Inspector General report: Amtrak makes financial gains but safety issues persist

By Ashley Halsey III, The Washington Post; October 1, 2018 Amtrak cut its annual operating losses by nearly half last…

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It’s New Jersey Transit’s go-to excuse for canceling trains, but it’s not the whole story

By Larry Higgs, NJ.com; September 24, 2018 For NJ Transit commuters, the initials PTC might as well stand for Potential…

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New Jersey Transit Cancels Dozens of Train Runs, Warns of More Crowding; Discounts Coming

By Elise Young, Bloomberg; September 20, 2018 New Jersey Transit will cancel dozens of trains, including several along its most-used…

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Why can’t you get a seat on Metro-North? It’s complicated, but let us explain

By Thomas C. Zambito, Rockland/Westchester Journal News; September 19, 2018 Wondering why you can’t get a seat on Metro-North even…

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Here’s what is coming down the tracks for the Music City Star in Nashville, Tennessee

By Meg Garner, Reporter, Nashville Business Journal; September 17, 2018 Nashville’s lone commuter rail is slated to face a series…

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Amtrak to seek PTC extension, will operate current routes after January 1st

From Progressive Railroading Magazine; September 14, 2018 Amtrak will seek a deadline extension from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to…

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Amtrak May Put Passengers on Buses in Fight Over Safety Upgrade

By Alan Levin, Bloomberg; September 13, 2018 As railroads across the nation race to complete a congressional deadline for installing…

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FRA Announces $46.3 Million in PTC Grant Funding

A press release from the Federal Railroad Administration; September 12, 2018: WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad…

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Bipartisan Senators To House THUD Appropriators: Preserve Funding For Amtrak’s Southwest Chief

By Carol A. Clark, Los Alamos Daily Post; September 11, 2018 WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Tom…

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Opinion: Safer rail operations for nation is legacy of 2008 Metrolink Chatsworth train crash

By Art Leahy, The Orange County Register; September 8, 2018 Sometimes tragedy can be a vehicle for change. Ten years…

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Opinion: TWU’s “crappy boxed lunch,” a PTC paper tiger—and silence

By William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-Chief, Railway Age Magazine; September 6, 2018 I don’t need to write much about how the…

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Opinion: Amtrak needs to lead by example

By Chip Kraft, Railway Age Magazine; September 5, 2018 To the degree that the new Amtrak management team is sincerely…

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Texas: Trinity Railway Express to miss safety tech deadline, seeks extension to avoid 2019 shutdown

By Ray Leszcynski, Communities, The Dallas Morning News; August 31, 2018 The Trinity Railway Express will miss a federal deadline…

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Rail safety issue not expected to impact Vermont

By GORDON DRITSCHILO, Staff Writer, Rutland Herald; August 28, 2018 Despite a dire-sounding story in a national rail publication, local…

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New England: Downeaster train service ‘not in jeopardy’ going into 2019, rail authority says

By Lauren Abbate, Staff, Bangor Daily News; August 28, 2018 Amtrak will continue to service the Downeaster route from Massachusetts…

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PTC = progress toward completion

By BRIANNA GURCIULLO, With help from Tanya Snyder, Politico Morning Transportation; August 24, 2018 PTC = PROGRESS TOWARD COMPLETION: Three…

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Railroads in Illinois, New Mexico, Texas and New Jersey secure $73M in Positive Train Control grants

By Mischa Wanek-Libman, Editor, RT&S Magazine; August 22, 2018 News began to trickle out from congressional offices regarding which properties…

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ATK, CEO, OTP, PTC, F&B, BLT, UP, etc. Challenges, challenges.

Note: Russ Jackson is the distinguished retired editor of the Western Rail Passenger Review, and a huge fan of BLT…

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Railroads have day of reckoning with National Transportation Safety Board

Amtrak Cascades Engineer for Train Number 501 just before fatal crash: “A moment later, he saw the 30-mph speed restriction…

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Amtrak: A Marx Brothers revival

An Opinion By Frank N. Wilner, Capitol Hill Contributing Editor, Railway Age Magazine; July 9, 2018 Watching Washington, July 2018:…

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Washington State: Point Defiance Bypass testing, train travel update

From Tacoma Weekly; June 28, 2018 Following the derailment on an Amtrak train in DuPont on Dec. 18, 2017, Washington…

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Feds approve New Jersey Transit plan that could buy 2 more years for safety system

By Curtis Tate, NorthJersey.com; June 27, 2018 NJ Transit received approval from federal regulators Tuesday for a plan that could…

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FRA and PTC, plus, a new nominee to the Amtrak Board of Directors

By STEPHANIE BEASLEY and TANYA SNYDER, With help from Lauren Gardner and Brianna Gurciullo, Politico Morning Transportation; June 21, 2018…

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