The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)—including $198 million in grant funding—for the Federal-State Partnership for State of Good Repair Grant Program (Partnership Program); applications are due March 7, 2022.
MTA Metro-North Railroad’s branch line from Bridgeport to Waterbury, Conn., is being upgraded, and plans call for more trains to run on weekdays, starting next June.
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has renewed the charter of the Railroad Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC) for a two-year period. The renewed charter, or “recharter,” as FRA terms it, increases the number of represented organizations by three, from 23 to 26, and the number of individual voting members by 17, from 34 to 51.
Amtrak will resume Cascades service on the Point Defiance Bypass between Seattle, Wash., and Portland, Ore., on Nov. 18, nearly four years after an overspeed derailment stopped service there.
On Nov. 8, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration (PHMSA) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would suspend the transportation of liquefied natural gas by rail “until more research and testing can be done to ensure the safety of moving this commodity by rail.” The NPRM would presumably negate a Final Rule issued in 2019.
RAILWAY AGE, NOVEMBER 2021 ISSUE: Railway Age’s Women in Rail awards recognize leaders for driving their businesses forward while making a difference in the industry and in their communities.
In an unusual twist of circumstances, there are three events ongoing at this writing that have a lot to say about Amtrak corridors and trains in the Midwest. All were scheduled to take place within a three-day span.
I’ve received some comments, what is called “feedback” these days, on my most recent post regarding NTSB’s report on a fatal incident on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor. Some of the commentators agree with
Amtrak’s Empire Builder train 7/27 traveling westbound from Chicago to Seattle/Portland on Sept. 25 derailed near Joplin, Mont., at 3:55 p.m. MT. The passenger train was traveling between 75-78 mph, below the 79 mph speed limit, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) reported on Sept. 27 during its first media briefing.
FRA waivers come in handy—when you know they exist. Every company, utility and mode of transportation experienced accelerated technological adoption in 2020 to accommodate pandemic challenges.