Communications

RailComm upgrades Texas yard system

Fairport, N.Y.-based RailComm said Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2014 it has upgraded the current Domain Operations Controller (DOC®) system in a Fort Worth, Tex., rail yard to include RailComm’s Blue Flag Indicator (BFI) System.

Railroad signalmen back California HSR effort

The Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS) on Monday, Jan. 13, 2014, announced “support for the California High-Speed Rail Authority [CHSRA] and California Governor Jerry Brown’s budget proposal that would authorize funding for the state’s high-speed rail program, utilizing $300 million of cap and trade revenue.”

MTA touts LIRR, Metro-North apps

New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) says customers using  Metro-North Railroad and Long Island Rail Road services can now turn to official apps for real-time train information.

LIRR taps Ansaldo STS for signal project

Ansaldo STS said Friday, Dec. 20, 2013 it has been awarded a $20.5 million signaling contract to provide MTA Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) an upgraded 45-mile segment of right-of-way between Speonk and Montauk, N.Y., the easternmost portion of LIRR’s Montauk Branch, located in Suffolk County.

AmtrakConnect® Wi-Fi coming to Chicago Hub Service trains

Free AmtrakConnect® cellular-based 4G Wi-Fi service will be available to Amtrak passengers by early February 2014 year on Chicago Hub Services trains in the Midwest, on eight corridors that, collectively, carried nearly 3.3 million passengers in Amtrak’s Fiscal Year 2013 (Oct. 1, 2012-Sept. 30, 2013).

MTA eyes 2016 return to South Ferry Station

New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) hopes to restore service to the recently upgraded – and storm-destroyed – South Ferry Station in lower Manhattan by mid-2016.

FRA diving deeper into Metro-North

The Federal Railroad Administration will launch a 60-day comprehensive safety assessment of MTA Metro-North Railroad in response to the December 1st crash that killed four and injured 63. Operation Deep Dive, beginning Dec. 16, 2013, “will exhaustively review Metro-North’s compliance with federal regulations, its procedures and practices, and its safety culture,” FRA said.
Commentary

Are two-person crews less safe than a single engineer?

News item: The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) ordered MTA Metro-North Railroad to have two qualified crewmembers in the lead cab until Metro-North’s signal system is updated to ensure automatic train control (ATC) slows trains automatically if the engineer fails to adhere to a speed reduction requirement greater than 20 mph below maximum allowable speed.
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