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Commuter Rail

Wabtec Signs $45 Million Contract To Repower Locomotives For Toronto’s Metrolinx

WILMERDING, Pa. — Wabtec Corp.’s MotivePower subsidiary has signed a $45 million contract with Metrolinx, an agency of the Province of Ontario and the regional transportation authority for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA). MotivePower will repower 11 locomotives with new engines and propulsion systems that meet significantly higher environmental standards. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2014. The locomotives, originally built by MotivePower about five years ago, will be repowered with new engines that meet Tier 4 emission standards, as set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. They include technology that reduces diesel particulate emissions by about 85
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Commuter Rail

Metro Takes Delivery of State-of-the-Art Track Geometry Vehicle

Metro has accepted delivery of its first track geometry vehicle (TGV), a specialized railcar equipped with advanced technology to analyze the condition of rail and track infrastructure, and to alert Metro to potential defects. The TGV, built by Falls Church, VA-based Ensco, Inc., gives Metro in-house capability to inspect track with greater speed and efficiency, and to detect track anomalies before they have an impact on service. “Ultrasonic and geometry testing can be performed to assist in managing maintenance needs and advance identification of ‘trouble spots’ to improve reliability of service and limit disruptions,” said Tom Robinson, Metro’s Deputy Chief
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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,
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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,
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Commuter Rail

N.J. Transit Board Approves Changes to Bloomfield Ave. Station

NEWARK, NJ — Improvements to make Newark Light Rail’s Bloomfield Avenue Station accessible to customers with disabilities and more convenient for all customers will begin this spring, under a contract approved by the N.J. Transit Board of Directors. “Projects like this reinforce our steadfast commitment to enhancing the accessibility of our facilities and helping to ensure that public transportation is a viable option for all New Jersey residents,” said Transportation Commissioner and N.J. Transit Board Chairman James Simpson. The Board authorized a $5.2 million contract with DMR Construction of Waldwick, N.J., for the construction of accessibility improvements at the station,