DOT 126-08
Friday, August 29, 2008
News Digest
BTS Releases Reports on 2006 National Census of Ferry Operators. The Bureau of
Transportation Statistics has released Highlights of the 2006 National Census of
Ferry Operators, a special report about ferry service in the U.S. The report
covers how many people travel by ferry, states with the most ferry passengers,
characteristics of the average ferry and other subjects. It can be found at
http://www.bts.gov/publications/bts_special_report/2008_011/ BTS has
also released a technical report, Multiple Imputation of Missing Passenger
Boarding Data in the National Census of Ferry Operators, which can be found at
http://www.bts.gov/publications/bts_technical_report/2008_004/
Contact: Dave Smallen (202) 366-5568.
Buffalo & Pittsburgh Railroad Receives FRA Grant to Replace Cross Ties. The
Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is awarding a $100,000 grant to the
Buffalo & Pittsburgh Railroad that will be used to replace approximately 1,625
cross ties along a 25-mile segment of track between Cloe and Creekside, PA.
These funds will supplement a larger ongoing rehabilitation project to upgrade
this line with safety improvements that will permit trains that deliver coal to
the Edison Mission Homer City Power Plant to operate at higher speeds. In
addition, the railroad is providing $25,000 in matching funds. Contact: Rob
Kulat (202) 493-6024.
FRA Grant to Support Rail Upgrades at Washington State Intermodal Center. The
Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is awarding $882,000 to the Washington
Department of Transportation for rail improvements at the Big Pasco Industrial
Center. This intermodal facility is owned by the Port of Pasco and located along
the Columbia River in southeastern Washington. The grant funds will be used to
construct a new track junction with the BNSF Railway, a new highway-rail grade
crossing at Sacajawea Park Road, and 1 ½ miles of new track within the
industrial center to be used for rail car switching operations. These upgrades
are part of a larger project at the facility intended to consolidate the
increasing volumes of intermodal, agricultural, and other freight rail traffic
in the region. Contact: Warren Flatau (202) 493-6024.
St. Lawrence & Atlantic Railroad to Install New Rail in Vermont with FRA Grant.
The St. Lawrence & Atlantic Railroad is receiving a $924,510 grant from the
Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to supplement an ongoing project to
upgrade about 18-miles of track between North Stratford and Norton, VT. The
grant funds will be used to install approximately three miles of continuous
welded rail that support safer operations, heavier rail car loads and higher
track speeds. In addition, the railroad is providing $231,128 in matching funds.
Contact: Rob Kulat (202) 493-6024.
FRA Grant Supports Continued Research into PTC Wireless Communication Systems.
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is issuing a $1.4 million grant to the
Railroad Research Foundation to continue development and testing of wireless
communications devices and systems for use with Communications Based Train
Control (CBTC) technology. CBTC is a form of Positive Train Control (PTC) that
can automatically control train speed and movements to ensure safe movements
should a locomotive engineer fail to take appropriate action. In addition to
advancing technical development of such technologies, grant funds will be used
to: continue work on a portable remote operation device so employees on the
ground can authorize a PTC-equipped train to enter a work zone with speed
restrictions; design and build a Universal Onboard Platform that will allow a
locomotive to easily switch between different PTC operating systems; and develop
a higher performance data radio to ensure that wireless communications are
reliably transmitted and received. Contact: Steve Kulm (202) 493-6024.
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