Railfanning.org News Wire

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Amtrak

Amtrak: Oklahoma City-Fort Worth Passenger Counts Still Soaring

November 6, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire
OKLAHOMA CITY — Final figures for the Amtrak fiscal year show more people are opting for the Amtrak Heartland Flyer train between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth, with ridership rising by more than 18 percent to total 80,892 for the 12 months ending Sept. 30.Amtrak operates the Heartland Flyer (Trains 821 & 822) under contracts with the Oklahoma and Texas state transportation departments. These are two of the 14 states for which Amtrak operates service that supplements the national network of Amtrak trains. “We continue to be excited about the growth in ridership numbers of the Heartland Flyer,” said David
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Canadian Pacific

CP Salutes Fallen Soldiers

November 6, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire
CALGARY — Canadian Pacific will honor employees who served Canada and the United States in war. Network-wide, all trains will safely halt at 11AM local time, observe two minutes of respect in silence and then sound a long train whistle in tribute. A Remembrance Day and Veterans Day service will also be held at CP’s headquarters in Calgary. “On this day, Canadian Pacific will recognize the contributions our employees made in times of war. On land, at sea and in the air, at home and abroad, the company, its people, its resources, its ingenuity and expertise were needed,” said Fred
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STB

STB Releases Christensen Survey

November 3, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board announced that Christensen Associates, a Madison, Wisc.-based economic consulting firm, has completed its 14-month, independent report titled “A Study of Competition in the U.S. Freight Railroad Industry and Analysis of Proposals that Might Enhance Competition.” The Study is the topic of the Board’s public meeting to be held on Nov. 6. STB officials say this study takes a comprehensive review of the underlying economics of the  railroad industry.  The Board anticipates that this analysis will be of great interest to policymakers and stakeholders involved in interstate freight commerce.
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Miscellaneous

Portec Sees 33 Percent Increase in Q3 Income

November 3, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire
PITTSBURGH — Portec Rail Products Inc. announced record unaudited net income of $2,516,000 or $0.26 per share for the three months ending Sept. 30. That represents a 33 percent increase over third quarter 2007 net income of $1,890,000 or $0.20 per share. “Our overall sales volume for the first nine months of 2008 has surpassed last year’s sales despite a more challenging environment this year,” Richard J. Jarosinski, President and Chief Executive Officer said. “While we have experienced reduced demand for our Salient Systems’ wayside detection systems and our CI Logistics material handling products in 2008, we feel that the
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Short Line/Regional

STB: CORP Must Sell Line

October 31, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON – The Surface Transportation Board has ordered the Central Oregon & Pacific Railroad Inc. (CORP) to sell a 111-mile railroad line running from Danebo, Ore., to Cordes, Ore., to The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay. In a separate decision, the Board granted CORP authority to abandon a 94-mile segment of the Line in the event that a sale of the Line is not completed. In reaching its decision, the STB found that the Line meets  the five “public convenience and necessity” criteria for a forced sale  under the “feeder line” provision of the agency’s statute enabling  shippers and
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STB

STB to Discuss ‘Caliente Line’

October 31, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON – The Surface Transportation Board announced that it will hold a public field hearing on Dec. 4, 2008, in Las Vegas to hear public testimony related to the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) application for authority to build the proposed “Caliente Line.” The line is a 300-mile rail line that would connect an existing rail line near Caliente, Nev., to a proposed geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nev. The DOE proposes to use the new line initially to transport materials needed to construct the repository, and, eventually, to transport spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste for
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Miscellaneous

Railcar in Georgia City May Soon be Moved

October 31, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire
MARIETTA, Ga. — A Pullman railcar that has been parked just of the city’s square for decades has been sold and could soon be moved. The city of Marietta in recent months has claimed that the railcar is a blight and cited the owner with a code violation. The railcar, which has been in the city since the 1970s, recently turned up on an online auction site and sold for $425 with a stipulation that it be moved within two weeks, the Marietta (Ga.) Daily-Journal newspaper reported. The owners allege the city wants them to move the aging piece of
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STB

STB to Discuss Christensen Study

October 24, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board will hold a public meeting Nov. 6 to discuss the independent study by Christensen Associates assessing the current state of competition in the freight railroad industry in the United States. The Board also announced that the Christensen study will be released to the public, via the Board’s website at www.stb.dot.gov, prior to the public meeting. At the meeting, the Board will discuss the study’s findings with Christensen researchers.  While the public is invited to attend the meeting, they will not be permitted to testify, the STB said. The study was undertaken pursuant to a
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NTSB

NTSB to Discuss ‘Most Wanted’ List

October 24, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a public Board meeting on Oct. 28 to review its list of Most Wanted safety recommendations directed at federal agencies. The Most Wanted List was developed in 1990 to focus attention on safety improvements the Board believes will have the greatest impact on transportation safety. Some of the issues to be reviewed this year include runway incursions, positive train control, motor carrier operations and operator fatigue.