North America – Page 70
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NewsAmtrak awarded five-year MARC Penn Line contract
USA: Maryland Department of Transportation MTA has awarded Amtrak a five-year contract to continue to operate MARC Penn Line commuter services on a 124 km route between Washington, DC, and Perryville, Maryland. Amtrak said it had faced ‘strong competitors with excellent reputations’ during the tendering process, and had won the ...
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NewsCN Chief Executive leaves
CANADA: The board of Canadian National Railway announced on March 5 that President & CEO Luc Jobin would be leaving the company with immediate effect. He had succeeded Claude Mongeau as President & CEO on July 1 2016, having previously been Chief Financial Officer. Jean-Jacques Ruest has been appointed Interim ...
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NewsWabtec selected to complete Caltrain PTC installation
USA: A contract for Wabtec to install Positive Train Control on Caltrain’s San Francisco – San Jose commuter route will be put to the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board for approval at its meeting scheduled for March 1. In late 2011 Caltrain awarded Parsons Transportation Group a contract to provide ...
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Metro Report InternationalHyundai Rotem signs Vancouver driverless train contract
CANADA: Hyundai Rotem announced on February 26 that it had signed a 62·1bn won contract with Vancouver regional transport authority TransLink for the supply of 24 metro cars for the driverless Canada Line. Deliveries from Rotem’s Changwon plant in South Korea are due to take place in 2019-20. ...
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Metro Report InternationalWork starts on second phase of Los Angeles Purple Line extension
USA: A groundbreaking ceremony for the second phase of the Purple metro line extension in Los Angeles took place on February 23. Scheduled to open in 2025, Section 2 would run for 4·2 km from Wilshire/La Cienega to Century City/Constellation, with an intermediate station at Wilshire/Rodeo. A joint venture ...
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NewsHydrogen is a technically feasible alternative to electrification, Toronto study finds
CANADA: It be would technically and economically feasible to operate the Toronto area’s future Regional Express Rail passenger services using hydrogen fuel cells instead of conventional overhead electrification, a study has concluded. The lifetime costs would be similar, but the use of hydrogen would be a ‘world first’ on such ...
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NewsG&W invests in last mile technology business
USA: International rail freight group Genesee & Wyoming Inc has invested in Cargomatic, a technology platform which connects freight shippers and road hauliers with a focus on short-haul markets. Terms were not disclosed. Cargomatic currently operates in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Seattle, Dallas, Houston and New York, but it ...
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NewsSoftware aims to improve KCS fleet utilisation
USA: Kansas City Southern has awarded planning and scheduling tool specialist Biarri Rail a contract to supply its Boss MP Loco cloud-based software to improve locomotive utilisation. ‘We engaged Biarri Rail to perform a proof-of-concept using Boss MP Loco and this clearly demonstrated that we could use the software package ...
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Metro Report InternationalSiemens to provide predictive maintenance for Atlanta Streetcar
USA: Siemens has been selected as the long-term service provider for the Atlanta Streetcar. The partnership will see Siemens providing technical support and materials for all preventative and corrective maintenance of the four Avanto vehicles that it supplied for the route. Siemens will use its Railigent platform to analyse ...
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Metro Report InternationalFirst Oklahoma City streetcar arrives
USA: The first of seven trams for Oklahoma City arrived on February 13 from Brookville Equipment Co’s factory in Pennsylvania. Haulage by road was provided by Silk Road Transport. Brookville is supplying seven low-floor trams for the project, with the remaining six to be delivered at a rate of ...
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NewsTrump budget plans to halve federal subsidy to Amtrak
USA: The formal 2019 financial year budget issued by President Donald Trump on February 12 includes plans to cut federal subsidy to Amtrak by almost half. The proposed budget, which would take effect from October 1, would see federal support payments for Amtrak reduced from $1·5bn to $738m. The savings ...
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NewsCP share buyback follows Q4 successes
CANADA: Canadian Pacific has completed its second share repurchase programme, the railway confirmed on February 8. CP had announced on December 11 its intention to buy back up to 755 000 common shares from two third-party sellers under two consecutive programmes to be completed by May 14. The first completed ...
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NewsWabtec signs SunRail PTC contract
USA: Wabtec Corp has signed a $62m contract to design, install, test and commission Positive Train Control for the 100 km Central Florida Rail Corridor used by SunRail commuter services around Orlando. Wabtec is to provide its Interoperable Electronic Train Management System equipment for 24 locomotives and driving cars, as ...
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NewsNorfolk Southern positioning for growth
USA: Norfolk Southern has announced plans to invest $1·8bn in capital projects during 2018, as it pursues the objectives set out in its Strategic Plan adopted in 2016. With a focus on improving service and operational efficiency while maintaining safety, the capital spending will be broadly in line with the ...
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Metro Report InternationalAlstom and SNC-Lavalin to build Montréal’s automated metro
CANADA: CDPQ Infra announced the winning bidders for the construction and operation of the Réseau Électrique Métropolitain automated metro project in Montréal on February 8. Construction is due to start in April, with testing to start at the end of 2020 and passenger services on the first branch beginning ...
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NewsLoram acquires GREX
USA: Loram Maintenance of Way announced on February 6 that it had reached a definitive agreement to acquire the outstanding shares in Georgetown Rail Equipment Co. The transaction is expected to close in mid-February. ‘The merger with GREX, a market leader in material handling and track inspection technologies, strengthens our ...
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NewsCSX committed to Harrison’s vision
USA ‘I’m excited about the progress we are making and am confident we have the right team in place to achieve our goal of becoming the best railroad in North America’, said CSX Transportation President & Chief Executive Officer James M Foote, briefing investors on the company’s 2017 results. According ...
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NewsUP optimistic in 2018 forecasts
USA: Union Pacific is ‘optimistic that the economy will favour a number of our market segments, leading to another year of positive volume growth’, said Lance Fritz, Chairman, President & CEO, announcing the company’s 2017 results on January 25. UP reported net income of $10·7bn for the year, an increase ...
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Metro Report InternationalEdmonton Valley Line LRV mock-up presented
CANADA: A mock-up of a light rail vehicle for Edmonton’s Valley Line was presented to officials on February 2. Bombardier Transportation is supplying 26 LRVs for the first phase of the project as part of the TransEd Partners consortium, which has a PPP contract to design, build and finance ...
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NewsBNSF announces $3·3bn capital plan
USA: BNSF is planning to invest $3·3bn under its 2018 capital plan unveiled on January 31. This the same level of spending as 2017, and brings the total investment to more than $60bn since 2000. Within the total figure, $2·4bn has been allocated for maintenance and renewal of both infrastructure ...