Union Pacific on Oct. 6, 2016 updated its Positive Train Control (PTC) implementation program. Through Sept. 1, 2016, UP has invested $2.1 billion in PTC. The railroad’s current estimate for PTC’s total cost is about $2.9 billion.
The NTSB has recovered the event recorder and Railhead Corp. video recorder from the control cab of the lead car of New Jersey Transit Pascack Valley Line train no. 1614, which crashed Sept. 29 in Hoboken Terminal. Data from both devices will be analyzed at the NTSB’s laboratory in Washington D.C.
While we’re waiting for the NTSB to analyze the event recorder data and forward-facing camera video on the NJ Transit cab car involved in the Sept. 29 Hoboken Terminal crash, assuming there is useable information (there is no data from the locomotive event recorder, because it was non-operational), let’s jump ahead a year or two and anticipate the conclusion of the NTSB’s investigation and the list of forthcoming recommendations.
The industry groundswell attacking the Surface Transportation Board’s pending actions on forced access and commodity reregulation has grown to include the railway supply community, including the three principal trade associations (REMSA, RSI and RSSI) and numerous members, the Railway Tie Association and the railway contracting community, led by the NRC.
The Sept. 29th NJ Transit accident in Hoboken will, of courser, trigger another round of the now-usual “how could its,” “should nevers,” “told yous,” “failure to properly regulates,” “lack of trusts,” “insufficient crew members,” “inadequate trainings” “cost/benefits,” from the usual parties, most of whom are motivated by the best of intentions, which just happen to coincide with some strictly personal agendas, or strictly organizational agendas, or election needs, and . . .
Herzog Technologies, Inc. (HTI) has entered into a contract with short line holding company Watco Companies, LLC to provide PTC (positive train control) program management and back office hosting services.
Herzog Technologies Inc. (HTI) on Sept. 19, 2016 launched a Cloud-based PTC (positive train control) system using technology from Red Hat, Inc., a provider of open-source systems.
VHB has been named the local lead signal design consultant to work as part of the Ansaldo STS team on a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority $338 million project to equip the Boston commuter rail network with Positive Train Control (PTC). Ansaldo STS is a Hitachi Group company.
Officials on opposite sides of the country outlined plans to enhance safety of local rail systems using recently awarded federal funds.
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.”
