PAR'S C.R.I.S.I. Grant Proposal Requests $21 Million (PAR will also Pony Up the Same Amount) to Bring Tattered 'KEAG Route Up to Class 2/286K by Mid-2023. Until then, New Operator will have Only Marginal Access to Saint John.
19.June, Billerica MA – Pan Am Railways submitted a proposal to the Federal Railroad Administration for a $20,996,786 grant from the FY2020 Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) funding opportunity to rebuild the 111.16-mile Pine Tree Corridor (a/k/a, Mattawamkeag line) in central Maine, running from Mattawamkeag (KEAG MP 0.41) to Waterville (CPF 111/MP 111.57). The […]
MBTA Awards Second Major Contract for SCR Phase One Build. $562.5 Million will Connect Fall River and New Bedford Commuters via Middleboro to Boston South Station by Late 2023.
24 August, Boston MA – Phase One of the SCR project will reconstruct existing freight rail lines connecting to the operating MBTA Middleboro Line. The Middleboro Secondary, New Bedford Main, and Fall River Secondary lines will be upgraded for passenger service with new track, as well as new stations and platforms, commuter parking, train layover, signal […]
After Trial-by-Fire Initiation to Serve Montreal Strike-Diverted Ships at Port Saint John, CP Inaugurates Single-Train Through Service.
20.August, Montreal QC – Months earlier than planned when CP acquired the CMQ, trains CP #250 and CP #251 will each run daily between Montreal and Brownville Jct. EMRY/NBSR will pull the train between BVJ and Saint John container Port. Canadian Pacific’s CMQ integration plan caught a wave when several container ships were diverted from Montreal to […]
R.J. Corman Acquires Three Shortlines Along PA/NY Border.
19.August, Nicholasville KY – R. J. Corman Railroad Group, LLC finalized an agreement to acquire Owego and Harford Railway (OHRY), Lehigh Railway (LRWY), and Luzerne and Susquehanna Railway (LS), as well as TranZ, a transload service provider operating on the short line railroads. The three short line railroads haul a variety of freight including sand, drill cuttings, scrap, feed […]
Shippers Call in Big Guns to Negotiate Adequate Rail Service.
17.August, Plattsburgh NY — CP #D11 train resumed five-day local service, in response to a rebellion by local rail-served businesses and their political representatives. Prior to the CVD-19 pandemic, CP had reduced Plattsburgh service from five to three days weekly, with no specific reason provided at the time, according to members of South Junction Enterprises, an […]
Freshly Repainted (or Scraped?) GRS "Heritage" Unit Spooks Par Rumor-Mongers.
11.August, Bernardston MA – After having received fresh blue Pan Am livery paint only a few years ago, MEC 507 surprised the rail observer community when it emerged from the Waterville paint shop on 29.July in classic Guilford gray. Since then it’s been roaming the PAR system. Bernardston MA
Port of Montreal Strike Provides Early Unit Train Test for CP’s New Atlantic Reach. Ten Thousand-Footer Runs St. Luc - St. John Without a Glitch.
08.August, St. John NB — Since announcing its acquisition of the former Central Maine & Quebec Railway in November.2019, and consummating the deal on 04.June, Canadian Pacific has been touting the CND$90 million it will spend over the next three years to upgrade the line. The stated objective was to run daily unit trains at 40 […]
CUPE Local 375 and Sympathizers Strike Container Terminals. Government Stays Out of it
07.August, Montreal QC — The Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 375’s 1125 members launched an indefinite strike against the two Termont-operated container terminals at the port, starting on Monday, 10.August. The International Longshoremen Association joined the strike on 08. August. The unions say the action follows a breakdown in negotiations with the Association des […]
New Grain Terminal will Add Export Capacity for Bumper Canadian Grain Crops.
01.August, Quebec City QC – Port of Quebec’s Anse au Foulon sector will soon complete a $90 million grain transfer terminal to export Canadian grain. The Sollio Agriculture terminal is being built around an existing Sollio facility. New structures include four 15,000 metric tonne (te) silos, four 1000 te silos, covered conveyors, two grain handling and […]
Maine Downeaster Ridership Recovers Enough to Increase Train Count. Passengers Applaud Sanitary and Distance-Compliant Coaches; Crews Practicing New Protocols.
28.July, Boston MA – Amtrak’s Boston to Maine Downeaster service has resumed marketing programs to encourage ridership on the safe and social distance-compliant trains to Vacationland. Ridership has increased to approximately 200 passengers per day, doubling since the phased resumption of service in June. Service resumed on 15.June after a total shutdown initiates 13.April. Service reopened […]
