Railfanning.org News Wire – Page 312

Sanford Auto Train Station to Undergo Significant Renovations

September 23, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire

SANFORD, Fla. – Amtrak has plans to renovate the Auto Train station in Sanford, officials said. The 2004 hurricanes heavily damaged the Sanford station, and Amtrak plans to begin improvements early next year utilizing the current footprint. Amtrak representatives announced that the renovated Auto Train terminal will undergo between $6 and $7 million in improvements. The new facility will provide seating for 600 passengers and is intended to improve the function, process and flow of the station, vehicles, and site. “The Auto Train facility in Sanford has been unacceptable and inadequate for more that two years since being storm damaged,”

CSX: Weather to Reduce Q3 Operating Income

September 23, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX Corp. said that the financial impact of recent storms in the Gulf Coast and Midwest is now expected to reduce third quarter operating income by $40 million to $50 million and earnings per share by six to eight cents. The impact is primarily related to asset write downs, business interruption and reroute expenses, the company said. — PRNewswire-FirstCall

No Phones in the Cab of California Trains

September 19, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire

SAN FRANCISCO — Metrolink engineers and train operators across the state of California are no longer allowed to use cell phones while in the cab. The California Public Utilities Commission voted to temporarily prohibit the personal use of “commercial mobile radio services and devices” by on-duty railroad engineers, brakemen, conductors or rail transit vehicle operators. Personal communications “that take place when the train or transit vehicle is stopped and with the approval of the appropriate management personnel” is allowed, however. The CPUC determined that this action was needed due to a June 14, 2008, MUNI accident that may have resulted

L.A. Metro Train, Bus Collide

September 19, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire

LOS ANGELES — A metro train and a bus collided today near Washington Boulevard and Griffith Avenue. In all, 15 people were injured. At the time of the crash, the bus did not have any passengers. The train was traveling south toward Long Beach. The metro’s blue line connects Los Angeles and Long Beach. There have been 90 fatalities, including 20 suicides, on the Blue Line since it opened in 1990, The Los Angeles Times reported. — Railfanning.org News Wire

NTSB: Engineer Sent, Received Texts Prior to Crash

September 17, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire

LOS ANGELES – The National Transportation Safety Board confirmed that the engineer of a Metrolink commuter train that crashed head-on into a Union Pacific freight train sent and received text messages prior to the crash. “NTSB investigators asked for records of the Metrolink engineer’s cell phone calls and text messages from the service provider,” the agency said in a statement. “The Board today received some of those records, which indicate that the engineer had sent and received text messages on the day of the accident, including some while he was on duty.” The Metrolink commuter train and the Union Pacific

Oberstar: Deadly Train Crash was Preventable

September 16, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire

WASHINGTON — Friday’s fatal Metrolink train crash was preventable, according to Rep. James L. Oberstar, D-Minn., Chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. In the wreck, a Metrolink commuter train collided with a Union Pacific freight train in Los Angeles, killing 25 people and injuring 135 others. The Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2007 (H.R. 2095), a bill the House of Representatives passed last year, would require trains to be equipped with Positive Train Control (PTC), a collision avoidance system. PTC has been at the top of the National Transportation Safety Board’s priority list for nearly two

Law Firm Looking for Metrolink Victims

September 16, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire

LOS ANGELES –A Los Angeles law firm that represented victims of a 2005 Metrolink train wreck announced its plan to leverage its experience on behalf of the victims of the Sept. 12 Metrolink wreck in Chatsworth. Attorneys R. Edward Pfiester, Jr. and Victor A. Russo, in a news release, said they offered their prayers and sympathy for the victims of the train collision and for their families and “vowed to use their extensive experience in previous Metrolink cases on behalf of the victims of this tragic train accident.” “Unfortunately, some attorneys are claiming to be experienced in railroad cases when,

Wabtec Signs Agreement To Acquire Standard Car Truck

September 16, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire

WILMERDING, Pa. — Wabtec Corp. has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Standard Car Truck, a leading rail equipment supplier, for cash of about $300 million. Based in Park Ridge, Ill., Standard Car Truck has annual sales of about $225 million and manufactures engineered components for locomotives and freight cars. Wabtec expects the transaction to be completed in the fourth quarter and to be accretive in the first year. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and antitrust clearance under the Hart Scott Rodino Act. Wabtec plans to finance the transaction with proceeds from a new, $500 million credit

CSX Invites TCI Group Nominees to Join Board

September 16, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Following a decision by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York, CSX Corp.’s Board of Directors has invited TCI Group nominees Christopher Hohn and Timothy O’Toole to join the board immediately. Hohn and O’Toole would succeed Dr. William C. Richardson and Dr. Frank S. Royal, each of whom has resigned effective upon his successor taking office. “We are very pleased with the Court’s decision. We hope CSX will now acknowledge that four of our nominees were elected,” TCI said in a statement. “It is time for the entire duly elected Board, including Chris Hohn and

Norfolk Southern and BLET Reach New Agreement

September 16, 2008 Railfanning.org News Wire

NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk Southern Railway Company and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) have reached a new agreement that will continue to link engineer compensation to company performance through 2014. The BLET has participated in such a bonus program since 1996. The new agreement covers approximately 5,000 engineers and provides each engineer the opportunity for an annual bonus payment based on company financial and service performance metrics and, for the first time, his or her work availability in the previous year. Other highlights of the agreement include annual wage increases totaling 19 percent from 2009 through 2014,