Metro-North Danbury Branch electrification eyed

Connecticut State Rep. Gail Lavielle (R-Wilton) and State Sen. Toni Boucher (R-Wilton) are urging fellow lawmakers to make the Danbury branch of Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Metro-North Railroad a priority.

Vision for Central Texas transit unveiled

Project Connect regional partners, after a year of collaborative work and under the leadership of the Transit Working Group led by Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell, unveiled a regional high-capacity transit vision to keep Central Texas connected.

Metrolink set to get Tier 4 locomotives

Southern California’s Metrolink will receive funds from the Carl Moyer Program to procure up to 20 new low-emission Tier 4 locomotives. The South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) Governing Board committed to support Metrolink by approving the funds, which are not to exceed $34.66 million, on Friday, Feb. 1.

Senate passes Hurricane Sandy relief bill

The Senate Monday, in a 62-to-36 vote, approved an aid package totaling $51 billion for Hurricane Sandy victims, rejecting an amendment to require the relief be offset by cuts to other federal spending. President Obama is expected to sign the bill.

LaHood to step down in February

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, says he will leave the Obama administration in February, ending months of speculation over the possibility of continuing in his role during the administration’s second term.

Hoboken Terminal recovering; services, Track 8

New Jersey Transit’s Hoboken Terminal main waiting room on Monday looked more like a warehouse half-filled with wooden crates than a way station for people, but the waiting room was in fact open for the first time since Hurricane Sandy flooded the century-old building Oct. 29, 2012.

Airport link eyed for SMART rail startup

Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) rail operations, to serve its namesake counties north of San Francisco, may add an airport/rail station stop at Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport, according to local officials.

LIRR eyes two tracks to Ronkonoma

MTA Long Island Rail Road Wednesday said its oft-delayed plans to increase track capacity on its Ronkonkoma Line is back in play. LIRR hopes to double-track 18 miles of the route between Ronkonkoma and Farmingdale, N.Y.

House OKs hurricane funds; rail needs included

The House of Representatives late Tuesday approved at least $50 billion in relief aid for victims of Hurricane Sandy, including $5.4 billion for “Department of Transportation-Federal Transit Authority Emergency Relief.”

Manhattan ESA link seen boosting home values

A report released Monday says home values in parts of Long Island—a region which has suffered, sometimes dramatically, since the Great Recession—will be greatly aided by MTA Long Island Rail Road’s East Side Access (ESA) project, projected now to open in 2019.

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