Commuter Rail

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Commuter Rail

U.S. Transportation Secretary LaHood Announces $35 Million in Recovery Act Funding For Downeaster Rail Improvements

July 6, 2010 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON — In January, President Obama announced that Maine was awarded $35 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds for the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority (NNEPRA). On July 6, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation and the State of Maine have finalized a grant agreement allowing work to begin on the rehabilitation and expansion of the popular state-supported Downeaster Amtrak intercity passenger service. The Downeaster operates five daily roundtrips between Portland, Maine, and Boston. “This project is a great example of what the Recovery Act is all about,” LaHood said.
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Commuter Rail

High Speed Rail Moves Forward: Federal Railroad Administration Seeks Applications for $2.3 Billion in High-Speed Rail Grants

July 5, 2010 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON — The Obama Administration has taken the next step toward realizing its vision for high-speed rail in the United States. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will begin accepting applications for $2.1 billion in grants to continue the development of high-speed intercity passenger rail corridors. In addition, FRA will make another $245 million available for individual construction projects within a corridor. Funds for both come from the FY 2010 DOT Appropriations Act. “This important step builds on the $8 billion for high-speed rail that President Obama announced last January,” said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “The President’s
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Amtrak

Amtrak Announces Actions Implemented to Put MARC Passengers First

July 2, 2010 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON – At a special “Meet the Managers” event today at Washington Union Station, Amtrak President and CEO Joseph Boardman directly informed MARC passengers of some of the actions the railroad is implementing to put passengers first and take care of their needs in the event of a MARC commuter train breakdown. “Amtrak is in the business of moving people and we must never forget that,” Boardman said. “Passengers come first and the equipment comes second.” Amtrak is taking the following actions now and will continue to work with MARC to identify additional measures to improve customer service: Water Supply
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Amtrak

Amtrak, Metra, TSA and Local Law Enforcement Deploy Across Chicago Area Rail Stations

June 25, 2010 Railfanning.org News Wire
CHICAGO – During today’s morning and evening commutes, Amtrak Police, Metra Police, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) personnel and law enforcement officers from more than 100 federal, state, local and rail police agencies are being deployed at more than 100 passenger rail stations in Illinois and the neighboring states of Wisconsin and Indiana in an exercise of expanded counterterrorism and incident response capabilities. The multi-force security surge across Chicagoland and in two other states is not in response to any threat or incident. Rather, today’s deployment is part of Operation ALERTS (Allied Law Enforcement for Rail and Transit Security), a coordinated
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Amtrak

Amtrak Apologizes to MARC Passengers

June 23, 2010 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON – On June 21, MARC Train 538 lost power soon after leaving Washington Union Station, resulting in loss of air conditioning and “uncomfortable conditions for passengers” who waited about two hours for a resolution. “On behalf of Amtrak, I extend my most sincere apologies to the passengers of Train 538 for having to withstand unacceptable conditions and inconveniences during this service disruption,” President and CEO Joseph Boardman said. “We fell short of providing the service we strive to deliver. “In conjunction with the Maryland Transit Administration and the Federal Railroad Administration we are conducting a thorough investigation of the
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Commuter Rail

CTA to Extend Testing of Prototype Rail Cars on Green Line

June 1, 2010 Railfanning.org News Wire
CHICAGO — The CTA announced that the 5000-series prototype rail cars most recently being tested on the Green Line have been temporarily removed from service so that engineers can install and test a modification to the braking system. The 10 prototype rail cars were tested out-of-service since last fall and began in-service testing April 19th on the Red Line and moved to the Green Line on May 17.

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Commuter Rail

MTA Finalizes Hudson Yards Deal

May 26, 2010 Railfanning.org News Wire
NEW YORK — The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has entered into a contract with a joint venture of Related Companies and new partner Oxford Properties Group for the development of the MTA’s Hudson Yards into a mixed-use community that will include 12 million square feet of commercial and residential development.