Articles by Railfanning.org News Wire

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Commuter Rail

Red Line Trains to Operate at Regular Speeds Starting Friday, July 3

July 2, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON — Starting at 7 a.m. Friday, July 3, Washington Metro trains will return to regular speeds on the Red Line except for those passing through the area of last week’s accident between Takoma and Fort Totten Metrorail stations. The Takoma Metrorail station will close at 10 p.m. Thursday, July 2, to allow investigators to continue their work to determine the cause of the accident. The Takoma Metrorail station will reopen with normal speeds at 7 a.m. on Friday, July 3, when the rail system will be open from 7 a.m. to 3 a.m. on the Federal Independence Day holiday.
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Union Pacific

Union Pacific Invests Nearly $12 Million for Track Improvements to Its Big Springs-to-Potter, Neb., Line

July 2, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire
OMAHA, Neb. — Trains will run more efficiently and motorists will spend less time at crossings as a result of nearly $12 million in track improvements made by Union Pacific Railroad to its Big Springs-to-Potter, Neb., line.When the project is complete, crews will have removed and installed more than 90,000 ties, spread nearly 29,000 tons of rock ballast to ensure a stable roadbed and renewed road surfaces at 50 crossings. Work began on the project June 24 and is scheduled to be completed by mid August. Union Pacific invested more than $254 million for capital projects in Nebraska in 2008.
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NTSB

NTSB Releases Annual Report

July 2, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board released its annual report to Congress, providing a summary of accident investigations and safety recommendations in the past calendar year. 2008 highlights include: — 19 major accident investigations, including four rail, and 2 pipeline — 129 safety recommendations issued — 67 safety recommendations closed “The calendar year 2008 was an extremely active one as Board staff traveled to accident sites all over the U.S. involving every mode of transportation, lending their expertise and investigative skills,” Acting Chairman Mark V. Rosenker said. “We also completed a number of significant accident investigations, including the August
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CSX

CSX Coal Train Derails in Ga.

July 1, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire
UNION CITY, Ga. — More than a dozen cars from a CSX freight train derailed here. No one was injured, but two rail crossings were blocked. “There won’t be any hazardous materials to clean up,” ajc.com quoted CSX spokesman Gary Sease as saying. At the time of the derailment, the train was pulling 100 cars of coal from Kentucky to Florida. “Our investigation always starts with three main factors: the track, the equipment, and how train was being operated,” Sease told ajc.com. Closed intersections could remain off limits to traffic for a number of days.
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CSX

CSX Announces Commitment to Cut CO2 Emissions by Eight Percent

July 1, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX announced a plan to reduce the CO2 emissions associated with its vast and economically vital train operations by 8 percent per revenue ton mile by 2011. The company made its commitment as part of its participation in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Climate Leaders Program, a voluntary program for businesses to inventory and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. CSX’s commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through the Climate Leaders Program is the first ever from a major U.S. transportation provider. CSX’s commitment will reduce C02 emissions by 2.4 million tons — the equivalent of taking 441,000
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Commuter Rail

NTSB Offers Update on WMATA Wreck

July 1, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON — In its continuing investigation of the June 22 wreck involving the collision of two Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) trains on the Red Line in Washington, D.C., the National Transportation Safety Board has developed the following factual information: — The examination of factors leading up to the accident continues.  Investigators have been conducting nightly tests of the train control system at the accident site.  Test progress was delayed by some water in underground access areas that made it unsafe for technicians to work on electrical cables until the water could be pumped out.  The components being tested
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Commuter Rail

WMATA: Track Circuits to be Inspected, Trains Operate in Manual Mode

June 25, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON — An estimated 3,000 signaling circuits in the Metro system are being inspected in the wake of Monday’s deadly Red Line collision, Metro general manager John Catoe told board members at their monthly meeting (June 25). “We do not know if the circuits had anything to do with this accident, but we won’t just sit back and wait for someone to tell us,” said Catoe. “We’re going to be proactive and get out there to test all of them.” Metro safety and operations officials are working hand-in-hand with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to investigate the cause of
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Commuter Rail

Washington Metro: Two Red Line Trains Collide, Fatalities Reported

June 22, 2009 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON — Two six-car Red Line trains collided at 5 p.m. Monday, June 22, leaving four people dead, including a female train operator. In addition, there were a number of injuries reported, many serious. According to authorities, one train rear-ended the other. The operator who was killed in the crash was on the trailing train. “We are extremely saddened that there are fatalities as a result of this accident, which has touched our Metro family. We hope to have more details about the casualties later today. Our safety officials are investigating, and will continue to investigate until we determine why