WASHINGTON — BNSF Railway has received a patent for a virtual track block system that has the potential to significantly boost existing mainline capacity, raise average train speeds, and improve the detection of broken rails. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office approved the patent application last month, and credits the invention to BNSF employees Mitchell […]
WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration has published its final rule requiring states to create action plans addressing safety at rail-highway grade crossings, a rule addressing a mandate of the federal FAST (Fixing America’s Surface Transporation) Act. The rule requires 40 states and the District of Columbia to develop plans that identify any grade crossing […]
More Monday morning rail news: Rail Runner has no PTC-compliant route-miles, has missed deadline for safety report Zero percent of the 95 miles operated by New Mexico’s Rail Runner Express are compliant for positive train control, making the commuter railroad the only one in the nation with no territory operating with PTC, the Albuquerque Journal […]
Friday morning rail news: PTC implementation complete on Amtrak-owned or controlled mileage Amtrak says it has completed implementation of positive train control on all track owned or controlled by the passenger railroad. The final portion to be completed was 1 mile of slow-speed Chicago terminal trackage. The railroad operates or controls 898 miles covered by […]
WASHINGTON — Just two commuter railroads — NJ Transit and New Mexico’s Rail Runner Express — are now considered at risk of not completing PTC implementation by the Dec. 31, 2020, deadline, according to the latest quarterly PTC update from the Federal Railroad Administration. Chicago’s Metra and TEXRail, the service between Fort Worth, Texas, and […]
CALGARY, Alberta — Canadian Pacific is single-tracking and adding centralized traffic control to its main line between Smiths Falls, Ontario, and the Montreal area. The two-year project includes removing 60 miles of double track on the 104.9-mile Winchester Subdivision. “CP is continuously looking for opportunities to improve its track infrastructure,” spokesman Andy Cummings says. “During […]
PHILADELPHIA — Two days of an introductory course does not a signal and train control expert make. Then again, it’s not supposed to. When Trains attended a 2016 University of Wisconsin-Madison Engineering Professional Development course in Philadelphia on the topic, this editor-author had delusions of learning about the latest in positive train control tech. Instead, […]
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Railroad Administration today released a quarterly status update on railroads’ self-reported progress, as of March 31, 2020, toward fully implementing positive train control systems by December 31, 2020, as required by Congress. Based on railroads’ First Quarter 2020 PTC Progress Reports and current PTC Implementation Plans, nearly […]
NEW YORK — Siemens Mobility, a leader in seamless, sustainable, reliable and secure transport solutions for more than 160 years, has entered into an exclusive partnership with Ondas Networks, a developer of private licensed wireless data networks for mission-critical industrial markets, to bring a Siemens-branded portfolio of their wireless radio communication systems to the North […]
WASHINGTON — Coronavirus complications and missing interim deadlines still put railroads at risk for missing the year-end deadline for full positive train control implementation in the U.S. In a Government Accountability Office document released this week, the agency reports that railroad officials say they are confident their companies will meet the Dec. 31 deadline, but […]
SPRINGVILLE, Utah — Island Radar and AlphaHive have a lot in common. Both companies are spin-offs of Utah-based Wavetronix, the world market leader in radar vehicle detection products. Now, the two are joining forces in a partnership that brings AlphaHive’s business infrastructure to Island Radar, while AlphaHive will receive mentoring from Island Radar’s experienced business […]
ST. LOUIS — RR Mergers & Acquisitions announces the sale of Allpress & Moore Railroad Signal Contractors to CDL Electric Company. With operating bases in Missouri and Iowa, Allpress & Moore provides engineering, wiring, testing and construction for highway railroad crossings. The company has performed work in the 48 contiguous states. “We’re pleased to welcome […]
