As I pack for a trip to New Orleans, La., to cover the inaugural run of Amtrak Mardi Gras service between New Orleans and Mobile, I am thinking about state-supported passenger trains
Canada’s Infrastructure Ontario and Metrolinx award a C$1.4 billion contract for the Yonge North Subway Extension project in Toronto. Also, Amtrak adds a new track and platform at Washington Union Station; and Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) releases reduced-service schedules and sets a deadline to avert cuts.
The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) are seeking public input on a draft 2026-2030 transportation program and on projects to include in the 2028-2037 transportation plan, respectively. Also, the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) has released its second-annual Customer Experience Action Plan Progress Report.
Amtrak names Costin Corneau as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Also, Trinity Metro names Reed Lanham as Chief Operating Officer (COO); and Urban Engineers, Inc. (Urban) names James (Jim) Bilella, PE, as CEO, and promotes Christopher Bobrowski, CPA, to CFO.
If you think federal regulatory agencies—even federally owned Amtrak—have strayed from what former Southern Railway and Conrail CEO L. Stanley Crane termed, “stick to your knitting,” you’re not ridin’ the rails solo.
The Senate Committee on Appropriations on July 24 marked up S.2465, the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026 (THUD Appropriations Act). The bipartisan legislation was reported in a 27-1 vote from the Senate Committee, according to the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).
Railcar lessor American Industrial Transport, Inc. (AITX) elevates Erica Ray to Senior Vice President, Leasing–East. Also, Gateway Development Commission (GDC) appoints James Starace as Chief of Program Delivery, and Hamed Nejad as Chief Engineer; and Amtrak veteran Ray Lang joins Quandel Consultants as Vice President of Business Development.
Amtrak shares a first look at its new Airo trainsets. Also, Amtrak celebrates 100 years of Chicago’s Union Station; and LA Metro’s expanded GoPass/WSS partnership results in nearly 17,000 students gaining easier access to school, work, and leisure activities.
Amtrak celebrates the state-sponsored Borealis trains reaching a quarter-million riders. Also, the Amtrak Office of Inspector General (OIG) identifies opportunities where the company can improve its service to passengers with disabilities; the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) releases its crime report for the first half of 2025; and Caltrans awards the Fresno Council of Governments $700,000 for the “Fresno Metropolitan Light Rail Feasibility Study.”
Our friends at Texas Rail Advocates (led by our own Chair Emeritus Peter LeCody) reported July 10 that the North Central Texas Council of Governments Regional Transportation Council has come up with