Railpace Hot News
Keep up to date on the latest railroad news from the northeastern United States and Canada, edited by Carl Perelman.
July 16, 2024
Metro-North Railroad Unveils Fifth Wrapped Locomotive from Heritage Series to Honor Employees
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Metro-North Railroad has rebranded a fifth locomotive with special colors and designs as part of a Heritage Series to highlight the railroad’s 40 years of service to the public. Unlike the previous four rebrands, the rebranding of locomotive No. 214 pays tribute to the Metro-North workforce. Skilled craft workers at Metro-North’s North White Plains Shop restored locomotive No. 214, and a wrap was applied featuring pictures of past and present Metro-North workers.
July 15, 2024
Amtrak’s Major Rehabilitation of the East River Tunnel
Amtrak will begin major rehabilitation of the East River Tunnel in New York City later this year following the award of a construction contract to a Skanska E-J ERT Joint Venture. The tunnel is comprised of four tubes – two of which require significant repairs and comprehensive reconstruction following damage caused by floodwaters that entered the tunnel during Superstorm Sandy.
July 12, 2024
FRA Makes Available $153 Million in Funding to Initiate, Restore, and Enhance Intercity Passenger Rail Services
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) that makes available over $153 million in funding for the Restoration and Enhancement (R&E) Grant Program. Grant funding will assist with operating costs for eligible projects that will establish service on new routes, restore service on routes that formerly had intercity passenger operations, and enhance service on existing routes. These passenger rail upgrades will complement the dozens of major rail projects that are underway across the country and improve the intercity passenger rail network, thanks to President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
July 11, 2024
Weekly Rail Traffic for the Week Ending July 6, 2024
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending July 6, 2024. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 421,817 carloads and intermodal units, up 3.3 percent compared with the same week last year.
July 10, 2024
MBTA Celebrates Opening of Worcester Union Station Center Platform
Yesterday Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, MBTA General Manager and CEO Phillip Eng, and Worcester Mayor Joseph M. Petty joined local elected leaders and stakeholder advocates to celebrate the newly opened center-running platform at Worcester Union Commuter Rail station on the Framingham/Worcester Line.
July 9, 2024
Biden-Harris Administration Makes More than $1.1 Billion Available to Strengthen Safety at Rail Crossings and Reduce Blocked Crossing
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration
(FRA) today issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) that makes available over $1.1 billion in
Railroad Crossing Elimination (RCE) Grant Program funding. As the only competitive discretionary
grant program dedicated to improving railroad crossings’ safety and efficiency, the RCE Program
invests in projects that construct grade separations, upgrade safety devices at crossings, or close at-grade
crossings where roads and train tracks intersect
July 8, 2024
Biden-Harris Administration Announces $11 Billion in Grants and Financing for Nation’s Most Complex Infrastructure Project, the Hudson River Tunnel
Today, one of the largest infrastructure projects in American history took a huge step forward with billions of dollars in support from the Biden-Harris Administration and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The Hudson River Tunnel project will construct a critical new rail tunnel between New York and New Jersey along a vital economic corridor – just one area of focus for investment across the country as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s $66 billion investment in passenger rail. It represents the largest project in the history of the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT).
July 8, 2024
MBTA Achieves Historic Labor Agreements with Entire Workforce
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) has reached a landmark achievement by successfully negotiating agreements with all 28 of its affiliated labor unions, representing 16 collective bargaining agreements. This accomplishment, the first of its kind since 2009, was realized within 18 months of the Healey-Driscoll Administration taking office and under the leadership of MBTA General Manager Phillip Eng.
July 8, 2024
Weekly Rail Traffic for June and the Week Ending June 29, 2024
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending June 29, 2024, as well as volumes for June 2024. U.S. railroads originated 885,864 carloads in June 2024, down 1.7 percent, or 15,019 carloads, from June 2023. U.S. railroads also originated 1,074,646 containers and trailers in June 2024, up 8.7 percent, or 85,896 units, from the same month last year. Combined U.S. carload and intermodal originations in June 2024 were 1,960,510, up 3.8 percent, or 70,877 carloads and intermodal units from June 2023.
July 3, 2024
Amtrak Adds 33 More Weekly Northeast Regional Stops at Newark Liberty International Airport
Amtrak has increased Northeast Regional service at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) after a review of its schedules to better align with customer demand across the Northeast Corridor (NEC) and airline travel schedules.
