Prototype News

Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) will lease 10 railcars to alleviate pressure on its Regional Rail service, as it performs federally mandated safety inspections and makes repairs to Silverliner IV cars, following five separate fires on that equipment this year, according to local media outlets.

The 10 railcars will come from MARC in Maryland. “It will cost $22,000 a month to lease each of the [non-powered] coaches from the MARC Train Service—or about $2.6 million over the one-year term of the agreement, SEPTA spokesperson Andrew Busch said,” according to The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Nov. 12 report, which noted that the cars can be used with SEPTA’s 15 locomotives.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has allowed SEPTA to use capital funds for the lease, which “will be accounted for in the 2026-27 fiscal year budget,” the newspaper said.

The cars will start service in mid-December, according to NBC10 in Philadelphia.

Additionally, SEPTA “issued a request for proposals last week to solicit bids from manufacturers for new railcars,” the Inquirer reported; the deadline is April 10.

On Oct. 1, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released an investigative report and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) issued an Emergency Order in response to the Silverliner IV train fires. As part of SEPTA’s compliance with the FRA Emergency Order, Silverliner IVs have been rotated from service for inspections, testing, and safety upgrades, which has led to train delays, overcrowding and cancellations; and the transit authority has said operations staff will continue to remove from service all railcars that raise safety concerns.

Designed and built by General Electric, the Silverliner IV is the fourth-generation EMU (electric multiple unit) in the Silverliner family and was delivered in batches between 1973 and 1976. The Silverliner IVs were operated by the Reading Company until Reading’s absorption into Conrail in 1976. SEPTA took over commuter rail operations and the Silverliner IV fleet from Conrail in 1983. Silverliner IVs now represent approximately 225 of the 390 passenger-carrying railcars (which include passenger coaches, cab cars, and self-propelled units) in SEPTA’s Regional Rail operations fleet, according to the NTSB. “The Silverliner IV fleet has not been refurbished since its original deployment,” according to the government agency.

FRA Emergency Order No. 34 requires SEPTA to take 15 specific actions including operator and mechanical personnel training, installation of new thermal detectors, daily maintenance quality control inspections, and a point-to-point inspection of every Silverliner IV railcar “following an aggressive FRA-approved schedule,” according to SEPTA.

In response to the FRA’s Emergency Order and the NTSB’s report, SEPTA said it added the following measures:

• “In-person inspectors are now present on all trains passing through Center City stations to conduct safety checks and respond quickly to any equipment issues.
• “Mid-run inspections have been added to review fault indicator lights and other critical systems while trains are in operation, supplementing existing pre- and post-run inspections.
• “Live video monitoring allows SEPTA’s Control Center supervisors to view train interiors in real time to check indicator lights and system alerts, ensuring quicker response to any potential issues.
• “Expanded maintenance staffing ensures that inspection and repair work can be completed more quickly and around the clock to meet the FRA’s deadlines.
• “Enhanced employee safety briefings and trainings are being conducted to ensure all operators, mechanics, and inspectors understand new reporting and inspection protocols.
• “Improved documentation and data sharing have been implemented so that all inspection results, repairs, and follow-up actions are logged, tracked, and reported directly to FRA for review.
• “Public communication measures are in place to keep riders informed about safety progress, expected service adjustments, and ongoing compliance updates.”

“SEPTA is committed to fully complying with the FRA Emergency Order, and we are confident that full compliance will also achieve the goal of the NTSB report recommendations,” it has said. All of the actions taken, the transit authority noted, will “strengthen SEPTA’s safety culture, modernize oversight of the Silverliner IV fleet, and ensure that every possible precaution is taken to protect riders, employees, and the region’s rail system.”

According to the Inquirer, SEPTA is “on track” to finish inspections by the Nov. 14 deadline; as of Nov. 12, “inspections were finished on 210 Silverliner IVs, or 94% of the fleet, and 73 of the cars have been returned to Regional Rail service.”

From Nov. 10 through Nov. 24, SEPTA cancelled 22 trains each day on the Airport, Chestnut Hill West, Fox Chase and Warminster lines.

“By the end of the year, we’ll be in a much better position to return to some semblance of normalcy on the system,” SEPTA General Manager Scott A. Sauer told the Inquirer, which noted that “[h]e said customers should see gradual improvement throughout November.”

“Next ‘we’re going to put a plan together to overhaul [Silverliner IV] cars,’” Sauer said. “We need to make them last another six to 10 years.”

By then, the Inquirer said, the “new vehicles should be arriving in Philadelphia.”

SEPTA has said it will continue to work closely with the FRA and share progress on its website to keep the public informed.

Meanwhile, “[t]he Fiscal Cliff that has been haunting the transit industry in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and changes in ridership and revenue that it caused has placed SEPTA and many other providers in difficult financial straits,” according to a recent article by Railway Age Contributing Editor David Peter Alan. Read more of his SEPTA articles by clicking here and here.

The post Report: SEPTA Working to Boost Regional Rail Capacity appeared first on Railway Age.

New Jersey Transit’s 429 Alstom (originally Bombardier)-built Multilevel I and II railcars are approaching 20 years of service and due for a recommended mid-life overhaul. NJT on Nov. 12 proceeded with its fleet modernization efforts as the agency’s Board of Directors authorized $917 million to overhaul the fleet.

Funding not to exceed $917,058,512.41, plus 10% for contingencies, was authorized to overhaul NJT’s fleet of 329 first-generation Multilevel I vehicles, delivered between 2006-2009, and 100 Multilevel II vehicles, delivered between 2012-2013. An Expression of Interest (EOI) process “will be used to identify qualified rail vehicle overhaul contractors with proven experience in large-scale commuter railcar mid-life overhaul programs,” the agency said. “The EOI process will invite contractors to submit their qualifications, capabilities, and relevant project experience. Based on the evaluation of EOIs received, NJT will develop a list of contractors that will be invited to participate in the final procurement and contract award stage.”

The scope of work, includes, but is not limited to:

• “Ensuring the cars are in a state of good repair and improving the systems to ensure their reliability, and compatibility and interoperability with new Multilevel III vehicles, supplied by Alstom.
• “Enhancing passenger comfort with upgraded amenities and features to match Multilevel III vehicles such as USB charging ports.
• “Promoting sustainability with energy-efficient systems and materials where feasible.”

The contract award will be made in early 2026, said NJ Transit President and CEO Kris Kolluri, according to a NJ.com report; the rebuilds will take 10 years, with an estimated 2036 completion, he noted.

NJT is currently taking delivery of 374 Multilevel III railcars, which will replace the agency’s fleet of single-level cars including the oldest and “least reliable Arrow III electric multiple-unit cars.” In addition to increased mechanical reliability, the new cars will provide additional seating capacity and accessibility, higher top speeds of up to 110 mph and enhanced onboard amenities for customers including USB charging ports. The Multilevel IIIs on order include self-powered (AC catenary) cars—a new design—non-powered cab (control) cars and trailers.

Multilevel III

NJT in December 2018 placed its first Multilevel III order with Bombardier Transit Corp. (now Alstom), supplier of the Multilevel Is and IIs; the contract was for 113 cars. In February 2022, the agency exercised an option for an additional 25. In July 2024, NJT exercised a third option for 36, and in September 2025, it exercised options worth $1.26 billion for an additional 200 powered and non-powered Multilevel IIIs and 12 ALP45-DP (dual-power, diesel/catenary-electric) locomotives.

“Modernizing our fleet isn’t just about adding new vehicles—it’s also about keeping our current ones in a state of good repair for the people who ride them every day,” said Kris Kolluri in a Nov. 12 statement. “This overhaul is part of our broader effort to fully modernize our rail and bus fleets by 2031, ensuring safe, reliable, and modern service for our customers systemwide.”

According to NJ.com, Kolluri said “he will leave the agency as planned in early 2026 and not seek reappointment in the Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill administration.” Appointed by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, Kolluri took the throttle at NJT earlier this year, following the resignation of Kevin S. Corbett.

Further Reading:

• NJT Previews ML III Hybrid EMUs
• NJT Releases RFQ for Northern Rail MOW Facility
• NJT Sets FY26 Ops Budget, Authorizes Capex Funding
• NJT to Overhaul Mulitilevel II Trucks

Railway Age Executive Editor Marybeth Luczak contributed to this report.

The post NJT Slates $917MM Multilevel I, II Overhaul appeared first on Railway Age.

The Senate Commerce Committee will meet in executive session Wednesday, Nov. 19, to vote on whether to recommend for Senate confirmation numerous POTUS 47 nominees, including Republican Michelle A. Schultz, who is seeking a second five-year term on the STB. Although Republican nominee Richard Kloster is not on the list, sources tell Railway Age his omission is related to “paperwork delays outside of his control.”

Both faced a Commerce Committee qualifications hearing Nov. 6. While partisan politics was on display by Democrats, concerned that the Republican nominees are under White House pressure to vote in favor of a Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger (an application that has not been formally presented to the agency), there was no indication either’s nomination is in jeopardy before the Commerce Committee. Each insisted they are under no political pressure and would follow the facts and law on every case brought before the STB.

A vote by a Commerce Committee majority to “recommend,” advances the nominee’s name to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.Dak.), who determines if and when to present the nomination for a Senate floor vote—the final step toward confirmation.

Neither Schultz nor Kloster are nominated to the seat occupied byDemocrat Robert E. Primus prior to his firing in August by POTUS 47. Primus is challenging in federal district court his firing, terming it “illegal”—contending the STB is a regulatory agency independent of the Executive Branch, that his Senate-confirmed term does not expire until Dec. 31, 2027, and the STB statute limits removal to a showing of inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office, none of which is alleged.

A similar firing by POTUS 47 of a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Democrat—Rebecca Slaughter—has reached the Supreme Court on appeal after a federal appellate court found her ouster illegal, as it was not for “cause.” The Supreme Court issued a stay of the lower court’s decision, keeping Slaughter off the FTC pending resolution of the case. Oral argument in that case is scheduled for Dec. 7. A SCOTUS decision—timing unknown—may determine Primus’ fate.

Although Schultz’s first term expires Jan. 1, 2026, the STB statute allows members to remain for 12 additional months pending reconfirmation to a second term or Senate confirmation of a successor. If confirmed, Schultz’s second and final (by statute) term would run through 2030. Kloster’s term, if he is confirmed, will run only through Dec. 31, 2028, as he was nominated to complete an unexpired term of former STB Democratic member Martin J. Oberman, who retired in 2024.

Also serving on the five-member STB are Republican Chairperson Patrick J. Fuchs, whose second term expires Jan. 14, 2029; and Democrat Karen J. Hedlund, whose first term expires this Dec. 31. While Hedlund has not been nominated for a second term, neither has POTUS 47 indicated he will nominate a successor.

The post STB UPDATE: Schultz, Not Yet Kloster appeared first on Railway Age.

After a successful service expansion last year, Amtrak’s Winter Park Express is back for another big season, beginning on December 19, and making 57 roundtrips through March 29. 

The train is set to run December 19-21, 26-28 and January 2-4, before regular service begins on January 8, with four weekly roundtrips (Thursday through Sunday). Tickets start at $9. Last year, Amtrak worked with the Colorado Department of Transportation to lower ticket prices and the train saw a 150 percent ridership increase.

Like last year, passengers will be able to ride the train all the way to Fraser, just west of Winter Park (previously, the train laid over in Fraser during the day, but passengers had to get off at the ski area). 

The train departs Denver at 7 a.m. and arrives at the resort at 9:11 a.m. and in Fraser at 9:41 a.m. The return trip departs Fraser at 4:05 p.m. and Winter Park Resort at 4:35 p.m. and arrives in Denver at 7:05 p.m.

The ski train to Winter Park has been a Colorado institution since the early 20th century. The original train was canceled in 2009, but Amtrak brought it back as the Winter Park Express in 2017. 

—Justin Franz 

The post ‘Winter Park Express’ Returns for 2025-2026 Season appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.

The Reading & Northern Railroad (RBMN) on Nov. 11 unveiled a locomotive dressed in a patriotic scheme celebrating the forthcoming U.S. Semiquincentennial—the 250th anniversary of the United States of America—in 2026.

The Paint & Restoration Shop crew stands on the long hood walkway of 1776. RBMN photo.

RBMN selected EMD SD40-2 3061 for repainting into the colors of the U.S. flag. Evan Kerr, a six-year veteran of railroad who serves as a conductor, engineer, and dispatcher, designed the scheme. “Taking advantage of the carbody length, the 3,000-hp locomotive’s long hood is dressed in red and white stripes to resemble the U.S. flag,” RBMN noted. “The cab is blue and adorned with 13 stars on the nose. It has been fittingly renumbered 1776. The SD40-2 is widely regarded as one of the most reliable and therefore best-selling diesel locomotives in history. Hence it is well-represented on the Reading & Northern roster, with 20 units. They can be seen all over the railroad, hauling everything from unit coal trains to general merchandise. As with SD40-2 1983, which was painted to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the railroad in 2023, 1776 is sure to be a popular sight among train enthusiasts and the public. With the passenger department already planning several special events centering around the Semiquincentennial, 1776 may even make appearances on excursion trains in 2026. Perhaps most fittingly, the locomotive was unveiled on Veterans Day.”

Paint Department Manager Zach Frye said, “This engine is one of the most beautiful and passionate projects ever taken on by the paint shop. Our crew of five people were able to turn this engine into a masterpiece in just one month’s time. We are very proud to introduce locomotive 1776 for all to see.”

Passenger Car Host Bill Bubeck, a Vietnam veteran, stands proudly on the “back porch” of #1776. RBMN photo.

The post RBMN Unveils ‘Semiquincentennial’ Locomotive appeared first on Railway Age.

LA Metro

LA Metro recently announced that it is resuming its TAP-to-Exit program at North Hollywood Station (B Line) and Union Station (B & D Lines) at the beginning of service on Monday, Nov. 17. At the same time, the agency is also launching TAP-to-Exit at the A Line’s Pomona North Station.

TAP-to-Exit was paused at North Hollywood and Union Station last spring for LA Metro to resolve technical issues with the Los Angeles Fire Department. TAP-to-Exit has been ongoing at the E Line’s Downtown Santa Monica Station.

Some stats that LA Metro collected on TAP-to-Exit:

• “We surveyed riders at North Hollywood in 2024, and 90% felt that the program made the station cleaner, and 86% felt safer. The numbers were even higher among women.
• “Reports to our Transit Watch app of crime and other issues (fights, drug use and graffiti) dropped by more than 40% on the B Line.
• “After TAP-to-Exit was launched at Downtown Santa Monica Station and paired with more fare enforcement on the E Line, incidents on the E Line dropped 55%.
• “In the first month of the program at North Hollywood, 15,000 unpaid rides were identified and paid for upon exit, amounting to an 11% increase in fare compliance. Overall, 120,000 fares were collected because of TAP-to-Exit, recovering over $130,000 in fare revenue that we can use to maintain and improve our system.”

MTA

The Jacobs and Kittelson and Associates, Inc. team has been selected by the MTA to continue their longstanding working relationship and assist with project planning efforts for a range of transit initiatives across the state. The contracts cover planning for bus, light rail, metro, commuter rail and mobility capital projects that aim to improve transit access, efficiency and sustainability.

As part of a joint venture, Jacobs and Kittelson will provide a full suite of planning services to support Maryland’s evolving transit infrastructure.

(Jacobs)

“From project development and environmental assessments to architecture, urban planning and engineering, we’re focused on creating positive outcomes for Maryland communities,” said Heather Murphy, Jacobs’ Client Account Manager and Senior Transportation Consultant. “Our planning approach centers on innovation and sustainability, expanding transit access for all residents. By enhancing accessibility and efficiency, we aim to reduce congestion, lower emissions and support a healthier environment.”

Planning services under the new contracts will help MTA:

• “Navigate a competitive and financially constrained environment.
• “Continue its leadership role in statewide transit planning and integration.
• “Respond to shifting travel patterns, including commuter-focused services such as commuter rail, commuter bus and paratransit.
• “Apply emerging technologies and tools to strengthen project design and federal funding competitiveness.”

“Our planning solutions are tailored to meet the specific needs of Maryland’s transit systems—from Maryland Area Rail Commuter and light rail to buses and statewide mobility,” added Murphy. “Together with Kittelson, we bring the experience and resources to help MTA meet today’s challenges and deliver a more connected, resilient future.”

STM

The union representing maintenance workers with Montreal’s public transit authority announced it was suspending its month-long job action, “just hours before the province’s labor minister tabled new legislation that could have forced them back on the job,” according to a CBC News report.

In a news release sent late Tuesday night, the union said STM “remained inflexible despite significant movement on the union’s part.”

“Our union is not insensitive and it’s suspending the strike in order to continue negotiations while aiming for public transit to be financed in a fair way that can maintain good working conditions for the STM’s 2,400 maintenance workers,” stated the release from the Syndicat du transport de Montréal.

According to the CBC News report, the suspension of the strike, which had been ongoing since Oct. 31, was in effect as of 6 a.m. on Wednesday. Regular service will be gradually reintroduced throughout the day and will be fully restored Thursday, the STM says.

Speaking at a news conference at city hall Wednesday morning, incoming Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada said the union made the “right decision,” according to the CBC News report. “She also asked for predictability from bus drivers, Metro operators and station agents who are preparing to strike this weekend.”

According to the report, the labor tribunal is expected to issue a ruling this week on the service levels for Saturday and Sunday.

Further Reading:

• Transit Briefs: STM, CTA, CATS, Government of Canada
• Transit Briefs: LA Metro, STM, RTA
  
  

The post Transit Briefs: LA Metro, MTA, STM appeared first on Railway Age.

On Sept. 30, I reported on Brightline, the private-sector passenger railroad that currently operates in Florida and is building a high-speed railroad between Southern California and Las Vegas. I examined the company’s financial situation at that time, and it did not look good. There have been more indications of trouble for Brightline since then, including skyrocketing costs for building Brightline West in the Mojave Desert of Southern California and Brightline’s own action of slashing service between its South Florida stations and Orlando Airport.

Despite requesting comment from Brightline about the development I reported at the time, Brightline has not responded. I have asked again and continue to wait for the opportunity to report Brightline’s side of the story. In the meantime, I will examine some of the challenges that now face the nation’s only private-sector passenger railroad, which advocates for the private-sector business model, hoping to will revolutionize rail travel and provide an alternative to the now-dominant public-sector model.

Fewer Trains in Florida

Brightline introduced service between Miami Central Station in the city’s downtown core and Orlando International Airport on Sept. 22, 2023 with great fanfare, as reported by Railway Age Executive Editor Marybeth Luczak with comments by Publisher Jonathan Chalon, who was on board. The trip took about 3½ hours from end to end, and trains ran every hour during a 16-hour service day. There was hope that Brightline was starting something new and impressive. Other early coverage was also enthusiastic, as Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono noted in a commentary on Nov.22, which presented a video report by CBS reporter Kris Van Cleave. Brightline was still highly optimistic when I rode and later filed a trip report on April 8, 2024.

The hourly schedule did not last long. On Oct. 6, 2025, two years and two weeks after starting the service, the railroad cut twelve trains between Orlando Airport and the original South Florida part of its route, three-eighths of the prior service on its corridor-length route. Andy Hodges reported the reductions for the Sebastian Daily Oct. 10 in a story headlined: Brightline Reduces Long-Distance Service, Cutting 12 Trains Daily through Sebastian and Vero Beach, a region where it does not stop: “Brightline has slashed its schedule between Miami and Orlando, sending 12 fewer trains each day through Sebastian and Vero Beach as the private rail operator adjusts to rider demand. However, the changes—drawn from rider feedback and data crunching—include beefed-up schedules during busy times, more stops in Boca Raton, and longer trains to handle surging demand between South and Central Florida.” He quoted Brightline CEO Patrick Goddard as saying, “These changes reflect our commitment to delivering a predictable, reliable and comfortable travel experience. We’ve listened to our guests and studied ridership trends to ensure our network evolves with their needs.”

In its “Monthly Revenue and Ridership Report” on its website www.gobrightline.com, Brightline reported: “On Oct.6, we implemented our network planning changes, moving more capacity to higher demand lines through schedule and train length changes and increasing short-distance frequency at commuter times… In September, we temporarily reduced our departure schedule as we reconfigured our fleet for the October network changes, resulting in a 13% year-over-year train decrease in train departures in September”—all without specifically reporting that 6 out of 16 one-way frequencies (3 out of 8 round trips, 37.5%) had been (and remain) eliminated from the Orlando schedule.

It appears that Brightline is heading toward a “commuter rail” scheduling model. On its website, Brightline proclaims a new slogan: “Our Florida on Your Schedule.” The new schedules can be found at https://www.gobrightline.com/train-tickets/new-schedule/orlando-schedule, but they do not appear to comport with Brightline’s slogan.

Between Miami and West Palm Beach, there are 18 daily trains in each direction, with service concentrated in the hours generally considered “peak commuting periods,” with trains running less than hourly at other times, like midday and evening hours. In some instances, the interval between trains is two hours or more. To and from Orlando Airport, there are now only ten trains in each direction, and most of the intervals are 90 minutes or two hours, and the longest is 2:25. That is a significant service reduction, compared to the hourly service that ran for the first two years after Orlando service began.

Besides the quote from Goddard, Brightline touted all sorts of improvements in on Sept. 22: “Brightline, Florida’s higher-speed rail service connecting South Florida to Orlando, announced a series of operational changes designed to optimize the guest experience and respond to evolving ridership patterns. The updates follow two years of full-service operations across the state and are based on extensive guest feedback and data analysis.”

Reducing Operating Costs?

Brightline has touted capacity improvements that come from lengthening trains, making some consists as long as ten cars. Nonetheless, even increasing train consists from 7 to 10 cars, when the railroad places the recently ordered cars into service, would counterbalance more seats per train against fewer trains, running further apart. A quick and approximate calculation (not accounting for fewer seats in premium-class cars than in coaches) shows 43% more seats available on a ten-car consist than a seven-car train. On the other hand, the new schedule allows only 10 daily opportunities to travel between Brightline’s South Florida stations and Orlando Airport, where there had been 16. That means frequencies are reduced by 62.5%, so overall capacity has been reduced to approximately 89% of the amount that was offered during the first two years of service on the entire line, about an 11% loss.

It costs less to run fewer trains than to run more trains, and one resulting disadvantage to the riders is fewer departure times from which to choose. How many riders who have access to an automobile (as many Floridians do) will balk at the additional inconvenience under the new schedule and not bother to wait for more than an hour? That remains to be seen, and a severe service reduction sends a message implying financial difficulty, the impression that the railroad can no longer afford to run the prior level of service, whether that impression comports with the facts. In the present climate, where transit everywhere faces serious financial difficulties with severe service reductions threatened, riders might (and should) be concerned. That also holds for elected officials, investors and financial agencies.

Is Brightline West “Going South”?

Las Vegas, the mecca of gambling and glitz (and back in the day, organized crime), has not hosted a passenger train since 1997. That was when Amtrak’s Desert Wind, which ran on Union Pacific’s route of the historic City of Los Angeles and Imperial trains on a tri-weekly schedule during its last days, ran for the last time. Proposals to run passenger trains between L.A. and “Vegas” since then have not gotten anywhere. More recently, Desert Xpress, which became Xpress West, proposed high-speed trains running between a remote point in the Mojave Desert and Las Vegas on a new railroad to be built along Interstate 15.

Brightline picked up the proposed service, renamed it Brightline West, and added plans to extend it to Rancho Cucamonga on Metrolink’s San Bernardino Line (“Cuca-monga” as Mel Blank through the voices of Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny, and the train caller at L.A.’s Union Station when Jack Benny was buying a ticket, called it). There is also a plan to extend service to Palmdale: (the High Desert Corridor) on Metrolink’s Antelope Valley Line and with a connection to the California High-Speed Rail (CAHSR) line, if it ever reaches there. While some commentators have criticized the plan for not going directly to L.A. Union Station, that criticism does not appear to have strong merit. If Brightline West can reach Cucamonga, Palmdale or both, it should be feasible for trains to continue to Union Station by agreements with Metrolink and the host railroads: BNSF for Cucamonga and UP for Palmdale. Even without through service to downtown Los Angeles, a two-seat ride with a component on Metrolink allows access by rail to Las Vegas and any intermediate stops that Brightline West chooses to establish. Unlike previous proposals to run only between Las Vegas and somewhere in the middle of the desert, Brightline West would allow the many non-motorists in the Los Angeles area (whose numbers have grown in recent decades on account of the expanding rail transit network on L.A. Metro and improved bus transit in and near the city), as well as motorists who choose to make the trip to “Vegas.” The issue now becomes whether Brightline West can “make the grade” both physically and financially.

High-speed rail (HSR) is common in Europe and parts of Asia, specifically China and Japan. It is currently not operating anywhere in the Western Hemisphere, although Brightline West proposes a genuine HSR operation. It would be the first such operation on the North American continent. True HSR is expensive to build, and the engineering required to provide the gentle curves and grades requires very close tolerances. Construction is also governed by similarly close tolerances, which makes it expensive, as well.

In Vantuono’s commentary cited above, he quoted Railway Age Contributing Editor Bruce E. Kelly as speculating: “After the go-ahead was recently announced for Brightline to build between Las Vegas and Rancho Cucamonga (some 50 miles east of Los Angeles) with the majority of the line being within the Interstate 15 right-of-way, I wondered how that would work through Cajon Pass, where a breach between the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains provides steep but manageable rail and road passage from the Mojave Desert into the L.A. Basin and its surrounding suburbs. Of the existing BNSF and Union Pacific main tracks through Cajon Pass, three have maximum grades of approximately 2.2%, with a fourth line reaching 3%. But the steepest parts of I-15 are posted for 6%. Can high-speed rail (HSR) handle that? A quick, rudimentary check of the topographic contours surrounding the steepest stretch of I-15, where the east- and west-bound lanes separate just below Cajon Summit, suggests Brightline might be able to apply enough curvature to keep its maximum grade just below 4%. Some HSR lines in Europe are said to have maximum grades of 4%, and a section of the Chinese-built high-speed Quinghai-Tibet Railway is said to reach 5.2%.”

Even if Brightline West’s engineers can make the physical ruling grade on the new line, there remains the challenge of “making the grade” in a financial context. Vantuono’s Thanksgiving commentary include a map of the proposed line that bore the words “$12B EFFORT.” Can a company that reported a loss in excess of $500 million last year attract enough investors and persuade them to come up with that much money? Probably not. At the time Luczak reported on the groundbreaking for the project on April 22, 2024, the cost was still set at $12 billion: “In December 2023, the Brightline West, in partnership with the Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT), was awarded a $3 billion grant from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) through the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Grant program. Additionally, last June the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority received a $25 million RAISE program grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to fund the final design and construction of two Brightline West stations and associated facilities in Hesperia and in the Victor Valley of San Bernardino County. The rest of the project will be privately funded, according to Brightline West, which has received a total allocation of $3.5 billion in private activity bonds from the USDOT.” The numbers that Luczak reported do not add up to the $12 billion needed.

To make matters worse, inflation has raised the cost of building the line, a fact that even members of the public would know without having to research the numbers in the Producer Price Index. On Oct. 2 of this year, Railway Age Senior Editor Carolina Worrell reported that a Bloomberg report said that the cost to build the Brightline West project had risen to $21.5 billion and “according to the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) website, which lists Brightline West as a ‘loan applicant,’ and as reported by Bloomberg, the price tag for the private high-speed passenger railroad has swelled by nearly 35%. The higher cost has led the Fortress Investment Group-backed company to seek $6 billion from the POTUS 47 Administration…  “Brightline West’s 218-mile railroad from Southern California to Las Vegas will now cost $21.5 billion, $5.5 billion more than the initial projection of $16 billion, according to a Bloomberg report.”

According to Worrell, Brightline CEO Mike Reininger acknowledged that costs are rising, and is working on raising the needed funds. She reported: “According to the report, the federal loan ‘will take the place of a $6 billion bank facility on Brightline West’s original financing plan.’ The company, Reininger said, ‘plans to raise equity to cover most of the $5.5 billion increase in construction costs. It initially targeted an equity raise of $1 billion.’” Worrell also noted that U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy had bashed the CAHSR project.

Concerning the financing itself, Worrell reported: “Prices on Brightline West bonds issued by the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank ‘declined [Oct. 1] following the disclosure of the railroad’s rising costs. Bonds with a 9.5% coupon traded at an average of 87.3 cents down from 91.6 cents on Sept. 23, the last time the securities changed hands. The spread, or risk premium, on the bonds compared with AAA-rated municipal bonds widened to an average of about 900 basis points from 825 basis points,’ according to the report.”

I don’t know at this time whether Brightline West managers can raise the money to pay for building a line whose cost is now estimated at $21.5 billion, when it was previously estimated at $12 billion, an increase of 79% from levels cited only 19 months ago. It seems reasonable to expect that such a financial feat will not be easy.

The CBS report by Kris Van Cleave, included in Vantuono’s Nov. 22, 2023 report, contained a comment by Former USDOT/FRA NECIP (Northeast Corridor Improvement Project) Director and World Bank Railways Advisor Lou Thompson, who has been on the rail scene since before Amtrak was founded in 1971. Thompson, identified in the report as “California High Speed Rail Peer Review Group Chairman,” told CBS: “We will never see high-speed-rail without substantial public investment to build it, and we will never see it without a substantial public commitment to operate it.” The CBS report placed Thompson’s comment after remarks from Brightline Chair West Edens promoting the virtues of Brightline West and HSR generally. Brightline West remains far less expensive than the entire CAHSR project, but the question of whether Brightline West can raise the money to build the line remains unanswered.

Other Financial Questions

Returning to the big picture, it does not appear to be a pretty one for Brightline generally. In the meantime, cautionary stories have appeared not only in conservative-leaning publications and the financial media, but also in local reporting from Florida. One example is a report by Steve Thomas on www.veronews.com, dated Aug. 7 and headlined: Brightline: Ridership Up, But Financials Way Off Track, which began: “It has been almost two years since Brightline’s sleek, brightly colored trains began flashing through Vero Beach, and the apocalypse Indian River County warned against in its unsuccessful multimillion-dollar fight to block the train has not materialized.” Indian River County, where Vero Beach is located, had sued Brightline over plans to extend service from the original northern terminal at West Palm Beach to Orlando Airport.

Thomas reported a dichotomy at Brightline: “Its story remains very much a tale of two trains. On one hand, the company has managed against the odds to create a high-tech, high-speed commuter rail line along a major transportation corridor that transports millions of people a year who often give it good reviews. On the other, Brightline’s finances appear ever more dire, and the death toll along the South Florida stretch of its 235-mile route continues to grow.” Regarding the railroad’s financial picture, he said: “A burst of Brightline news in July highlighted the company’s split personality. On the plus side, the rail line reported a 22% increase in riders on the South Florida to Orlando route and a 12% jump in revenue in the first half of the year. At the same time, Brightline failed to pay interest on $1.2 billion in bonds and saw much of its debt downgraded to ‘junk’ status by S&P Global Ratings. That came on top of bond downgrades from Fitch and other rating agencies earlier in the year.” Thomas also went into detail about Brightline’s finances, especially on the debt side.

Two months after Thomas’s report, Brightline eliminated nearly 40% of its Orlando Airport runs. I have reported that Brightline is still doing what it can to improve its finances. Time will tell how successful those initiatives are, but a severe service cut is a yellow aspect at best, maybe leading to red.

“Never Had Any Equity”

“The numbers are coming out just as I simplistically modeled them many years ago,” comments an industry observer and investment expert. “Brightline is a first-class railroad, but it never had any equity. The same thing happened at Florida East Coast. It took Fortress Investment Group 11 years to get back to the profits it had before. Fortress cut costs and forgot service and on time performance—and never put any equity in after the financial crisis took away the investment. Fortress could have made 5x by replacing the equity and riding out the storm. With Brightline, Fortress is expert in real estate. The casino and the real estate were going to make it all work. Fortress has figured out it needs more stops and slower service. How ironic. Where is Brightline headed? To a prepackaged bankruptcy that wipes the debt out and gives the equity to the creditors—following distressed-debt negotiations.”

The post Brightline Financial Woes Continue appeared first on Railway Age.

NS (Logos courtesy of the respective organizations)

NS on Nov. 11 reported reaching a five-year collective bargaining agreement with BRS, covering nearly 970 union members. The agreement provides for an 18.8% compounded wage increase over the next five years; offers railroaders more paid vacation earlier in their career; “makes impactful enhancements to an already robust suite of health and welfare benefits”; and offers several “local work-rule enhancements, providing improved travel-expense reimbursement and more flexible scheduling for signal construction,” according to the Class I railroad.  

“BRS and NS have established a positive working relationship through the collective efforts of our safety collaboration programs,” BRS President Michael Baldwin said. “We’ve built on this relationship to drive progress at the bargaining table, allowing the parties to reach wage, health care, and work-rule changes that address the items most important to our members.”

“Our railroaders are the backbone of Norfolk Southern, and I appreciate the collaboration with BRS on behalf of our signal employees,” NS President and CEO Mark George said. “Their expertise and dedication ensure our operations remain safe, fluid and efficient—day in and day out. This agreement brings us closer to completing our full slate of ratified union contracts, a milestone that underscores our deep commitment to our people and their future.”

With the BRS agreement, NS said it has reached ratified agreements with 12 of its 13 unions; a tentative agreement is pending ratification by the remaining union.

“This round of national bargaining has been unlike any in recent history,” BRS reported Nov. 11. “In September 2023, all Class I railroads opened negotiations directly with the 13 rail unions. Some carriers continued to bargain individually with the BRS while others, including NS, shifted their authority to the National Carriers’ Conference Committee (NCCC). Although carriers may take differing approaches, the BRS has remained the recognized bargaining representative for the signal craft under the Railway Labor Act. Pursuant to the BRS Constitution, affected members maintain the right to vote on agreements. For the first time in decades, the BRS was able to address local work rules within the broader national bargaining context. Historically, many railroads avoided these discussions by citing moratoriums or deferring to the NCCC. This year, those barriers did not stand in the way of progress. Previously, separate ratification ballots were held for members covered under BRS and NCCC bargaining. NS subsequently withdrew its proxy from the coalition. The BRS’s responsibility to its members remains unchanged, and the results of the NS ballot—where members approved the agreement by a decisive margin, will be ratified.”

Separately, Railway Age on Nov. 4 named NS Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer John Orr 2026 Railroader of the Year, the publication’s 63rd such award.

CSX (Courtesy of CSX)

CSX on Nov. 12 reported that the 365-acre Westgate Super Site in Alabama has been designated as a Platinum CSX Select Site.

Select Sites are development-ready properties along the CSX network “where standard land use considerations and comprehensive due diligence items have been previously addressed,” according to the railroad, which established its Select Site program in 2012 “to better serve new and existing customers on its network and those of its short line partners.” CSX works with Austin Consulting to screen candidate sites and assist communities with the application and certification process. These properties can meet the needs of a wide variety of manufacturers, CSX said, “significantly reducing the time required to construct industrial facilities and ultimately bringing products to market.” A Platinum designation is given to those that meet “a rigorous list of criteria, including infrastructure and utility availability, environmental reviews, appropriate zoning and entitlement, air quality permitting, rail serviceability, proximity to highways or interstates, and other attributes,” according to CSX.

The Westgate Super Site is the fifth site in Alabama to have received the Platinum CSX Select Site designation, and one of 33 properties across the CSX network to receive it over the program’s history.

“Achieving Platinum CSX Select Site status is a tremendous milestone for Dothan and the State of Alabama,” said CSX Vice President of Real Estate and Industrial Development Christina Bottomley, one Railway Age’s Women in Rail Award honorees for 2025. “This region continues to emerge as one of the most competitive manufacturing corridors in the country—and the Westgate Super Site is now positioned to attract the kind of high-value industrial investment that strengthens domestic supply chains, creates quality jobs, and accelerates long-term economic growth.”

“It is uncommon to find such a large, attractive greenfield industrial site, which is both adjacent to the railroad right-of-way and within the city limits,” added Jonathan Gemmen, Senior Director at Austin Consulting. “The site is a gem.”

“We sincerely appreciate CSX for recognizing the potential of this site and for their partnership in helping us reach this important milestone,” Dothan, Ala. Mayor Mark Saliba said.

“This site will have a generational impact—bringing new opportunities, quality jobs, and lasting economic growth that will benefit families and businesses across our community for decades to come,” noted Houston County Commission Chairman Brandon Shoupe.

Earlier this year, CSX added 18 properties across 12 states to its CSX Select Site program. There are approximately 60 properties currently on the roster.

“The holiday spirit is in full swing! CSX employees in #Jacksonville, FL, came together this week to pack over 5,000 backpacks and toys for the beloved #CSXSantaTrain. Our #ONECSX team will deliver the goodies on Nov. 22, spreading joy to 13 communities across #Appalachia. Together, we’ll keep the magic rolling to our neighbors in need!” CSX reported Nov. 10 via social media. (CSX Video)

Meanwhile, in preparation for the 83rd running of the CSX Santa Train on Nov. 22, 2025, the Class I railroad’s employees in Jacksonville, Fla., packed more than 5,000 backpacks and toys to distribute to neighbors in need in 13 communities in Appalachia.

Along a 110-mile route spanning from Shelbiana, Ky., to Kingsport, Tenn., the Santa Train each year spreads holiday cheer and delivers toys, gifts, and winter essentials to thousands of families, according to CSX.

The tradition, begun in 1943, took on even greater meaning last year, as the train served a region recovering from devastating storms.

(Courtesy of CSX)

“CSX’s roots run deep in Appalachia,” according to the railroad. “After flooding from Hurricane Helene caused unprecedented devastation in Erwin, Tenn., the ONE CSX team knew our neighbors needed something special to raise their spirits. Our CSX Holiday Express event [in 2024], hosted as the preamble to the The Santa Train, brought heartfelt support and joyful fun to the residents of Erwin as we celebrated the resilience of this community [see video above].”

CSX’s 20th heritage locomotive, the Clinchfield #1902, led the 2024 Santa Train.

Separately, CSX ranks on Florida’s Best Employers list by Forbes and teams with Watco to deliver growth and value.

UP UP’s hazmat team is recognized by Fort Bliss military leaders and first responders for hosting Railroad 101 training. (UP Photograph)

Nearly 50 firefighters, law enforcement, and military personnel in Fort Bliss, Tex., recently participated in UP’s hands-on “Railroad 101” program that covered how to identify hazardous materials, read railcar markings, and follow emergency recovery procedures, the Class I railroad reported Nov. 11.

UP offers the program networkwide to help first responders improve safety awareness and emergency readiness. This Fort Bliss session, it said, is part of a broader investment that trained more than 6,000 emergency personnel in 2024 alone.

“Railroad 101 training has significantly enhanced our operational readiness and safety awareness regarding railroad incidents,” said Sergio Sosa, Assistant Chief of Training for the U.S. Army Installation Management Command-Department of the Army. “The department is better prepared to mitigate potential hazards and minimize risks to personnel and the public.”

“I want our participants to feel confident that they have the support and knowledge to respond to any type of incident related to the rail industry,” UP Manager-Hazardous Materials Raymundo Vasquez said. “Fostering relationships with our first responders and community leaders creates a sense of unity through a shared purpose.”

“We train thousands of responders annually,” added Robert Bavier, Senior Director-Hazardous Materials. “I’m very proud of Ray and the entire team.”

Separately, UP recently recognized 16 customers and suppliers “for innovative sustainability initiatives,” and the railroad’s employees this fall raised $690,000 for the United Way.

The post Class I Briefs: NS, CSX, UP appeared first on Railway Age.

North American rail volume on nine reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads came in at 30,593,085 carloads and intermodal units for the 45-week period ending Nov. 8, 2025, the AAR reported Nov. 12. Cumulative volume in the U.S. was 22,215,939 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, up 2.2% from the same point last year; in Canada, 7,293,052 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.1%; and in Mexico, 1,084,094 carloads and intermodal units, down 3.7%.

Results were similar through the first 44 weeks of 2025 (ending Nov. 1, 2025).

For the week ending Nov. 8, 2025, total U.S. rail traffic was 493,493 carloads and intermodal units, a 4.9% drop-off from the same week last year, according to the AAR. Total carloads came in at 224,651, up 0.1%, and intermodal volume was 268,842 containers and trailers, down 8.7%.

Four of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2024. They included nonmetallic minerals, up 3,753 carloads, to 32,939; grain, up 809 carloads, to 24,291; and miscellaneous carloads, up 659 carloads, to 8,469. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2024 included motor vehicles and parts, down 1,436 carloads, to 13,840; metallic ores and metals, down 1,355 carloads, to 19,056; and coal, down 1,207 carloads, to 57,352.

For the first 45 weeks of this year, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 10,004,661 carloads, up 1.8% from the same point last year; and 12,211,278 intermodal units, up 2.5% from last year.

North American rail volume for the week ending Nov. 8, 2025, on nine reporting U.S., Canadian, and Mexican railroads totaled 327,995 carloads, down 0.8% compared with the same week last year; and 351,272 intermodal units, up 0.5% compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America was 679,267 carloads and intermodal units, down 0.1%.

For the week ending Nov. 8, 2025, Canadian railroads reported 91,232 carloads, down 2.6%, and 69,344 intermodal units, up 65.4% from the same week in 2024.

Mexican railroads reported 12,112 carloads for the week ending Nov. 8, 2025, dropping 4.2% from the same week last year, and 13,086 intermodal units, down 0.1% from last year.

The post AAR: North American Rail Volume Up Through Week 45 appeared first on Railway Age.

The MTA Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), on behalf of itself and New York and Atlantic (NYAR), is requesting information from potential manufacturers regarding their interest in the complete remanufacture of their existing fleet of Work Locomotives. All interested parties are invited to get a copy of the Complete RFEI by contacting Maxine Achille, Senior Contract Administrator, by email at maxine.achille1@mtahq.org or by phone at 718-725-2638. Interested firms should submit their responses to this RFEI no later than 12/4/2025.

The post RFEI Remanufacture Work Locomotives appeared first on Railway Age.

Alameda, Calif.-based Wind River on Nov. 11 reported that its DevOps platform will help Hyundai Rotem, a 30-year customer based in South Korea, “to modernize and automate its railway system software development environment.”

The platform, Wind River® Studio Developer, is “designed to accelerate the development, deployment, and operation of mission-critical systems at the intelligent edge,” and “enables agile practices such as CI/CD and cloud-native deployment to overcome barriers to automation,” according to Wind River, a software/technology provider that also serves the automotive, aerospace, defense, industrial, medical, and telecommunications sectors. “By increasing automation and collaboration, Studio Developer improves developer efficiency, enables shift-left testing, boosts agility, and extends system lifetime value.”

Hyundai Rotem, it said, will also use Wind River Cloud Platform as the cloud infrastructure to host Studio Developer and will continue to use real-time operating system VxWorks for its “safety-certified signaling and train control management system.”

“Leveraging Wind River technology, Hyundai Rotem is making a strategic shift toward software-defined functions, which will help us automate our development environment, accelerate innovation, and maximize ROI across current and future projects,” said Won-Sang Lee, Vice President and Chief Technical Officer, RS R&D Hub, for Hyundai Rotem. “Together with Wind River and their mission-critical expertise across industries, we are creating for the future of intelligent rail.”

“We are thrilled to support Hyundai Rotem on its journey toward software-defined, autonomous transportation systems,” said Javed Khan, Executive Vice President and President of Software, Advanced Safety, and User Experience of Wind River parent company Aptiv. “With Wind River, Hyundai Rotem can modernize its software development practices without compromising safety, security, or quality. This enables faster innovation, improved efficiency, and reduced costs while delivering secure, compliant, and reliable edge systems.”

Hyundai Rotem, which supplies a variety of railway vehicles, including high-speed trains, EMUs, and light rail vehicles, is delivering 46 low-floor LRVs for the ETS (Edmonton Transit Services) Valley Line West LRT project. This summer, the City of Edmonton in Alberta, Canada, took delivery of the first vehicle; shipped in two sections from the Changwon, South Korea plant, the vehicle underwent testing before being loaded onto a roll-on/roll-off ship designed to carry wheeled vehicles. Delivery will continue into 2027. The manufacturer is also supplying 182 HR5000 rapid transit cars to Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transit Authority, 42 of which are slated to arrive in time for the 2028 LA Olympics, and an additional 41 bilevels to Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority for Commuter Rail service.

The post Hyundai Rotem Selects Wind River Tech to Automate Software Development appeared first on Railway Age.

Siemens Mobility conducted the first live demonstration of its new Signalling X CBTC (communications-based train control) system for metros (rspid transit) at Singapore’s new Rail Test Centre on Nov. 12. The system combines safety-critical systems such as interlockings and CBTC into one system, running on commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware. The demonstration was held using an automated metro train.

Siemens says Signalling X builds on the success of CBTC and represents the next step in signaling digitalization. “Signalling X brings together various signaling systems, expanding capabilities through open interfaces,” says Marc Ludwig, CEO of Rail Infrastructure at Siemens Mobility. “Signalling X allows us to put many apps on one system. We are putting all the technology onto two independent, redundant data centers, and we will have one cloud for a city or even a country.”

Siemens launched Signalling X for main line railways last year, starting in Austria, followed by installations in Barcelona, Spain and Finland. “Our ground-breaking solution has already demonstrated its reliability in mainline applications,” Ludwig says.

Signalling X centralizes safety-critical functions such as the interlocking and train control system, including ATO, ATS, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) and communications into a cloud-ready signaling data center running on SIL 4 COTS hardware with the Siemens Distributed Smart Safe System (DS3) platform introduced in 2020. Signalling X also integrates Siemens’ CoreShield cybersecurity system.

Siemens says Signalling X will eliminate all trackside interlockings, and replace object controllers with smart controllers controlled by radio or Wi-Fi rather than connected by cables. The result should be a 15% cut in capital costs, and a reduction in the space required for hardware of up to 80%, as four cabinets can be replaced by a single unit. Signalling X will also facilitate 24/7 train operation.

“We are demonstrating a fundamental change in signaling for mass transit,” explained Jan Philipp Steinbach, head of MT Development at Siemens Mobility. “Proprietary hardware has a lot of drawbacks as it is very costly to install and maintain and it severely limits flexibility.”

The post Siemens Launches Signalling X for Metros appeared first on Railway Age.

Alaska Railroad 2-8-0 557 was fired up for the first time on November 8, following a decade-long restoration. Volunteers have been working on the S160 Class Consolidation in Wasilla since the early 2010s and hope to eventually run it on its home rails. 

Locomotive 557 was one of more than 2,000 S160 Class 2-8-0s built for the U.S. Army by Alco, Baldwin and Lima (557 was built by Baldwin). The locomotives were meant to be built quickly and deployed to war-torn Europe. The S160s would eventually go on to work on every continent except Australia and Antarctica. In 1944, a dozen S160s were sent to Alaska for use on the federally-owned railroad there, including 3523, which would soon be renumbered 557. Along with a new number, the locomotive got some improvements for service in Alaska, including a larger air compressor, a heated cab and a plow for seasonal use. The 557 initially burned coal but was later converted to oil. In the 1950s, the Alaska began to retire its steam locomotives but 557 was retained for use in Nenana where the rivers often flooded the right-of-way. The locomotive was also used for special events. In 1964, the locomotive was sold to private individuals and moved to Washington State where it was put on display. In 2011, the locomotive returned north for restoration. 

The non-profit Engine 557 Restoration Company announced its test fire on social media. Additional work will need to be done on the locomotive before it can run, but it’s clear that standard-gauge steam will soon return to the “Last Frontier.” 

—Justin Franz 

The post Alaska Railroad 2-8-0 Steams Again appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.

Valley Metro

Valley Metro and the City of Phoenix are seeking community feedback on how transit will reach west Phoenix. The public is invited to provide input on route options for the Capitol Extension (CAPEX) light rail project and its connection to the I-10 West (10WEST) light rail extension project. (See map below.) These projects would extend light rail service from downtown Phoenix to the Arizona State Capitol area and ultimately to the Desert Sky Transit Center.

(Valley Metro)

Phoenix City Council is expected to act on both projects in January 2026. The Council will either adopt an updated CAPEX route as the first step to extend light rail to west Phoenix and connect the 10WEST Extension or re-evaluate high-capacity transit alternatives to serve west Phoenix, with or without the Capitol Extension. Community input gathered during this engagement period is critical in informing the Council’s decision, the agency noted.

“As community-driven projects, public feedback plays a vital role in shaping the future of transit in Phoenix. Community members are invited to hear project updates and share feedback through multiple opportunities, including in-person/online community meetings or online here.

Public comment will be collected through January 2026, with Phoenix City Council action expected in late January.

MDOT

MDOT on Nov. 10 announced the selection of a joint development partner to advance a major TOD at the Odenton MARC Station. The selected partner—a joint venture team consisting of Homes for America and Questar Properties—will work with MDOT, the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) and Anne Arundel County to transform a 10-acre parking lot on the west side of the Odenton MARC Station into a vibrant, connected community featuring new housing, retail and public spaces centered around efficient, accessible transit.

(MDOT)

The Odenton MARC Station TOD project represents the first phase of MDOT’s implementation of the 2024 MARC Penn Line Strategy—a broader effort to promote mix-use, transit-centered communities along one of Maryland’s busiest commuter rail corridors connecting Baltimore and Washington, DC regions. The Odenton station area is projected to generate $270 million in tax revenue for the state and Anne Arundel County over 30 years and support up to 117,000 annual MARC trips at full build-out. The concept envisions a comprehensive mixed-use development that combines housing, retail and multimodal transportation access to create a dynamic town center that strengthens local economies and expands access to jobs and services.

The Homes for America-Questar Properties joint venture will bring that vision to life on the west side of the Odenton MARC Station, proposing:

• 585 multifamily units—including 130 affordable, 20 workforce and 435 market-rate homes.
• More than 30,000 square feet of retail.
• More than 180,000 square feet of public amenity space.
• Integrated pedestrian and bicycle pathways that substantially improve access to the MARC Station and surrounding community.

The development will be supported by the construction of a new 1,100-space commuter parking garage adjacent to the site, representing the first phase of the broader transit-oriented development initiative. This approximately $56 million facility is being financed by Anne Arundel County and delivered in partnership with the Maryland Economic Development Corporation (MEDCO). The project received $4 million in federal funding and $750,000 in the first round of awards from the MDOT TOD Capital Grant program. Groundbreaking is anticipated in 2026.

These improvements, MDOT says, “will establish an energetic destination within the Odenton Town Center, offering diverse housing options, new retail opportunities and convenient access to transit and community resources.”

Located just two miles from Fort Meade, Maryland’s largest employment center, the Odenton MARC Station offers unmatched regional access along the MARC Penn Line between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. The collaboration between MDOT, Anne Arundel County and the development team will align with the county’s Plan 2040 and the Odenton Town Center Master Plan, “reinforcing the community’s longstanding vision for a dynamic and connected town center,” the agency noted.

“This is an exciting step forward to utilize state-owned property by transit stations to our advantage and create new, affordable housing units and retail space that will grow our economy,” said Maryland Transportation Acting Secretary Samantha J. Biddle. “The proposal by the selected joint development partner best aligns with the Department’s and the community’s vision for the future of Odenton.”

Additional milestones—including the start of design and public engagement activities—will be announced in coordination with MDOT, MTA and the selected joint development team as planning progresses.

LA Metro

LA Metro on Nov. 10 released its 2025 SRTP, a roadmap for the next 15 years to “expand, improve, and maintain one of the nation’s largest and most complex transportation networks.” The plan builds on and updates the goals set out in Metro’s 2020 Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP).

Both short- and long-range plans are legally required documents. Their purpose, LA Metro says, “is to demonstrate to taxpayers and our funding partners at the state and federal levels that we do have a plan.”

The 2025 SRTP (download below) lists and explains $220 billion worth of countywide transportation investments through 2039. This includes nearly $50 billion for rail and transitway projects, $11 billion for bus projects, $50 billion for highways and streets projects, and over $75 billion for transit operations and paratransit.

Over the next 15 years, LA Metro say it is set to deliver a wave of major transportation projects designed to improve how people move throughout Los Angeles County for generations to come.

“This progress isn’t without its challenges and Metro is proactively planning, staying flexible and finding innovative ways to deliver on its promises to voters by identifying and mitigating risks and challenges,” the agency said.

SRTP 20250926Download

The post Transit Briefs: Valley Metro, MDOT, LA Metro appeared first on Railway Age.

NS

NS on Veterans Day is honoring service members who it says “bring their leadership, discipline, and mission-focused mindset to our railroad.” From yards to headquarters and everywhere in between, active-duty and veteran employees “play a vital role in keeping our operations strong and our network moving—helping us serve customers and communities across America,” according to the Class I railroad, a Military Friendly® company that is on the 2025 Military Times Best for Vets: Employers list.

NS released a Q&A with a few of those active-duty and veteran employees, which Railway Age reproduces in full below. (All photographs courtesy of NS.)

Susan Decker

EEO Compliance & Reporting Manager (Human Resources)
Atlanta, Georgia
Joined NS in 2007
Branch of Service: United States Navy
Years of Service: 1983 – 2007
Highest Rank: Chief Petty Officer
Military Occupational Specialty: Information Systems Technician

What was your job in the military, in civilian-friendly terms?
Over the course of my 24-year career in the United States Navy, I held a variety of leadership and operational roles across multiple global deployments. In my final assignment aboard the U.S.S. Bataan, I served as the Leading Chief Petty Officer for the Automated Data Processing (ADP) Division. In this capacity, I led a team of 25 sailors responsible for maintaining the ship’s communications systems and safeguarding its computer networks against cyber threats, ensuring mission-critical systems remained secure and fully operational.

How did you get started at Norfolk Southern, and what drew you to the company?
During my transition from the Navy, I attended a Transition Assistance Program (TAP) class where Norfolk Southern participated in the accompanying job fair. I was drawn to their Operational Supervisor Trainee program, which was specifically designed to help military veterans step into leadership roles within the company. I was impressed by the structured environment of the transportation department and saw strong alignment with my military background. Additionally, the long-term retirement benefits offered by a career in the railroad industry made the opportunity even more appealing.

How do your military skills or experiences help you succeed in your current role?
My military background instilled a strong sense of discipline, integrity, and attention to detail—qualities that are essential in EEO compliance and reporting. I’m able to navigate complex regulations, lead with accountability, and foster equitable practices across the organization. These experiences have equipped me to manage sensitive issues with professionalism and clarity.

Stephen Heald

Supervisor of Scale Inspection
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Joined NS in 2005
Branch of Service: NC Army National Guard
Years of Service: 2002 – 2023
Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
Military Occupational Specialty: 15B Aircraft Powerplant Repairer

What was your job in the military, in civilian-friendly terms?
I inspected, serviced, repaired, and replaced turbine engines on Army helicopters.

How did you get started at Norfolk Southern, and what drew you to the company?
The employer I was working for at the time was talking about having a lay-off and an acquaintance of my in-laws told me about an upcoming hiring session. The only thing I really knew about the company / railroad at the time is how everyone always talked about how good a job it is.

Tell us about your current role at NS.
Supervisor of Scale Inspections; responsible for overseeing the condition, compliance, and safe operation of scales and scale test equipment. Ensuring the scales are operating properly, compliant with federal and company standards, and inspection / record-keeping is being done.

How do your military skills or experiences help you succeed in your current role?
With deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan plus numerous stateside training missions have helped me sharpen these skills — attention to detail, time management, the ability to lead a group towards a common goal and the ability to work in austere environments which have all prepared me for my current and previous roles at Norfolk Southern.

Jesse Jokinen

Supervisor of Bridge Inspections
Painesville, Ohio
Joined NS in 2005
Branch of Service: U.S. Marines
Years of Service: 1991 – 2003
Highest Rank:  Staff Sergeant
Military Occupational Specialty: 1371/ Combat Engineer

What was your job in the military, in civilian-friendly terms?
My primary job as a Combat Engineer was to use high explosives to divert or destroy enemy targets. Another job for Combat Engineers was to assemble two types of bridges, both the IRB (Improved Ribbon Bridge) and the MGB (Medium Girder Bridge). The IRB is a bridge loaded on specially outfitted trucks and backed into a body of water and dropped from a vehicle where it would float and open. Several of these would be dropped, and boats would assemble them together to essentially make a floating bridge. The MGB is like Legos. You assemble the small pieces together over a gap to create a bridge.

How did you get started at Norfolk Southern, and what drew you to the company?
I was drawn to Norfolk Southern through family; my father, grandfather, uncle, and great uncle worked for Conrail, Norfolk Western and Norfolk Southern.

Tell us about your current role at NS.
My current role at Norfolk Southern is Supervisor of Bridge Inspections. I operate an under-bridge inspection vehicle to inspect areas on bridges that are difficult to reach.

How do your military skills or experiences help you succeed in your current role?
The skills and experiences that I brought from my years of service would be leadership and the ability to adapt to a changing environment.

Kevin Kainer

Mechanical Management Trainee
Roanoke, Virginia
Joined NS in 2025
Branch of Service: U.S. Army
Years of Service: 2006 – 2021
Highest Rank: Sergeant First Class
Military Occupational Specialty: 19D Cavalry Scout

What was your job in the military, in civilian-friendly terms?
In the military I worked as a Reconnaissance Specialist trained to engage the enemy using real time intelligence.  

How did you get started at Norfolk Southern, and what drew you to the company?
I moved from CPKC over to Norfolk Southern. I dealt a lot with Norfolk Southern trains, and it brought me over. Norfolk Southern has a rich history, and I wanted to be a part of it.  

Tell us about your current role at NS.
I am a Management Trainee – Mechanical.

How do your military skills or experiences help you succeed in your current role?
The military skills help with an environment like the railroad. Aspects from the military like structure, rules, regulations, and safety have all helped me at Norfolk Southern.

Terry McCoy

Senior Technology Engineer
Atlanta, Georgia
Joined NS in 2019
Branch of Service: U.S. Army
Years of Service: 2000 – 2005
Highest Rank: Specialist
Military Occupational Specialty: 11B – Infantry Team Leader

What was your job in the military, in civilian-friendly terms?
I served in the U.S. Army as a Combat Infantry Team Leader with the 101st Airborne Division. My time in service took me from Fort Benning, Georgia, to more than a dozen locations, from the cold arctic of Alaska to the hot streets of Fallujah, Iraq. I led a small team through complex missions where every decision mattered, not just for the mission but for the people beside me. It taught me the value of teamwork, adaptability, and staying calm under pressure.

How did you get started at Norfolk Southern, and what drew you to the company?
I joined NS after a fellow veteran and former co-worker encouraged me to consider the company. He believed my background in Operational Technology (OT), Cybersecurity, and Leadership would be a strong fit for NS’s mission. After learning more about the opportunities here, I knew I could make a meaningful impact. Today I have the privilege of protecting the critical systems that keep our trains, and when called upon, our nation’s troops moving.

How do your military skills or experiences help you succeed in your current role?
The military prepared me to lead under pressure, adapt quickly, and make critical decisions with confidence. Those skills directly apply to OT Cybersecurity, where challenges often come without warning, and the stakes are high. My experience has taught me to be strategic, decisive, and focused on building strong, trusted teams because teamwork is the difference between success and failure.

Cheldrick Reese

Management Trainee
Louisville, Kentucky
Joined NS in 2025
Branch of Service: U.S. Army & Army National Guard
Years of Service: 2010 – 2025
Highest Rank: SGT
Military Occupational Specialty: 92G – Culinary Specialist

What was your job in the military, in civilian-friendly terms?
I served primarily as a Cook. Attached to other units, I was able to learn other skills from various jobs in the military.

How did you get started at Norfolk Southern, and what drew you to the company?
Once I retired from the military in March 2025, a buddy of mine who I deployed with talked to me about a position with Norfolk Southern. We talked about the Management Trainee position in the transportation department. He explained that the position would be similar to my position in the Army.

Tell us about your current role at NS.
My current role with Norfolk Southern is as a Management Trainee. I am training to be a Terminal Supervisor or Road Manager. During the training process, I traveled to many locations to learn operational skills that will make me a valuable team member to my counterparts, the crew, and my division.

How do your military skills or experiences help you succeed in your current role?
Over my 15 years of service, the experiences allowed me to learn from my mistakes and become a better leader. From the combat environments to state-side missions, they have helped shape who I am today. The accomplishments and setbacks allow me to be an asset to the people I supervise daily. Being able to relate, build, and maintain a healthy work environment safely improves efficiency. Keeping focus on the overall goal.

Larry Sargent

Senior Terminal Manager
Buffalo, New York
Joined NS in 2006
Branch of Service: U.S. Army
Years of Service: 1986 – 2006
Highest Rank: SSG
Military Occupational Specialty: 31B

What was your job in the military, in civilian-friendly terms?
Military Police Officer

How did you get started at Norfolk Southern, and what drew you to the company?
I was getting close to retirement and knew that I was not interested in civilian law enforcement. I went on Military.com and searched for jobs where I found Norfolk Southern. I did some research on the job and benefits and liked what I saw. I applied and was hired as an Operations Supervisor Trainee.

Tell us about your current role at NS.
I oversee three supervisors and four yardmasters. I spend time with our crews making sure that they are performing their duties in a safe and efficient manner while complying with the rules. I also ensure our inbound trains are being switched in a timely manner to make it to our customers.

How do your military skills or experiences help you succeed in your current role?
The Army values of loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and personal courage go hand-in-hand with the SPIRIT values at NS. The military taught me to always do the right thing regardless of the challenges you may be facing. The same thing goes along with working for NS. Having dealt with a lot of people from various backgrounds in the military gives me the ability to relate to our employees on both personal and professional levels.

Separately, Railway Age on Nov. 4 named NS Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer John Orr 2026 Railroader of the Year, the publication’s 63rd such award.

Wabtec

“At Wabtec Corporation, honoring veterans is a year-round commitment,” the company reported via LinkedIn on Veterans Day. “From hiring to community impact, we proudly support those who serve and celebrate the skillsets they bring to our team.”

As part of its social media post, Wabtec shared a specially produced video (above) that included team members Albert Park (Lead Project Management Specialist; U.S. Army), TJ Laws (Manufacturing Engineer; U.S. Navy), Jay Jones (Facility Engineer; U.S. Navy), Adam Franco (Director Product Development and Business Development; U.S. Marine Corps), Gina Trombley (EVP, Sales and Marketing and Chief Commercial Officer; U.S. Army), and Chad Gritten (EHS Fixed Facilities Leader; U.S. Army). The video also covered Wabtec employee participation in customer Canadian Pacific Kansas City’s Spin for a Veteran event on Oct. 4, which raised money and awareness for veterans experiencing homelessness, and Wabtec’s seventh annual veterans golf tournament on May 16 in Melbourne, Fla., which raised thousands for Vets4YouthSports, a nonprofit connecting veteran mentors with youth athletes.

Approximately 20% of the rail industry and about 8% of Wabtec’s workforce is made up of veterans, according to Wabtec, which noted that some 23% of its new salaried hires in 2025 came from military backgrounds.

Earlier this year, the company was recognized as a 4 Star Employer in the 2025 VETS Indexes Employer Awards.

“Wabtec Corporation has demonstrated exceptional support for veterans and the military-connected community, earning the organization one of the most prestigious awards possible in the VETS Indexes Employer Awards program,” VETS Indexes President George Altman said during the April announcement. “Even as more organizations than ever are recognizing the uniquely valuable skills that veterans bring as employees, the efforts of Wabtec Corporation to recruit, retain, develop, and support those who served, as well as their families, stand out from the pack. Wabtec Corporation is among the very best veteran employers, and its program can serve as a model for others.”

A record total of 349 organizations completed and submitted surveys for the VETS Indexes Employer Awards in 2025; those surveys covered employers’ policies, practices, and outcomes across veteran job candidate recruiting and hiring; veteran employee development and retention; veteran-inclusive policies and culture; support for members of the National Guard and Reserves; and military spouse/family support. Of those participants, VETS Indexes recognized 294 organizations, including companies large and small, government agencies and departments, nonprofit groups, colleges, and universities.

Further Reading:

• Wabtec 3Q25: ‘Continued Growth in Backlog, Sales, Margin and Earnings’
• Wabtec, Vale Partner to Test Ethanol Use in Locomotives
• Driving the Future of Rail: A Conversation With Wabtec’s Eric Gebhardt

BNSF

BNSF Division Trainmaster Ryan Hooper and Locomotive Engineer Jason Diefenbaugh are “walking the walk” when it comes to honoring veterans, according to the Class I railroad, which reported via social media that Hooper wanted to commemorate the Army’s 250th birthday, so he set out to hike about 150 miles earlier this year while Diefenbaugh participated in the 50-Mile March Foundation. BNSF Staff Writer Jeremiah Valentine provided the story on the BNSF website; Railway Age reproduces it in full below.

Ryan Hooper. (Courtesy of BNSF)

One step at a time, BNSF Division Trainmaster Ryan Hooper and Locomotive Engineer Jason Diefenbaugh have a passion for honoring veterans. To them, every step of every hike is a tribute to the sacrifices of the military community. 

Hooper wanted to commemorate the Army’s 250th birthday, so he set out to hike 250 kilometers (about 150 miles) earlier this year while Diefenbaugh participated in the 50-Mile March Foundation. Both were in tribute or support of veterans.  

Hooper has been with BNSF for 17 years. Prior to that, he served in the U.S. Army for 11 years, continuing a military tradition that runs deep in his family. His father was in the Navy during Vietnam, and both of his grandfathers served in World War II. 

He served in the Army as a locomotive operator and a recruiter, and when he transitioned out of the Army, his experience with trains led him to BNSF.   

“I definitely give credit to my Army training for helping me get my foot in the door,” Hooper said. “I started as a train conductor and switchman, but the Army gave me a chance to be a leader. I always loved leading troops, and I knew I wanted to do that when I left the service.” 

Hooper, who works out of Minneapolis, continues to serve in another way, by volunteering to support veterans. 

Hooper’s route started just southwest of Denver and continued through the Rocky Mountains, just past Breckenridge. (Courtesy of BNSF)

His wife is also a veteran working with the Minnesota Area Council for Veterans, a nonprofit that helps veterans find housing, job retraining programs and other essential services. He joins her frequently, volunteering any way he can. They both lost close friends in Iraq and donating their time is a way to honor loved ones and fellow service members. 

This year, to commemorate the Army’s 250th birthday, Hooper set a goal to hike 250 kilometers. Though he didn’t quite reach 250, he did hike 200 kilometers over nine days, climbing 20,000 feet in elevation. 

“This hike was a way for me to celebrate being part of something bigger,” he said.  

One of Hooper’s views during the long trek through the Colorado mountains. (Courtesy of BNSF)

In that same vein, Diefenbaugh, who is based out of Omaha, Nebraska, joined 165 hikers for a 50-mile march in August. Their walk honored veterans and raised awareness about the mental health challenges some face after service. He marched from Lincoln to Omaha, finishing in 22 hours. The participants raised $750,000 for the 50-Mile March Foundation. 

He signed up for the march as a physical challenge. But then he started to reflect on his grandfather’s service in World War II and the mental health struggles he faced after returning home. That reflection gave the march a deeper meaning for Diefenbaugh. 

Diefenbaugh enduring the 50-mile march. (Courtesy of BNSF)

The walk tested his endurance, but participants supported each other. 

“If you think about the entire hike, it seems unbearable,” Diefenbaugh said. “But if you break it up and connect with others along the way, there is a better chance you can deal with it and finish. By the end of the march, everyone is suffering, but we all stomach it together.” 

Marchers—including Diefenbaugh—participating in a 50-mile march. (Courtesy of BNSF)

He also volunteers with Moving Veterans Forward, a nonprofit that works with the Veterans Administration in Omaha to support veterans in Nebraska and Iowa. The organization provides donated furnishings and appliances to help veterans settle into housing and work toward self-sufficiency.

Diefenbaugh’s kids cheered him on during his walk. (Courtesy of BNSF)

To those who have served or those supporting those who do, BNSF thanks you. 

(Courtesy of WLDA)

“A big thank you to the World Leaders in Data and AI (WLDA) for honoring our CEO Katie Farmer with the AI Visionary CEO of the Year Award this past weekend in NYC!” BNSF reported Nov. 10 via social media. “The WLDA Awards Gala celebrates exceptional leadership and measurable progress in responsible innovation, inclusion, and impact across industries. We’re proud to be recognized for our efforts in AI over the past few years. We hold the most patents than any other Class I railroad and continue to innovate to improve safety and service, increasing our focus on data and AI to enhance operational efficiency. As we embark on our massive technology transformation with bnsf | tech, we will keep leaning into change while looking at the future of railroading for our employees and our customers.”

The AI Visionary CEO Award “celebrates a CEO who has made AI and data central to their organization’s growth and mission—demonstrating visionary leadership in digital reinvention and strategic innovation,” according to WLDA, which is described as a “premier forum for leadership in AI, uniting global executives and industry pioneers to shape a fair digital world through collaboration, knowledge exchange, and thought leadership in Data, Digital, and AI.“

(Courtesy of WLDA)

Farmer was one of 11 WLDA award recipients. Others received the AI for Good Impact Award, Data and AI Luminary Award, Executive Ally Award, Rising Star in Data and AI Award, Responsible Tech Leader Award, Women Leader of the Year Award, Trailblazer in Responsible Data and AI Award, Tech Ally Award, Music Tech Innovation Award, and Distinguished Impact Award.

Further Reading:

• BNSF Adds Two More Shortline Select Members
• BNSF 3Q25: Revenue, Volume Up, OR Down
• 32 Companies Earn BNSF Sustainability Awards

The post Class I Briefs: BNSF, NS, Wabtec appeared first on Railway Age.

The plan, Texas SMPTP 2050 (download below), builds on existing local, regional, and other statewide plans, including the Active Transportation Plan and Connecting Texas 2050, and “aims to identify actions necessary to increase mobility and connectivity, account for anticipated population and economic growth, and address congestion through 2050.”

Through stakeholder and public outreach efforts, TxDOT says, Texas SMTP 2050 “identifies needs, gaps, challenges, strategies and initial steps for implementation that increase mobility and connectivity options for all Texans, support economic development and address congestion in regional and intercity corridors through 2050.” Texas SMTP 2050 includes current and emerging forms of public transportation and supporting technologies “for a safe, accessible and integrated network of transit mobility options,” the agency noted.

According to a report by The Texas Tribune, “Texas is projected to add more than 9 million residents by 2050. The number of drivers on the road has vastly outpaced the state’s ability to build highway capacity. Meanwhile, there’s generational forces afoot. Millennials and Zoomers in the state’s major urban areas want more transit options, while older Texans in rural parts of the state may increasingly need it owing to the rising cost of car ownership.”

Texas SMTP 2050 engagement efforts, TxDOT says, have been crucial in shaping the draft plan and understanding public priorities and needs. The input provided helped identify how Texans use transit, where opportunities and gaps lie, and what value transit brings to Texans and the state economy. The following are key engagement activities completed during TxDOT’s 18-month statewide engagement efforts:

• Collected more than 2,900 public survey responses.
• Engaged with 2,000 people at in-person events throughout Texas at libraries, community centers, fairs, festivals, farmers markets, athletic events and other locations.
• Held multiple meetings with the Texas SMTP 2050 Steering Committee, TxDOT districts, metropolitan transit authorities, urban and rural transit operators and the Public Transportation Advisory Committee (PTAC)
• Kicked off six Emphasis Area Working Groups in spring 2024..
• Rolled out spring 2024 public awareness campaign.
• Held pop-up events in all 25 TxDOT districts.
• Digital outreach of 24,000 views, more than 460 likes, shares and comments and 2,900 visits to the Texas SMTP 2050 web page.

According to The Texas Tribune report, TxDOT has “increasingly gestured at ways to travel around the state without a car in recent years. During the Biden administration, the agency applied for federal planning grants for intercity rail between the state’s major urban areas, a bid to give travelers ways to bypass the state’s increasingly congested highways. TxDOT is implementing an ‘active transportation plan’ that lays out strategies to make it easier for people to walk and ride a bicycle.”

Transit advocates, according to the report, “say the plan is a major step that could help lay the groundwork for at least a statewide conversation about the state’s public transit needs.”

The report, according to The Texas Tribune, also comes as several suburban cities in the Dallas-Fort Worth region threaten to pull out of Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART). “Farmers Branch, Highland Park, Irving and Plano have signaled their intent to ask voters to allow the cities to leave the system on the grounds that they don’t get enough in services for how much they invest.”

There are signs, The Texas Tribune reports, “Texans already feel the need for expanded public transit, though whether they’d support efforts to do so is to be determined. In a poll commissioned by the agency, some 86% of Texans in 2023 said it’s at least somewhat important to improve the state’s public transportation network. At the same time, three-quarters of Texans said the state needs to boost funding for highways, and about 94% said it’s important to improve the state’s existing roadways.”

TxDOT is holding the last pair of meetings seeking public input in San Antonio on Wednesday and in Auston on Thursday. The public may also submit feedback on the plan until Nov. 20. A final plan is expected by the end of the year.

102025-draft-planDownload

The post TxDOT Releases Draft Statewide Multimodal Transit Plan appeared first on Railway Age.

CLR (formerly County Line Rail) on Nov. 10 launched its new website (www.clrail.com) “to support the company’s national expansion strategy and showcase its strategic rail infrastructure capabilities.” CLR also announced the appointment of Bryan Boaz as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO).

The digital platform, the company, which provides comprehensive rail solutions including switching, storage, transloading, railcar maintenance and cleaning, unit train services, and industrial real estate development, says, “reflects CLR’s evolution from regional Gulf Coast operator to national rail infrastructure provider.”

“We’ve built something exceptional in Texas—operational excellence, strategic infrastructure advantages, and genuine partnerships with both Class I railroads and industrial customers,” said CLR CEO Ben Brosseau. “As we expand our footprint nationally, we need a digital presence that reflects the scope and quality of what we’ve built on the ground.”

The website highlights CLR’s competitive advantages including triple Class I access at its Sabine River & Northern Railroad (SRN) facility (the only such location in the Golden Triangle region), 24-hour switching guarantee versus industry standard 48-72 hours, direct plant connectivity to local manufacturing site, multiple transloading services, and 2,300+ railcar storage spots across three Texas facilities.

“The rail industry is evolving rapidly as Class I carriers focus on improving system velocity, which creates tremendous opportunity for strategic infrastructure partners like CLR,” said CCO Bryan Boaz. “We’re developing facilities along high-traffic mainline corridors that allow railroads to execute ‘hook and haul’ operations more efficiently—we handle the switching and blocking; they handle the line haul.”

Boaz brings more than two decades of railroad operations and commercial leadership experience, “positioning CLR to execute its national expansion strategy as a strategic infrastructure partner for North America’s evolving rail network,” the company said.

“Bryan is one of those rare industry leaders who has excelled on both sides of the business—railroad operations and shipper commercial strategy,” said Ben Brosseau. “He started as a conductor at Kansas City Southern (KCS) and went on to lead ExxonMobil’s North American rail program through some of the most challenging periods in recent history. That combination of ground-level railroad knowledge and strategic commercial execution is exactly what we need as we scale CLR into a national platform.”

Most recently, Boaz led Gulf Coast Rail Operations for ExxonMobil’s Supply Chain organization, managing key Canadian assets and maintaining oversight of more than 100 agreements for railcar switching, storage, and transloading across North America. He successfully navigated multiple hurricanes, mainline outages, labor shortages, and the COVID-19 pandemic by proactively rerouting shipments—enabling ExxonMobil to maintain supply continuity while competitors faced significant service challenges.

Boaz’s railroad foundation was built at KCS (now CPKC), where he started as a conductor and advanced through operational leadership roles including Trainmaster. In this role, he transformed the railroad’s poorest performing subdivision—the eastern half of the Meridian Speedway, a critical East-West corridor connecting Los Angeles to Atlanta—into the safest, most on-time, and overall best performing subdivision in just six months. He later served as Director of International Business Development, playing a key role in the Rosenberg Subdivision rebuild and leading major commercial initiatives across Mexico with KCSM. He also held logistics and commercial roles for Enbridge Energy and two of their trading companies, overseeing rail logistics and then more than 20 million barrels of merchant tank storage and blending operations.

A multi-generational railroader, Boaz currently serves on the U.S. Surface Transportation Board’s (STB) Rail Energy Transportation Advisory Committee (RETAC) and previously chaired the American Petroleum Institute’s Rail Subcommittee.

“We’ve already rebranded to CLR—’Built for What’s Next’—to reflect our national ambitions. We’re expanding east of the Mississippi River and developing operational storage and blocking yards in strategic locations with multiple Class I service options. Three to five years from now, I see CLR as a recognized infrastructure provider that adds measurable value to North America’s rail network,” said Boaz.

The post CLR Launches New Website, Appoints Boaz as CCO appeared first on Railway Age.

Manitoba, Canada-based Cando Rail & Terminals (Cando) on Nov. 11 reported appointing Joe Gioe as Vice President Service Delivery.

“Joe is a seasoned rail industry executive with more than two decades of experience leading teams, enhancing safety performance, and driving operational excellence,” said Paul Duncan, who earlier this year became Chief Operating Officer of Cando, which provides short line operation, industrial switching, material handling, terminal and transload, railcar staging, train assembly, and related services. “Most recently he served as President and Chief Executive Officer of The Indiana Rail Road Company [INRD], where he guided the organization through a period of strategic growth, efficiency improvements, and strengthened customer partnerships. Joe has also previously held key leadership positions with Norfolk Southern [NS] and BNSF. He is extremely well positioned to support our Service Delivery teams as we continue to expand our operations across North America.”

A third-generation railroader whose family roots go back to the Central Railroad of New Jersey and Conrail, Gioe began his career at BNSF in 2005 as a conductor and rose through the ranks to management roles in Transportation and Service Design. Gioe joined NS in September 2021 as Assistant Vice President Network Optimization. He was elevated in April 2023 to Vice President of Performance Excellence and in September 2023 to Vice President Transportation. Gioe in August 2024 took over leadership of INRD.

Cando’s network includes 15 terminals, one short line, and rail operations at more than 50 customer locations. (Courtesy of Cando)

Cando last month reported entering a definitive agreement to acquire the rail terminal and associated operations of Texas Deepwater Partners, a joint venture project formed by USD Group LLC and Pinto Realty Partners to develop an energy logistics terminal on the Houston (Tex.) Ship Channel. It would be Cando’s first terminal in the United States. The transaction, subject to certain conditions and customary regulatory approvals, was expected to close in fourth-quarter 2025. It would be Cando’s third acquisition in the past two years. The company purchased AWP Industries in Canada’s Northwest Territories in November 2024 and Transmark in Southwest Alberta in December 2023.

Further Reading:

• First Look: Cando Rail & Terminals’ Battery-Electric Switcher
• Cando Launches Alberta Rail Terminal

The post Joe Gioe Joins Cando appeared first on Railway Age.

Work on the Arroyo El Sauz-Nuevo Laredo section includes:

• Construction of a single-track line exclusively for passenger rail service, alongside Canadian Pacific Kansas City’s existing freight rail line (part of its principal freight corridor: Mexico City–Querétaro–San Luis Potosí–Saltillo–Monterrey–Nuevo Laredo).
• 1.6-mile-long (2.5-kilometer-long) sidings every 12.4 miles (20 kilometers), plus crossovers allowing CPKC to access industry once the new passenger track is installed.
• Three stations (at Nuevo Laredo, Anáhuac, and Lampazos de Naranjo).
• 52 railway bridges.
• 108 drainage works.
• 42 vehicular (highway/rail grade) crossings.

This is one of six sections of the broader 244.2-mile (393.9-kilometer) Gulf of Mexico Train project from Saltillo to Nuevo Laredo. The other five sections are: the Derramadero–Ramos Arizpe line (33.5 miles/54.1 kilometers); Ramos Arizpe–Santa Catarina line (39.3 miles/63.3 kilometers); Monterrey–Joyas Anáhuac line (12 miles/19.4 kilometers); Joyas Anáhuac–Unión San Javier line (14.8 miles/23.8 kilometers); and Unión San Javier-Arroyo El Sauz line (61.9 miles/23.8 kilometers).

OpenRailwayMap.org

According to Andrés Lajous Loaeza, the head of the Railway Transport Regulatory Agency (ARTF), trains on the Saltillo-Nuevo Laredo line will run at maximum speeds of between 160 kilometers per hour and 200 kilometers per hour and will travel from Monterrey to Nuevo Laredo in just under two hours and from Saltillo in three and a half hours, the government reported.

The Gulf of Mexico Train project is part of Mexico’s National Railway Plan, which aims to restore passenger services on approximately 2,100 miles (more than 3,400 kilometers) of main lines across the country, according to a July 2025 report by Kevin Smith and William C. Vantuono, chief editors of International Railway Journal and Railway Age, respectively. 

Bidding was under way this summer for contracts to upgrade infrastructure and restore passenger services along two segments of freight main line: the Saltillo–Nuevo Laredo line (CPKC) and the 66.8-mile (107.8-kilometer) Querétaro–Irapuato line (Ferromex). Both projects are included in the National Railway Plan’s first phase. Passenger services along the Ferromex right-of-way involve three lines: Mexico City–Querétaro–Irapuato–León–Aguascalientes–Chihuahua–Ciudad Juárez; Manzanillo–Colima–Guadalajara–Irapuato; and Mexico City–Querétaro–Guadalajara–Tepic–Mazatlán–Nogales.

Further Reading:

• Mexico Moving on Passenger Rail Revival
• Mota-Engil Wins Mexican Construction Contracts
• Mexico’s Outgoing President Announces Completion of Mayan Train Project

The post Gulf of Mexico Train Project Construction Begins appeared first on Railway Age.