Miscellaneous
Year: 2012
Union Pacific
State-Of-The-Art Traveling Museum to Be Part of Many Union Pacific Railroad 150th Anniversary Celebrations
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — The Union Pacific Railroad Museum is taking its Building America exhibit on the road, or at least out on the rails. The Promontory, a Union Pacific Railroad 1962-vintage baggage car, has been transformed into a state-of-the-art traveling museum. Complete with 13 large, dramatic graphics and the latest in interactive touch video screen technology, the Promontory will immerse visitors in Union Pacific’s 150-year history. The traveling exhibit is a smaller version of the Building America exhibit that will open at the Union Pacific Railroad Museum in Council Bluffs, Iowa, on May 12, 2012. Traveling exhibit visitors will
Amtrak
Amtrak Niantic River Bridge Replacement Project Reaches Significant Milestone
NEW YORK— Amtrak is reaching a significant milestone in its efforts to replace the existing 104-year old Niantic River Bridge in East Lyme, Conn., with the float-in of the new bascule lift span to the new alignment south of the existing bridge. After the float-in of the new bridge span is completed later today, crews will begin the process of connecting it to the new pivot girders located on the land side of the marine channel. As a result, access to the channel beneath the structure will be closed to the maritime community beginning March 26, through March 30 to
Canadian National
CN Sells Greater Toronto Area Rail Lines to Metrolinx for GO Transit Services
TORONTO — CN has sold two rail line segments in the Greater Toronto Area to Metrolinx for $310.5 million Canadian. GO Transit’s Richmond Hill commuter rail service operates over a portion of CN’s Bala Subdivision. Metrolinx is acquiring a segment of the subdivision from approximately Rosedale Valley Road north through the Don Valley to CN’s main east-west freight line north of Steeles Avenue near the Toronto-York Region border. Metrolinx is also acquiring a segment of CN’s Oakville Subdivision from a point near 30th Street in the Etobicoke area of Toronto and terminating just west of the Fourth Line in Oakville,
Amtrak
Amtrak to More Than Triple the Number of Track-Miles Equipped with Positive Train Control
WASHINGTON – By the end of 2012, Amtrak expects to more than triple the number of track-miles on its own railroad where Positive Train Control (PTC) safety technology is installed as part of an aggressive program begun more than two years ago. “PTC is the most important rail safety advancement of our time and Amtrak is strongly committed to its expanded use to enhance safety for our passengers, employees and others with whom we share the tracks across our national network,” said President and CEO Joe Boardman. PTC technology can control train movements to prevent train-to-train collisions, derailments caused by
Norfolk Southern
Norfolk Southern
Railroad Running Well After Best-ever Year in 2011, Norfolk Southern CEO Says in Annual Report
NORFOLK, Va. — After setting performance records in 2011, Norfolk Southern Corp. looks ahead to its 30th anniversary in 2012 and beyond “with confidence, optimism, and a great deal of enthusiasm,” CEO Wick Moorman tells stockholders in the 2011 annual report, posted on the company’s website. “The railroad is running well, we have a strong capital budget, and the right projects are under way to enhance our business franchises,” Moorman says. Improving markets and corporate initiatives combined to make 2011 the company’s “best-ever year,” he notes, with record revenues, operating income, net income, and earnings per share. “Perhaps most importantly,
Canadian National
CN to Acquire 161 Locomotives
MONTREAL — CN announced a major locomotive acquisition program to accommodate anticipated traffic growth and to improve operational efficiency, enabling the railway to better serve its customers. CN will acquire 65 new high-horsepower locomotives as well as 96 second-hand high-horsepower locomotives that will be upgraded. “CN’s locomotive acquisition program represents a balanced, capital-effective approach to handle expected volume growth over the next two to five years and to meet the locomotive requirements resulting from customer focused service plans,” Keith Creel, executive vice-president and chief operating officer, said. “The new and used motive power will enhance operational efficiency and reduce fuel
Commuter Rail
FRA Administrator Szabo Joins Portland Officials to Review Portland-Seattle Train Project
PORTLAND, Ore. – Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph C. Szabo on March 16 joined local officials at Union Station to celebrate the Pacific Northwest Passenger Rail Corridor construction project in Portland. Through the High-Speed and Intercity Passenger Rail Program (HSIPR), the U.S. Department of Transportation has invested $814 million to pay for upgrades to one of the busiest intercity passenger rail corridors in the nation, which runs between Vancouver, BC, and Eugene, OR. The upgrades are essential, as the number of roundtrips between Portland and Seattle is expected to increase by 50 percent in just five years. “All across the country,