Railfanning.org News Wire

OAKLAND — Additional Amtrak railcars — coming from as far away as the East Coast — have arrived in the Pacific Northwest as a substitute for Talgo railcars that are sidelined because of a maintenance issue, Amtrak said. Motorcoaches are also available, with buses covering some of the scheduled train frequencies. New schedules will start Wednesday, Sept. 5. “One of the advantages of Amtrak as an operator of state-supported service is a nationwide equipment pool with experts in operations and scheduling,” said Kurt Laird, the Seattle-based Amtrak District Superintendent. “We are working closely with the states of Washington and Oregon in order to restore frequencies using

BOCA RATON, Fla. — RailAmerica, Inc., a leading operator of regional and short line roads, announced that Josh Putterman was named Assistant Vice President and Darryl Gabriel was named Regional Chief Engineer effective August 27. “With their railroad experience and wealth of knowledge being in the business for as long as they have,” said John Giles, RailAmerica CEO. “I am extremely enthusiastic to have these exceptional leaders join our team.” Josh Putterman joins RailAmerica from CSX where he served for 16 years. He began his career in economic analysis and held numerous positions in Regional Finance, Operations Improvement and Locomotive

ATLANTA — MARTA said that the Authority has achieved an operating budget surplus for the second year in a row – recording $12.1 million in additional revenues for FY07. This marks only the second time in 20 years that MARTA has recorded an operating budget surplus for two consecutive fiscal years. MARTA also ended FY07 with $117.4 million in capital reserves. The capital program funds additions and improvements to infrastructure and supports the Authority’s bonding capacity. “Thanks to a strict fiscal management plan, strategic cost containment measures and improved financial performance in recent years, MARTA has achieved this significant accomplishment,”