North America
-
NewsSteel works locos converted to battery power
USA: Innovative Rail Technologies has converted two industrial shunting locomotives used at United States Steel Corp’s Edgar Thomson and Clairton sites from diesel to battery power using its Advanced Technology Li-Ion Adaptive System turnkey propulsion and control package. This is intended to reduce fuel consumption ...
-
Metro Report InternationalToronto streetcars enter service
CANADA: The first of 60 Alstom streetcars ordered by Toronto Transit Commission in 2021 have entered service, with an inaugural run on the 504 King route on November 17. The 1 495 mm gauge low-floor trams and associated alternations to Hillcrest depot have been ...
-
Metro Report InternationalQuébec City transport options to be reassessed as tram scheme falters
CANADA: The government of Québec has asked infrastructure investment specialist CPDQ Infra to investigate options to develop transport links for the city of Québec after procurement of a planned tram line collapsed in early November. The city had been developing plans for a 19·3 km ...
-
News‘New York metro’ concept in updated Northeast Corridor modernisation plan
USA: Amtrak and its local and federal partners are proposing a major uplift in commuter and inter-city services between New York and New Jersey to create a ‘metro-style’ service offering at peak hours, subject to capacity enahncements in the Northeast Corridor being fully funded.
-
NewsAlstom signs Ontario education MoU
CANADA: The Earth District consortium of Ontario colleges and universities and Alstom have signed a memorandum of understanding covering learning, research and work opportunities in the transport sector. This aims to help develop the talent needed to for sustainable transport projects such as ...
-
Metro Report InternationalDallas Fort Worth airport peoplemover modernisation contract
USA: Alstom has been awarded a $72·2m contract to modernise the Skylink automated peoplemover at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. This will include the overhaul, retrofit or replacement of vehicle and lineside components to ensure reliability and mitigate against obsolescence. In 2022 Alstom ...
-
NewsBattery shunter enters service in Ohio
USA: OmniTRAX’s Newburgh & South Shore Railroad has put an AMPS Traction G9 battery shunting locomotive into service in the Cleveland area. The railway has been supported by Ohio Environmental Protection Agency’s Diesel Mitigation Trust Fund, which provides grants for projects to improve air quality. The ...
-
NewsONxpress to deploy IVU.rail software in GO expansion
CANADA: The ONxpress consortium which has a concession to design, build, operate and maintain the expanded GO rail network around Toronto is to use IVU Traffic Technologies’ IVU.rail software to schedule, dispatch and optimise its future services. ‘We made the decision to go with IVU.rail following ...
-
Metro Report InternationalSundays-only streetcar route opens in Milwaukee
USA: A limited preview service on Line L of The Hop streetcar network in Milwaukee was launched on October 29. The partly catenary-free Line L operates in a figure of eight. This uses a newly constructed 1·2 km single-track loop with three stops, one of which ...
-
NewsCape Breton & Central Nova Scotia Railway partnership
CANADA: An agreement has been reached for Canadian National to acquire a stake in Genesee & Wyoming’s Cape Breton & Central Nova Scotia Railway. CN will manage interline movements, while a G&W subsidiary will continue to operate the line which has 230 km of active track ...
-
Metro Report InternationalWashington metro office consolidation completed
USA: The official opening of the Metro Integrated Command & Communications Center at Alexandria in Virgina on October 27 marked the completion of Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s programme to consolidate 10 office locations into three buildings. The 14-storey building near Eisenhower Ave station will support ...
-
NewsNortheast Corridor enhancements allocated $16·4bn
USA: The Federal Railroad Administration has awarded $16·4bn for 25 passenger rail enhancement interventions along the Northeast Corridor between Boston and Washington DC. The projects were selected through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail programme. ‘We are finally delivering the generational investments ...
-
Metro Report InternationalInglewood Transit Connector peoplemover project makes progress
USA: The Federal Transit Administration has given a positive rating to the Inglewood Transit Connector peoplemover project, making it eligible for funding from the Capital Investment Grants programme. The proposed 2·6 km three-station elevated automated peoplemover would link Los Angeles MTA’s K Line with event and ...
-
NewsRevised California high speed rail track and electrification design RFQ issued
USA: California High-Speed Rail Authority has released a new request for qualifications for a contract to provide design services for the track and overhead electrification systems. The contract has an estimated value of up to $131·2m, plus options. It would cover high-level designs for track and ...
-
Metro Report InternationalEdmonton’s Valley Line Southeast opens
CANADA: Edmonton’s Valley Line Southeast light rail route opened on November 4, running 13·1 km from 102 Street in the city centre to Mill Woods. The project forms part of the city’s plan to develop accessible, convenient and sustainable travel options, with a target of 50% ...
-
NewsCalifornian coastal railway to be relocated inland
USA: San Diego Association of Governments has selected HDR in partnership with Mott MacDonald and SMEs to undertake environmental clearance and advanced conceptual engineering for a project to replace a section of coastal railway by a new inland alignment. The LOSSAN Rail Realignment Project would bypass ...
-
NewsAir + High-Speed Rail project launched
INTERNATIONAL: An Air + HSR research project has been launched to analyse and improve the co-ordination of air and rail transport in Europe, the USA and China. The project aims to develop practical approaches improve services, enhance infrastructure and implement regulatory changes in order to maximise ...
-
NewsNS deploys digital inspection portals to spot wagon problems
USA: Norfolk Southern has begun deploying digital train inspection portals which use machine vision to identify faults on moving wagons. The portals have been developed under a joint project between the railroad’s Data Science/Artificial Intelligence and Mechanical teams and the Georgia Tech ...
-
NewsAmtrak introduces revised fare structure
USA: National passenger operator Amtrak has introduced a simplified fare structure which President Roger Harris said would offer passengers ‘more affordable and flexible’ travel options. The operator has reduced the number of basic fare types from three to two, with the aim of providing a more ...
-
NewsNew Orleans – Baton Rouge passenger train agreement signed
USA: Amtrak has signed an agreement with Louisiana’s Department of Transportation to develop a long-planned inter-city service between Baton Rouge and New Orleans. ‘An Amtrak line connecting Louisiana’s capital to the largest metropolitan area in the state will have immense economic benefits for both cities and ...