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Miscellaneous

Argus Media Awards Alaska Railroad, Alaska Railbelt Marine With Prestigious Win-Win

WASHINGTON — The Alaska Railroad (ARRC) and Alaska Railbelt Marine are the winners of its prestigious Win-Win Award, Argus Media Inc. announced. The annual award is given to railroads, shippers and transportation companies which develop innovative partnerships leading to better service, better rates and other, mutually beneficial, service improvements. Launched in 1998 by Argus Rail Business, the annual award celebrates partnerships between rail carriers and customers which result in significant cost or service benefits. The latest award recognizes how the railroad and barge company preserved and revived freight deliveries to Whittier, Alaska, for several customers. “We are honored to receive

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Miscellaneous

Pacer’s Distribution Arm Expands Capacity, Opens Los Angeles Transload and Distribution Warehouse

CONCORD, Calif. — Pacer Distribution Services, Inc. (PDS), the warehousing and distribution arm of Pacer International, Inc., announced the opening of a new 52-door transload center in Carson, California to support increased demand for transloading services for international freight shipments moving from the West Coast to inland points. The facility, located on 5.4 acres, is adjacent to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and will be primarily dedicated to transloading services, though it will also provide additional capacity to the company’s previously existing warehouse operations that already occupy more than 800,000 square feet. These facilities support transload, cross-dock,

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BNSF

FreightCar America Builds New Design Ballast Cars for BNSF

CHICAGO — FreightCar America, Inc. has delivered 162 electrically operated all-steel ballast cars to BNSF Railway from its railcar production facility in Johnstown, Pa. These are the first ballast cars BNSF has acquired in over 20 years. They have higher capacity at 110 tons and feature a new technology operating system for the discharge doors. The cars are designed with a new electric, solar-powered activation system, whereby ballast can be dumped remotely by radio control. Their air-operated doors from W. H. Miner Enterprises function like traditional ballast cars, capable of distributing ballast either on the inside or outside of the

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Miscellaneous

The Carlyle Group Acquires Majority Ownership of Atlanta-based RMI

ATLANTA — RMI has announced that global private equity firm The Carlyle Group has acquired a majority stake in the company. Financial terms were not disclosed. Founded in 1979, RMI provides critical web-based transportation and logistics solutions for a variety of participants in the transportation industry, including short-line, regional, Class I and terminal switching railroads, railcar leasing companies, rail shippers and barge operators. RMI’s mission-critical, integrated services assist customers with many aspects of managing their operations, including transportation, equipment, freight and revenue management services. “Now is the right time to re-capitalize the company by bringing in a new equity investor,

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Miscellaneous

Rehberg Honored With Golden Spike Award

WASHINGTON — The National Association of Railroad Passengers is honoring U.S. Representative Denny Rehberg, R-Mont., with the George Falcon Golden Spike Award. The award honors individuals for their contributions to the advancement of passenger rail. Rehberg was honored for his sustained leadership in funding intercity passenger rail. He chairs the Congressional Rail Caucus and was instrumental in securing funding for Amtrak in the last appropriations bill, fighting off amendments that would have crippled the railroad, or eliminated long distance trains. “Even in his earliest days as a freshman member of Congress, Representative Rehberg spoke out clearly and forcefully against efforts

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Miscellaneous

Portec Rail Products Sells U.K. Facility

PITTSBURGH, Pa. — Portec Rail Products, Inc. today announced the sale of its Wrexham, Wales, United Kingdom facility to Eifion Lloyd Davies, an individual, doing business as GHA Coaches, based in the United Kingdom. The net proceeds from the sale, which closed on March 29, 2007, were approximately $2 million, and were used to reduce outstanding debt with a United Kingdom financial institution. The Wrexham location was a former manufacturing facility with rail and material handling operations and was closed in December 2006 as part of a business reorganization that the Company had initiated during 2006. “The sale of this

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Miscellaneous

Public Transportation Ridership up in 2006

Public transportation ridership has increased by nearly 3 percent in the first nine months of 2006, as Americans took 7.8 billion trips on public transit, according to the American Public Transportation Association (APTA). “Even as gas prices declined, more and more people decided to ride public transportation as ridership grew by nearly 3 percent in the first nine months of 2006,” said APTA President William W. Millar. “This continued increase in transit ridership demonstrates that when people have transportation choices, they use them.” Light rail (streetcars, trolleys, heritage trolleys, and modern light rail) had the highest percentage of growth among

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Miscellaneous

Gearing up on the Railways

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — Marines rush over top, around and beside a mammoth-looking line of railcars, as Lance Cpl. Brent G. Vines and his fellow Marines finish preparing and loading various combat gear to be sent to Fort Polk, La. for Cajun Viper. The railway is both efficient and good training for the Marines of 10th Marine Regiment. This is the first serious railway operation they have conducted in support of infantry training since 2002. The units participating in operation Cajun Viper, including 1st and 2nd Battalion of the 10th Marine Regiment, will train in Louisiana for approximately a month

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FTA

Streetcar Service Returns to St. Charles Line

NEW ORLEANS – Streetcar service is returning to the historic St. Charles line in New Orleans now that a federally funded project to replace electrical lines used to power the system is complete, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters said. “Today, the streetcars’ familiar sounds return to St. Charles Avenue for the first time since Katrina hit, heralding to the world the resilience of this city,” Peters said. “Where cable hung following the storm, today neat rows of overhead wires stand ready to power New Orleans on a streetcar we should call Revival.” Peters noted that the Department of Transportation’s