Passenger Bus, Rail and Motorcoach Industry News

Both Amtrak and New Jersey Transit experienced power problems while a fire inside a control tower near Jamaica, N.Y., burned equipment used to control track switches at the nearby train hub.

Agency seeking support to improve trip times, reliability and capacity on the Trenton to New York section of the corridor owned by Amtrak.

The estimated $43.3 million multimodal center project in Normal, Ill. was completely funded by a $22 million TIGER grant, FTA grants, Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity grants, and bonds issued by the Town of Normal.

Company landed a $5.3 million contract by the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority to supply 5,561 tons of rail for the Downeaster-Portland North Project.

The five-year, $298.1 million contract is being awarded to CAF USA, which is creating 575 jobs to perform manufacturing and final assembly work at its plant in Elmira, N.Y. The first car is scheduled to roll off the assembly line in October 2012.

The goal of "Create our Contest Contest" is to actively engage Amtrak's customers through social networking.

Construction on the project is expected to begin as early as July 6, 2010, and will continue over the next 28 months. The expanded service is expected to increase ridership, improve connectivity and balance passenger flow.

The ARRA funding will go toward improving tracks, buildings and control systems in Chicago.

Coalition asks for $4 billion appropriation and also seeks full funding of Amtrak at $2.6 billion.

The resolution creating the Commission, Senate Resolution 806, defines the group's mission as "recommending the best governmental structure for a public-private partnership to design, build, operate, maintain and finance a high-speed rail system for Illinois and the Midwest."