No surprise, thanks to Sen. Chuck Schumer’s (D-N.Y.) very public visit to Alstom’s Hornell, N.Y. manufacturing plant on Sept. 21, 2015: Amtrak, as expected, has contracted with Alstom to supply 28 “next-generation high-speed” trainsets that will replace popular yet aging and technically problematic Acela Express equipment.
Huber & Suhner signed a five-year contract with Bombardier to be its main cable supplier.
LKG-CMC Inc. (LKG) has named Sheila Wray Given a principal and business development executive in the firm’s Glendale, Calif., headquarters, with responsibility for the transit and rail market sectors and transit/rail facilities.
Groundbreaking ceremonies were held in Fort Worth, North Richmond Hills, and Grapevine, Tex., on Aug. 24, 2016, to officially launch construction on the $996 million Tex Rail commuter rail project.
The government of Canada and the province of Ontario reached an agreement that makes C$2.97 billion (US$2.3 billion) in combined funding available for infrastructure improvements in the province.
The California Transportation Commission (CTC) allocated $814 million to 135 transportation projects in the state and includes $55 million to four rail and safety projects.
Amtrak’s next President and Chief Executive Officer is an experienced and deeply respected Class I freight railroader who brings more than 40 years in railroading to the position: Charles W. “Wick” Moorman, who recently retired as Executive Chairman of Norfolk Southern Corp.
Proposals for a 46-mile light rail network and a second commuter rail line for Nashville have been included in a 25-year transit strategy for the region, which was presented to the boards of Nashville Metropolitan Transit Authority (NMTA) and Regional Transportation Authority of Middle Tennessee (RTA) on August 17 following 16 months of public consultation.
A quarterly status update released Aug. 17, 2016 by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) “underscores the need for railroads to implement Positive Train Control (PTC) as quickly and safely as possible.” The update also “highlights the Administration’s repeated calls for Congress to provide more significant funding to assist commuter railroads in implementing PTC.”
Cubic Transportation Systems (CTS), a business unit of Cubic Corporation, announced on August 18 that its customer Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) received the 2016 Innovation Award for the Ventra Mobile App from the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).