North America – Page 93
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NewsWabtec acquires Fandstan Electric Group
UK: On February 12 Wabtec Corp announced that it had signed a definitive agreement to acquire Fandstan Electric Group for US$215m. UK-based Fandstan Electric has 1 000 employees in Europe, China, Australia and the USA, manufacturing electric current and data collection products including pantographs, shoe gear, electrical contacts and ...
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NewsGreenbrier plans safer tank car design
USA: Responding to growing concern over the safety of crude oil movements by rail in North America, rolling stock builder The Greenbrier Companies announced on February 5 that it is to develop a new-generation ‘Tank Car of the Future’ for the transport of hazardous freight, including crude oil and ethanol. ...
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NewsBNSF announces record capital investment plan
USA: BNSF Railway announced a 'single-year record capital commitment plan' on February 4. The total value is $5bn, up almost $1bn on its 2013 capital spend. The 2014 plan includes: $2·3bn for infrastructure works on the 52 000 route-km network in 28 US states and two Canadian provinces; $1·6bn ...
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NewsPatriot Rail launches Blue Ridge Railcar Repair
USA: Short line group Patriot Rail is to relaunch the former Alderman Railcar Services wagon repair and cleaning business under the name Blue Ridge Railcar Repair during February, having acquired the assets at the end of 2013 after Alderman entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. The workshop in in Keysville, Virginia, ...
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NewsMore BiLevels ordered for GO Transit
CANADA: Toronto area transport authority Metrolinx announced a C$481m order for further 65 Bombardier Transportation BiLevel double-deck coaches on January 24. Ontario's Ministry of Transportation said the order is 'an important step toward introducing two-way, all-day service on all seven GO rail lines.' The coaches are scheduled to be delivered ...
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NewsAmtrak and California begin joint high speed train procurement
USA: Amtrak and the California High Speed Rail Authority issued a request for proposals on January 24 covering the supply of up to 43 trainsets for use on the Initial Operating Section of California’s planned high speed network and the existing Northeast Corridor route between Washington DC and Boston. According ...
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NewsMontreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway sale approved
NORTH AMERICA: The sale of the assets of the insolvent Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway to the Railroad Acquisition Holdings subsidiary of Fortress Investment Group for US$14·25m was approved by courts in Québec and Maine on January 23, following an auction on January 21. Subject to regulatory approval in ...
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NewsDeal to continue freight operations in New Brunswick
CANADA: The Province of New Brunswick and CN announced an agreement to ensure the future of freight services on two sections of the former New Brunswick East Coast Railway on January 24. The province is to provide up to C$25m for works to bring the infrastructure to the required operating ...
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NewsTrinity and Element form US$2bn wagon leasing alliance
USA: Wagon manufacturing and leasing group Trinity Industries and Element Financial Corp and have entered into a strategic alliance which aims to provide lease financing for up to $2bn of wagons over two years. An initial deal covering the sale of leased wagons worth $105m to Element was completed in ...
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NewsMetro-North access to Penn Station endorsed
USA: Speaking in Albany on January 8, the governor of New York State Andrew Cuomo offered his support for a commuter rail investment project which would see MTA Metro-North’s New Haven Line trains routed over Amtrak’s Hell Gate bridge into New York Penn Station. Provisionally costed at around $1bn, ...
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NewsKeolis wins Massachusetts commuter rail operating contract
USA: Massachusetts Department of Transportation has selected Keolis Commuter Services for a contract to operate the state's commuter trains from July 1. The eight-year operating contract is worth $2·69bn, with options for two two-year options which would take the value to $4·26bn. The network centred on Boston carried 36·4 million ...
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Metro Report InternationalKeolis wins Massachusetts commuter rail operating contract
USA: Massachusetts Department of Transportation has selected Keolis Commuter Services for a contract to operate the state's commuter trains from July 1. The eight-year operating contract is worth $2·69bn, with options for two two-year options which would take the value to $4·26bn. The network centred on Boston carried 36·4 million ...
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NewsCanadian Pacific to sell part of Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern network to GWI
USA: An agreement for Canadian Pacific to sell the west end of its Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern line to short line group Genesee & Wyoming Inc was announced on January 2. Subject to Surface Transportation Board approval the sale is expected to close by mid-2014. The lines would be operated ...
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NewsBombardier to operate Vancouver commuter service
CANADA: Vancouver regional transport authority TransLink has awarded Bombardier Transportation a contract to operate West Coast Express commuter rail services from May 2014. The C$17m contract runs for five years, with options for three additional five-year periods. West Coast Express was launched in 1995 and now carries more than 2·8 ...
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NewsSiemens selected for 200 km/h US passenger locomotive order
USA: Illinois Department of Transportation announced on December 19 that it had selected Siemens for a contract to supply approximately 35 diesel locomotives with maximum speed of 200 km/h. The deal has still to be finalised, but a notice of intent has been issued by IDOT, which is leading a ...
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NewsCHSRA supporting veterans
USA: California High Speed Rail Authority has signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement with CalVet, the state's department which supports military veterans. CalVet and CHSRA have agreed to work together to identify opportunities where small businesses managed by disabled veterans could participate in the high speed rail programme. These efforts would ...
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NewsBridge boosts capacity in Missouri
USA: Union Pacific Railroad opened a bridge over the Osage River at Jefferson City, Missouri, on November 25 as part of a capacity enhancement programme on the 455 km Kansas City – St Louis route. The 365 m structure carries a double-track alignment and removes one of the most significant ...
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NewsCalifornian high speed programme hits funding hurdle
USA: California’s high speed rail programme is facing potentially significant delays following a series of rulings on funding issues by the Sacramento County Supreme Court. The rulings centre on the California High Speed Rail Authority’s plan to use so-called Proposition 1A bonds to part-fund an Initial Operating Segment through the ...
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NewsWatco invests in Michigan short line company
USA: Short line holding company Watco Transportation Services has announced a definitive agreement to make a preferred equity investment in Federated Capital Holdings, the parent company of Great Lakes Central Railroad and Federated Railcars. Class II railway GLCR operates a 640 km network in Michigan running from Ann Arbor north ...
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NewsMetro-North and Long Island Rail Road PTC contracts awarded
USA: New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority has awarded a consortium of Bombardier Transportation and Siemens Rail Automation contracts to supply Positive Train Control for the MTA Metro-North Railroad and MTA Long Island Rail Road commuter lines. This covers 1 100 km of track and 1 500 vehicles, carrying around 80 ...