: The Association of American Railroads has outlined a series of policy proposals aimed at leveraging the improved environmental performance of rail freight to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sector, ‘safely and effectively combatting climate change’.
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In depth
USA: Living with extreme weather
Building on many years of experience, US railroads large and small have developed cost-effective approaches to dealing with the impact of extreme weather incidents and other natural disasters, but continue to evolve their response strategies. Dave Lustig investigates.
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News
Norfolk Southern drops plans for rail terminal on convict labour site
USA: Norfolk Southern has dropped plans to build a rail-served ethanol terminal on the site of a former brickworks near Atlanta which had made extensive use of a system of leasing convicted prisoners as forced labour.
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News
Metra to test electric shunting locomotive
USA: The board of Chicago commuter operator Metra has approved a plan to procure seven low-emission shunting locomotives, including its first zero-emission electric loco. The six diesel locos would be required to meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s Tier IV emissions standards, the highest currently in effect. ...
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Metro Report International
Getting Ready2Ride in Pittsburgh
USA: Pittsburgh transport agency Port Authority of Allegheny County and ticketing technology companies Masabi and Transit have launched the three-month pilot phase of the Ready2Ride mobile ticketing system, ahead of the full launch later this year. More than 600 Masabi Justride validation devices have been installed ...
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News
Single-track corridor to launch Californian high speed service by 2030
USA: California High Speed Rail Authority’s Revised Draft Business Plan envisages the completion of a 270 km ‘interim service line’ which would initially be mostly single track, and sets out revised cost and ridership estimates for the project.
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Metro Report International
Filters deployed and UV on test, but robot struggles to disinfect metro trains
USA: San Francisco’s BART is ‘actively evaluating many different technologies’ that could potentially be used to combat the coronavirus, according to Chief Safety Officer Jeff Lau. Following a six-month pilot, BART has approved the installation of denser filters in the heating and air conditioning unit underneath each ...
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News
Greenbrier and Longwood announce wagon leasing joint venture
USA: Wagon manufacturer The Greenbrier Companies and transport asset advisory and management firm Longwood Group have announced plans to form a wagon leasing joint venture in the first quarter of this year. GBX Leasing’s initial portfolio will be based on leased wagons on Greenbrier’s balance sheet ...
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Metro Report International
Lyft highlights public transport options
USA: Information about San Diego MTS liught rail and bus services is now available alongside e-scooter and rideshare options in the Lyft app. MTS said this ‘puts mobility options front and centre, making it easier for riders to make informed decisions about how to get from ...
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News
Buttigieg confirmed as Secretary of Transportation
USA: Former Democratic presidential contender and mayor of South Bend, Indiana, Pete Buttigieg, was confirmed as federal Secretary of Transportation by an 86:13 vote in the Senate on February 2.
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News
Lineage Logistics acquires refrigerated wagon owner
USA: Temperature-controlled transport and warehousing company Lineage Logistics has acquired refrigerated wagon owned Cryo-Trans, saying the deal would a create a ‘uniquely comprehensive and seamlessly integrated supply chain solution for food and beverage customers’. Cryo-Trans owns more than 2 200 refrigerated and insulated wagons, the largest private ...
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News
Chicago commuter operator approves ‘transformational’ order for Alstom coaches
USA: The Metra board has approved the award of a ‘transformational’ $1·8bn framework agreement for Alstom to supply up to 500 double-deck coaches, which the Chicago commuter operator said would be ‘more comfortable, accessible, reliable and safe than the outdated gallery cars they will replace.’ A ...
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News
Indiana double tracking project awarded funding
USA: The Federal Transit Administration has announced a $173m grant for Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District’s $491m project to double-track 43 km of the South Shore commuter line between Gary and Michigan City. ‘FTA is proud to join our partners in northern Indiana to improve mobility, reduce ...
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Metro Report International
Phoenix South Central light rail grant awarded
USA: The Federal Transit Administration has approved a $529·8m funding package from the Capital Investment Grants programme for Phoenix’s Valley Metro’s $1·35bn South Central Light Rail Extension/Downtown Hub project. The 8·9 km, eight-stop light rail extension to South Mountain Village ‘will better connect Phoenix residents to jobs, ...