NTSB Issues Report on Preliminary Oct. 14 NJ Transit Collision

The National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) ongoing investigation of the Oct. 14, 2024, accident involving an Alstom employee operating the southbound NJ Transit light rail vehicle (LRV) 207 who was killed will focus on “NJ Transit’s right-of-way maintenance and inspection practices, dispatcher reporting procedures, and the crashworthiness of the LRV’s design,” the agency reported Nov. 7 during the release of its preliminary report.

CalSTA: $1.3B for 27 Rail and Transit Projects

The California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) recently announced that $1.3 billion from the Transit and Intercity Capital Rail Program (TIRCP) funded by the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (cap-and-trade) will go to 27 projects following a statewide competitive grant application process for Cycle 7, according to a Streetsblog California report.

Figure 1. Aerial view of the accident scene. (CSX Image, Courtesy of NTSB)

NTSB Releases August 2023 CSX Accident Report

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on Sept. 24 issued the final report for its investigation of a Aug. 6, 2023, accident, in which a CSX Transportation conductor trainee was fatally injured during switching

Amtrak in partnership with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is investing $122 million to improve the Harrisburg Line track between Lancaster and Harrisburg, Pa. (Amtrak Photograph)

Transit Briefs: Amtrak, SMART

Amtrak’s Vice President, State Supported Services discusses the Harrisburg Line Track Renewal Project with Pennsylvania’s NPR affiliate. Also, California’s Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) receives a $7 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe Streets and Roads for All program.

Overhead view of NS's Lambert's Point Yard. (Source: Google Earth via NS; Courtesy of NTSB)

NTSB Issues Preliminary Report on July 19 NS Switching Accident

The National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) ongoing investigation of the July 19, 2024, accident involving a Norfolk Southern (NS) conductor seriously injured while switching out single coal cars at a Virginia yard will focus on

Aerial view of derailment site. (Foster County Emergency Management Photograph, Courtesy of NTSB)

NTSB Issues Preliminary Report on CPKC’s July 5 Hazmat Derailment

The National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) ongoing investigation of the July 5, 2024, Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) train derailment and subsequent hazardous material (hazmat) release and fire near Bordulac, N. Dak.,

TSA Appointments Members to Advisory Committee

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) on May 9 announced that it has appointed nine people as voting members of the Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee (STSAC).

Starting May 21, a second daily Amtrak train will be offered between St. Paul and Chicago, via Milwaukee, the state-sponsored Borealis, whose name “was determined in a collaborative process,” Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari told Railway Age. “It is a reference to the north direction, in Latin.” (Amtrak Map)

Transit Briefs: Amtrak, NYMTA, SMART, WMATA

A second daily Amtrak train is launching between St. Paul, Minn., and Chicago, via Milwaukee, Wis., the state-supported Borealis. Also, New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and New York City Department of Social Services (DSS) unveil the Fair Fares pilot program; Northern California’s Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) logs record commuter rail ridership; and Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) and Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) announce a transit planning initiative for the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia.

The New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center’s SEBconnect online portal and app connects small and emerging business owners in real-time with available contracting, purchasing and new business opportunities at the Convention Center, New Orleans Public Belt Railroad and the Port of New Orleans.

Small-Road Briefs: NOPB/Port NOLA, SMART

New Orleans Public Belt Railroad (NOPB) and the Port of New Orleans (Port NOLA) join New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center’s online portal and app that connects small and emerging businesses with available contracting and purchasing opportunities. Also, SMART Freight in California mulls a return to storing liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tank cars.

Brightline, South Florida’s private-sector passenger railroad, has received proposals from the city of Fort Pierce and Audubon Development and a joint proposal from the city of Stuart and Marin County to host new stations along the Treasure Coast, a region comprising Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River counties. (Brightline Photograph)

Transit Briefs: Brightline, PATH, Rail Runner Express, SMART

Florida cities submit Treasure Coast passenger rail station proposals to Brightline. Also, Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) rapid transit in New York and New Jersey achieves record ridership in November; New Mexico’s Rail Runner Express makes permanent its monthly commuter rail fare discount; and Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) will allow young people and seniors to ride free.

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