CSX
Railfanning.org News Wire
World
24 Dead After Mexican Train Wreck
MEXICO CITY – Nearly two dozen people were killed when a freight train crashed into a bus in a suburb of the Mexican capital city. More than a dozen other people were injured in the wreck at a grade crossing in Cuautitlan, located north of Mexico City. The exact cause of the wreck remained under investigation. There was some indication the driver of the bus tried to beat the train, The Associated Press reported. According to another account, the bus stalled on the grade crossing and in the path on an on-coming train. At the time of the crash, the
FRA
Appeals Court Upholds STB’s DM&E Decision
WASHINGTON – The Surface Transportation Board’s decision granting final approval to Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad (DM&E) to construct a 280-mile rail line into Wyoming’s Powder River Basin was affirmed by the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. The Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad (DM&E) is seeking the largest federal loan to a private company in American history — a $2.3 billion in tax money from to finance a major rail expansion project through the Midwest. The loan guarantee from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) would allow the DM&E to expand and improve a rail line that
Amtrak
Service Alert: Amtrak Pacific Northwest Service Disrupted by Mudslides North of Seattle
SEATTLE – BNSF has imposed a curfew on passenger trains between Seattle and Everett, Wash., due to mudslides. Here are service interruptions announced by Amtrak: AMTRAK CASCADES: Service north of Seattle by Amtrak Cascades trains has been canceled through Thursday evening, December 28, with alternate motorcoach transportation provided to and from Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. Service south of Seattle to and from Eugene, OR, is not affected. EMPIRE BUILDER: The Chicago-Seattle Empire Builder will originate and terminate in Everett, instead of Seattle, through Thursday evening, December 28, with alternate motorcoach transportation provided to and from Seattle and Everett. This information
Terrorism/Security
Teamsters: Proposed Rail Security Rules Ignore Employees’ Safety Role
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff: Dec. 12, 2006, Press Conference WASHINGTON – Proposed rules by the Transportation Security Administration ignore necessary employee training and protections against employer retaliation, Teamsters say. However, the Teamsters Union is still reviewing the rules, but so far has determined that the proposals are inadequate, according to the union. “The White House has failed again to recognize that the true eyes and ears of the rail system are its employees,” said Jim Hoffa, Teamsters General President. “Our members are working on the rails night and day. They know about the security lapses on the rails, yet
Short Line/Regional
Genesee & Wyoming Reconfigures North American Operating Regions
GREENWICH, Conn. – Genesee & Wyoming Inc. has offered up a “rebalancing” of its North American operating regions, which company officials say is needed as a result of growth. “The value of our regional structure is its responsiveness to customers and business opportunities in each of our operating units,” said Mortimer B. Fuller III, Chairman and CEO of Genesee & Wyoming. “This realignment, effective Jan. 1, 2007, reflects our focus on maintaining these advantages.” Under the “rebalancing,” a new Southern Region will consist of 13 railroads that were formerly part of the company’s Rail Link Region, which has grown significantly
Norfolk Southern
Norfolk Southern Agrees to Settlement in Graniteville Lawsuit
GRANITEVILLE, S.C. – Norfolk Southern is asking a federal judge to approve a class settlement to a lawsuit filed after a Jan. 6, 2005, derailment that left nine people dead. The Norfolk, Va. -based company filed a motion in South Carolina federal court proposing a settlement that “would provide varying levels of compensation for people who were injured and who received medical treatment or were hospitalized as a result of the derailment and subsequent release of chlorine,” the railroad said in a news release. On Jan. 6, 2005, a northbound Norfolk Southern Railway freight train encountered an improperly lined switch
Commuter Rail
NTSB: Engineer’s Inattentiveness to Blame for 2005 Wreck
WASHINGTON – An engineer’s inattentiveness to signal indications and his failure to operate the train in accordance with the signal indications and speed restrictions is probable cause of a September 2005 Metra derailment, the National Transportation Safety Board determined. Contributing to the Sept. 17, 2005 derailment of Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corp. (Metra) train No. 504 in Chicago was lack of recognition by Metra of the risk posed by the significant difference between track speed and crossover speed at the accident location and its inaction to reduce that risk through additional operational safety procedures and other means. Also, contributing
FRA
DOT Wants Railroads to Route Hazardous Materials Based on Range of Safety, Security Factors
WASHINGTON – Railroad companies would be required to perform a safety and security risk analysis to determine the most appropriate route for shipping hazardous materials as part of a new proposal by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation. U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters said the notice of proposed rulemaking, issued by the Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), would make shipments of certain high-risk hazardous materials, including explosives, radioactive substances and toxic-inhalation risk materials, more safe and secure by adding to and strengthening existing federal regulations. “These materials are fueling
Commuter Rail
Two Cars of CTA Train Derail
CHICAGO – The last two cars of a northbound Orange Line Chicago Transit Authority train derailed at 14th and State Street south of the Roosevelt Line station Tuesday, Dec. 19, causing delays on both the Green and Orange lines.Several minor injures were reported in the derailment. The train’s first two cars did not have a problem passing over a switch, but apparently the switch moved before the final two cars passed, causing the derailment, The Associated Press reported. At the time of the derailment, the train was traveling about 25 mph. Orange Line trains were operating between Midway and Halsted,