The Columbia Basin Railroad Co. is receiving a $3 million loan under the Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF) program, the Federal Railroad Administration said.
The CBRC will use the loan funds to purchase 73 miles of track it currently leases from the BNSF Railway between Connell and Moses Lake in eastern Washington State.
The line acquisition […]

CHICAGO — Nicholas J. Matthews is joining FreightCar America Inc. as Vice President-Operations later this month and is expected to become Senior Vice President-Operations in spring 2008.
Matthews will serve as a key member of FreightCar America’s leadership team and will be based at the Company’s Chicago headquarters.
Matthews is expected to succeed Ken Bridges as Senior […]

NEW YORK — RailWorks Corp. announced two promotions at its U.S.-based track construction subsidiaries: RailWorks Track Services Inc. and RailWorks Track Systems Inc.
Ed Kennedy has been appointed Vice President of Operations for RailWorks Track Services.
Kennedy has nearly 20 years of track construction and management experience, beginning as a track laborer and working in progressively more […]

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Patriot Rail Corp. has purchased the purchase of the Utah Central Railway, a short line freight railroad headquartered in Ogden, Utah.
This is the third railroad acquisition for Patriot, which now owns and leases a total of 246 miles of rail line in Tennessee, Alabama, Montana and Utah.
UCRY operates 34 miles of […]

BOCA RATON, Fla. — RailAmerica Inc. announced the appointment of Bill Schroeder as Director of Marketing & Sales for the Northeast Region and Douglas Low as Manager, Marketing and Sales for the New England Central Railroad.
“We are extremely enthusiastic to have these exceptional leaders join our team,” said Charles Patterson, RailAmerica Vice President. “With their […]

JOFFRE, Alberta — National Railway Equipment Co. announced that NOVA Chemical recently operated an NREC N-ViroMotive GenSet locomotive in an operational test at their facility here.
The locomotive, a three-engine 2100 HP (3GS-21B) 4-axle unit, is EPA certified and CARB recognized as an ultra-low emitting GenSet locomotive.
“Fuel conservation, protecting the environment and operational efficiency are vital […]

GREENWICH, Conn. — Genesee & Wyoming Inc. has completed its acquisition of 87.4 percent of the Maryland Midland Railway for cash consideration of approximately $29.1 million, to be adjusted for final working capital.
Maryland Midland, located approximately 40 miles from GWI’s York Railway, operates over 63 miles of track between Glyndon and Highfield, Md., and between […]

WASHINGTON — President Bush has received the report and recommendations of the Presidential Emergency Board and is urging both Amtrak and several unions “to work in good faith to resolve their dispute, taking into account the Emergency Board’s recommendations.”
In November, Bush established a Presidential Emergency Board, hoping to keep the employees of nine Amtrak unions […]

CHICAGO – Amtrak has completed a report requested by the Illinois Department of Transportation (Ill. DOT) that evaluates possible passenger train routes between Illinois Quad Cities (Moline-Rock Island) and Chicago.
This “Feasibility Report on Proposed Amtrak Service, Quad Cities-Chicago” is also in response to a January 2007 town meeting in Rock Island, hosted by U.S. Sen. […]