PTC

Transit Briefs: MBTA, Bradley Airport Rail Link

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s South Coast Rail (SCR) project remains on track to open this spring. Also, a proposed rail link to Bradley International Airport gains traction with a new bill.

PTC/ATC is now successfully active across the nearly 400 miles of all 12 Commuter Rail lines at MBTA. (MBTA Map)

Transit Briefs: MBTA, RTA Chicago, NYMTA

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) completes Automatic Train Control (ATC) implementation on all north side Commuter Rail lines. Also, ridership across the Chicago region’s fixed-route transit system hits post-pandemic high in 2024; and New York MTA’s Grand Central Madison wins an ASCE engineering achievement award.

(Image of AAR, ASLRRA Comments to FRA Courtesy of ASLRRA)
  • PTC

Industry Responds to Potential PTC Reg Changes

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) and the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) earlier this month submitted comments to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) regarding its proposal to amend regulations governing PTC (Positive Train Control) systems to address temporary situations when the technology is not enabled.

(Image Courtesy of Railway Age)
  • News

Now On Line: Railway Age’s January 2025 Digital Edition

Railway Age’s January 2025 issue is now available digitally. It features a profile of CSX President and CEO Joe Hinrichs—Railway Age’s 2025 Railroader of the Year—and a tribute to Jimmy Carter, who died Dec. 29, 2024, at 100 and who signed Staggers into law on Oct. 14, 1980, in one of his final acts as President.

(Image Courtesy of Railway Age)
  • News

Now On Line: Railway Age December 2024 Digital Edition

Railway Age’s December 2024 issue is now available digitally, featuring the 2025 Freight Rail Outlook that recommends railroads “keep the throttle in Notch 8, but be prepared for some rough track and Approach Medium signal aspects.”

Commentary

Anecdotes Are Not Data

Let’s resume where I left off, moving right along, next up: The NPRM intends to amend section 236.1029, PTC System Use and Failures. The provisions authorizing “temporary exceptions” to the prohibition on