With zero reportable injuries and zero human-factor-caused derailments in 2020, Class III New Orleans Public Belt Railroad (NOPB) set a new safety record, “ the first time reaching this milestone for NOPB and a significant accomplishment in the railroad industry, which holds itself to stringent safety standards,” the railroad said. The record is based on NOPB data from the past 14 years.
BNSF Railway and Wabtec have begun testing a battery-electric locomotive (BEL) in revenue service between Barstow and Stockton, Calif. The BEL, sandwiched in between two Wabtec Tier 4 diesel-electric locomotives, creates what is described as a “battery-electric hybrid consist.” All three units power the train in main line operations.
The new East End Gateway entrance to the Long Island Rail Road Concourse at Penn Station opened to the public at 12:00 pm Dec. 31. Described by New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority Construction & Development as “visually remarkable” and “high-capacity,” the entrance, located at 33rd Street and Seventh Avenue gives Penn Station “a front door identity on Seventh Avenue for the first time” while providing direct access for customers headed from street level to the LIRR, as well as to NYC Transit’s 1-2-3 and A-C-E subway lines. Prior to the new entrance, customers had to wind their way through Penn Station’s Amtrak level to reach the LIRR Concourse.
Railroad Development Corp., the Pittsburgh-based railway investment and management company with interests in railways and related businesses in the Americas and Europe, on Dec. 31, 2020 entered into a strategic partnership with iCON Infrastructure LLC, an independent investment firm focused on investments in core infrastructure businesses across North America and Europe. iCON Infrastructure Partners V will acquire a 40% stake in Class II Iowa Interstate Railroad (IAIS). RDC will remain majority owner of IAIS and together with iCON V “will continue to support its strong management team and dedicated workforce in providing best-in-class service to IAIS’ diverse customer base.”
Railroad Financial Corp. President and Railway Age Financial Editor David Nahass; Cowen and Company Managing Director and Railway Age Wall Street Contributing Editor Jason Seidl; and Cowen and Company Transportation Equipment Analyst
Chart Industries, Inc., a significant player in the rail industry for providing equipment for LNG (liquefied natural gas)-powered locomotives, has made a significant investment in a Canadian supplier of hydrogen fuel cell technology.
Jim Derwinski, Commuter Rail Coalition Chair and CEO/Executive Director, Metra; John Cline, CRC Government Affairs Director and Principal, Cline Strategic Consulting; Chuck Spitulnik, CRC Counsel and Partner, Kaplan Kirsch Rockwell; and KellyAnne
In New Jersey Transit’s epic struggle with implementing Positive Train Control by the Dec. 31, 2020 federal deadline, the agency came in under the wire(s), literally.
Building on its sustainability initiatives, Canadian Pacific now has plans to develop North America’s first hydrogen fuel cell (HFC)-powered linehaul freight locomotive.
The Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware has ruled in the complex case of two affiliated short line railroad LLCs involved in a lawsuit over indemnification, according to a report published in an on-line legal journal.