Year: 2013

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Amtrak

Anthony R. Coscia Elected as Chairman, Amtrak Board of Directors

March 20, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire

WASHINGTON – The Amtrak Board of Directors has elected Anthony R. Coscia to be its next chairman to help guide the future of America’s Railroad® and carry out initiatives to increase ridership and improve operational and financial performance. In addition, the Amtrak board elected Jeffrey R. Moreland as vice-chairman. An Amtrak board member since June 2010, and current chairman of its Audit and Finance committee, Coscia succeeds departing board chairman Thomas C. Carper whose term on the board expires this month. “During my five years on the board of directors, Amtrak has made undeniable progress and all board members have

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Commuter Rail

MARTA Pursues New Revenues with Website Advertising Pilot Program

March 19, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire

ATLANTA — MARTA’s website has made its debut in the advertising world. The Authority has launched a 12-month advertising pilot program on www.itsmarta.com to explore a new source of revenue for the transit system. The pilot is estimated to generate around $1,000 to $5,000 per month for MARTA at no cost to the Authority. “The website advertising pilot project provides a great opportunity for us to tap into a new revenue stream,” said MARTA General Manager/CEO Keith T. Parker. “This program is just one of the many ways we are working to develop a more sustainable business model for MARTA

Commuter Rail

Feds Allocates $390 Million to Reimburse Transit Agencies in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania Recovering from Hurricane Sandy

March 9, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced the allocation of nearly $390 million in FY 2013 Disaster Relief Appropriations Act funds to reimburse the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) and the Port Authority Trans-Hudson Corp. (PATH). The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) received a smaller reimbursement for expenses incurred while preparing for and recovering from Hurricane Sandy. The Disaster Relief Appropriations Act authorized a total of $10.9 billion, which is now reduced by 5 percent, or $545 million, because of the mandatory budget cuts known as sequestration that took effect on March 1. “When Hurricane Sandy devastated public transportation systems

Commuter Rail

Atlanta Streetcar Project Reaches Major Milestone with Track Delivery

March 9, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire

The Atlanta Streetcar project reached a key milestone this week with the delivery of the first section of track on Edgewood Avenue. Crews lowered seven sections of rail into the track bed near the intersection of Bell Street and Edgewood Avenue and will continue the installation east along Edgewood Avenue towards Jackson Street. This is the first time in more than 60 years that Atlanta has had streetcar tracks. “Today’s construction activity signifies an important step forward for the Atlanta Streetcar project and underscores the city’s commitment to build a new, world-class transit system that will benefit residents, businesses and

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Miscellaneous

Huge Turnout for Southern Museum’s Trains, Trains, Trains

January 20, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire

KENNESAW, Ga. — More than 2,200 people turned out Saturday for the Southern Museum of Civil War & Locomotive History’s third annual Trains, Trains, Trains event. Museum visitors explored model train layouts, vendors selling train-themed wares and various activities geared toward families. “This event is so much fun because kids have the opportunity to get up and close with trains,” said Dr. Richard Banz, the museum’s executive director. “We’re grateful to everyone who came out, and we’re looking forward to seeing everyone at our future events, including next year’s Trains, Trains, Trains.” The museum’s next major event, “Museum Night,” is

Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Facilitates $2.1 Billion in Industrial Investment in 2012

January 4, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire

NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk Southern Corp. participated in the location of 64 new industries and the expansion of 30 existing industries along its rail lines in 2012. New plants and expansions announced in 2012 represented an investment of $2.1 billion by Norfolk Southern customers and are expected to create more than 6,100 jobs in the railroad’s territory, in future years potentially generating more than 141,000 carloads of new rail traffic annually. Norfolk Southern assisted state and local government and economic development officials throughout 19 states in helping customers identify ideal locations for new and expanded facilities. “Our 2012 results were

Amtrak

Amtrak Fills More Senior Operations Positions

January 4, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire

WASHINGTON – Amtrak announces it has named Magdy El-Sibaie as the new chief safety officer and Robin McDonough as chief, business operations. Both will report directly to DJ Stadtler, vice president of operations. As chief safety officer, Dr. El-Sibaie will be responsible for planning, directing and overseeing the safety activities and standards of Amtrak departments to achieve continuous improvement in employee and passenger safety, including the railroad’s Safe-2-Safer behavior- based cultural safety program. In addition, he will provide oversight of Amtrak’s compliance with safety regulations and participation in current and emerging industry safety programs. He has over 20 years of