Approximately three months after the transit agency had pull one-third of its Silverliner V fleet because a defect was found, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) resumed regular weekday regional rail schedules on Monday.
"We are excited to bring Regional Rail service back to the level our loyal customers expect and deserve," said SEPTA GM Jeffrey D. Knueppel. "We are grateful to our customers for their patience, and we sincerely regret the inconvenience this situation has caused."
SEPTA's fleet of 120 Silverliner Vs were taken out of service on July 1 following the discovery of cracks in equalizer beams on most of the vehicles. Equalizer beams are part of the rail car suspension system, and distribute the weight of the vehicle to its axles.
Repairs are ongoing, and vehicles are being returned to SEPTA as they are fixed. By Monday, more than 50 repaired Silverliner Vs will be available for service. The combination of repaired Silverliner Vs and SEPTA's other Regional Rail vehicles, along with leased vehicles from Amtrak, NJ Transit, and Maryland's MARC, will allow SEPTA to resume regular weekday schedules.
Amtrak will open grant applications March 23 for community projects near the Frederick Douglass Tunnel alignment in Baltimore as part of a $50 million investment tied to the B&P Tunnel Replacement Program.
The Denmark Station $2.3 million construction investment project includes a new 280-foot concrete boarding platform, built eight inches above the top of rail, for improved accessibility for passengers with disabilities and families with small children and much more.
Caltrain and its partners have implemented safety improvements at specific locations in response to known risk conditions, operational needs, and available funding since the agency’s founding.
On a recent episode of METROspectives, METRO Magazine’s Executive Editor Alex Roman sat down with Ana-Maria Tomlinson, Director of Strategic & Cross-Sector Programs at the CSA Group, to explore a bold initiative aimed at addressing those challenges: the development of a National Code for Transit and Passenger Rail Systems in Canada.
Competitive FTA grants will support accessibility upgrades, family-friendly improvements, and cost-efficient capital projects at some of the nation’s oldest and busiest transit hubs.
The 3.92-mile addition will soon take riders west beyond its current Wilshire and Western station in Koreatown, continuing under Wilshire Boulevard through neighborhoods and communities including Hancock Park, Windsor Square, the Fairfax District, and Carthay Circle into Beverly Hills.
Under the plan, all long-distance routes will transition to a universal single-level fleet, replacing today’s mix of bi-level and single-level equipment.
