Four new cranes boost Savannah lift
Georgia bid up the competitive balance among East Coast container ports as it took delivery of four Neo-Panamax cranes at the Port of Savannah, already the largest U.S. container facility.
Georgia bid up the competitive balance among East Coast container ports as it took delivery of four Neo-Panamax cranes at the Port of Savannah, already the largest U.S. container facility.
Union Pacific gave an update on its progress toward implementing Positive Train Control (PTC) and also announced plans to increase track speeds in southwest Minnesota following completion of a project.
Progress Rail has signed an agreement to acquire Downer EDI’s freight rail business, Downer Freight Rail, an Australian railcar company.
Sound Transit’s board of directors voted on Nov. 16 to approve a $26.5 million order for five Liberty Modern Streetcars from Brookville Equipment Co., which are being acquired as part of the Tacoma Link Extension project.
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line Extension project team held a “price opening” to choose the design-build team to carry out the Green Line Extension’s design and construction work.
NJ Transit has issued an RFP (request for proposals) for supply of 113 bi-level EMU (electric multiple-unit) passenger cars with a bid closing date of Feb. 15, 2018. NJ Transit also plans to invite bids early in 2018 for 17 dual-power locomotives.
There have been four rounds of NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) re-negotiations, with the fifth round set for Mexico City beginning Nov. 17. According to Workingman’s Dead: NAFTA Withdrawal Risk Sector Impact, a just-released study from Cowen and Co.’s 11-member Washington Research Group, a U.S. pullout from the landmark agreement forged more than 20 years ago will likely have a significant negative impact on the freight railroad industry.
Rehabilitation projects to rail infrastructure have been included in a funding commitment from the governments of Canada and Quebec to improve the Montréal area’s transit system.
A Norfolk Southern locomotive engineer with whom I occasionally traded greetings at crew-change time died at home in Virginia on Oct. 31. That’s not the news. The news is that Juanita Campbell was a 74-year-old grandmother who broke all stereotypes of railroad locomotive engineers.
Financial Edge, November 2017: Last month’s Railroad Financial Desk Book identified the influx of new investment capital as a cause for concern for railcar investors. Not discussed was that as capital files into railcars due to their longevity and utility, few, if any, dollars moving into the rail economy are used for investing in locomotives.