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Railroad Newsline for Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Compiled by Larry W. Grant

In Memory of Rob Carlson, 1952 – 2006

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RAIL NEWS

BOUND FOR GLORY?

Up in Prince Rupert, on British Columbia's Pacific Coast, developers are putting the finishing touches on the new Fairview Container Terminal. When it opens in October, it will offer importers a new point of entry into North America through a deep-water port that officials say is the continent's closest port to Asia.

Logistics service providers are already lining up to get in on the action. In May, COSCO Container Lines Americas Inc. signed on as the first steamship line to serve the new container terminal. But the driving force behind the development has been the Canadian National Railway (CN), which began drawing up plans in 2004 for a high-speed rail intermodal service from Prince Rupert to the U.S. heartland. CN says it will offer a service between Prince Rupert and Memphis, TN, for example, that features a 117-hour transit time.

Some 2,900 miles to the south, in Lazaro Cardenas, Mexico, a similar story is unfolding. Lazaro Cardenas is in the midst of a multiphase port expansion project aimed at boosting its container-ship capacity. Though the project's first phase has yet to be completed, the rail link is already in place. In June 2006, the Kansas City Southern railroad launched a daily intermodal service from the port to markets in the southeastern United States.

Similar developments are taking place along the U.S. East Coast. In February, the Union Pacific (UP) and Norfolk Southern (NS) launched a joint cross-country intermodal service from the East Coast container ports served by the NS -- including Savannah, GA; Charleston, SC; and Jacksonville, FL -- to Los Angeles. The Norfolk Southern has also begun work on a high-speed rail line (the "Heartland Corridor") that will move double-stacked containers from shipyards at Hampton Roads, VA, to the Midwest.

Whether they're located along the Atlantic or the Pacific, all of these ports --and the railroads that serve them -- have their eye on the same prize: a share of the booming U.S.-Asian trade. Historically, Asian imports have entered the country through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, where they were loaded onto trucks or trains that fanned out to destinations across the continent. But recent capacity and congestion problems at those ports have led importers and ocean carriers to seek alternatives -- alternatives the railroads are eager to provide. Hoping to appeal to shippers frustrated by backups at the Southern California ports, they're out promoting their inland transportation services on the basis of convenience and speed. Carey Treadwell of Mallory Alexander International Logistics, a third-party service provider, notes that using the Port of Prince Rupert, for example, could cut 100-plus hours in transit time from the Asian port to the U.S. destination over shipments entering the country through Los Angeles or Long Beach.

A mixed track record

No doubt about it, the rails are riding high these days, their optimism fueled by booming global trade and shifting market dynamics on the domestic front. The same market forces that conspired to create a "perfect storm" for truckers (rising fuel costs, increasing highway congestion, and an intractable shortage of over-the-road drivers, to name a few) created favorable trade winds for the rails, allowing them to recapture some of the ground freight they had given up for lost.

As a result, intermodal volumes have marched steadily upward for the past few years. Last year was no exception. The major U.S. railroads handled nearly 12.3 million intermodal loadings in 2006, according to the Association of American Railroads. That was up 5 percent over 2005 levels; it was also an all-time high.

Demand for intermodal service will only grow if imports continue to flood into North America as predicted. Speaking at the Warehousing Education and Research Council's annual conference in April, J. Van Cunningham, assistant vice president of e-business for the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF), told his audience that the industry is projecting annual growth rates of 7 percent for several years to come. "That means we will double our volume every 10 years," he said.

But many question whether the railroads are up to the task. Despite billions in capital spending each year, rail capacity has been nearly as taxed as highway capacity. And there's little prospect of relief anytime soon.

Cunningham of the BNSF agrees that relief will be hard to come by. Adding capacity presents an enormous challenge for the railroads, he told session attendees. One problem is that the places where additional infrastructure is needed most are the places least likely to have space available: fast-growing metropolitan areas. Another difficulty is cost. A new intermodal facility can cost $200 million and a mile of track, $1 million. And even if a railroad manages to secure both the space and the funds, the lengthy approval and construction processes all but guarantee that it will be a long time before any rail project has much effect on the capacity shortage.

Getting better all the time?

Still, the outlook isn't all gloom and doom. At least one observer insists that rail intermodal service is improving. At another session at the Warehousing Education and Research Council's conference, Jim Gaw told his audience that service has become more predictable and, thanks to the railroads' ongoing investments, will continue to improve. Gaw is executive vice president of sales for the Hub Group, a major intermodal marketing company.

In his talk, Gaw offered a detailed rundown on the investments being made by the nation's largest rail carriers: the Burlington Northern Santa Fe, the Union Pacific, the Norfolk Southern, and CSX Intermodal, as well as a large intermodal wholesaler, Pacer International.

As for the BNSF, Gaw noted that the railroad improved train velocity by 7 percent last year and is looking to boost velocity again this year. In addition to building intermodal facilities in Seattle, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Memphis, the BNSF has nearly completed double tracking its transcontinental network. (The double tracking is aimed at improving both velocity and capacity.) Gaw, who noted that the "BNSF has consistently been the best service provider in the western part of the country," added that the rail will make another $2.6 billion capital investment in its system this year.

Like the BNSF, the Union Pacific has been digging deep into its pockets to fund system improvements. The UP is making capital investments of $3.2 billion this year, Gaw reported.

Though the UP still lags behind the BNSF in service, Gaw expects performance to improve as the railroad finishes double-tracking its Sunset Route between southern California and Texas over the next two years.

Though it's not spending at the same level as the BNSF and the UP, the Norfolk Southern will also put some money into its system this year, with $1.3 billion in capital investments. Among other initiatives, the railroad (which Gaw calls the top performer in the East) has begun work on its Heartland Corridor project, which will enable doublestacked international maritime and domestic containers to be transported by rail between Hampton Roads, VA, and the Midwest by raising bridge and tunnel clearances and modifying other overhead obstructions. That project, which is expected to be completed in 2009, should add capacity, improve service, and reduce transit times to the Midwest by a day.

To the south, CSX Intermodal is pouring $1.4 billion into capital investments this year. "It is working hard at rationalizing its network," Gaw said. "It is focusing on adding capacity through greater efficiency. The trend line is improving."

Gaw also reported that Pacer International, which operates largely on the CSX and the UP lines, was working to address service shortfalls. Noting that the wholesaler has 27,000 domestic containers in service, Gaw reported that Pacer was focusing on better utilization this year, which means more capacity. He conceded, however, that its performance left room for improvement. Though Pacer's on-time performance record has gotten better, he said, "it is not where it needs to be."

Asleep at the switch?

As for the future, at least one advocate of intermodal transportation says a little help from the government would go a long way toward resolving some of the sticky infrastructure issues. In a March speech at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, Gil Carmichael argued that public officials sat on the sidelines throughout the intermodal revolution that has taken place over the past quarter century, letting private investors shoulder the load. Carmichael, who is senior chairman of the University of Denver's Intermodal Transportation Institute and a former U.S. Federal Railroad Administrator, thinks it's now time for the government to step up and invest in intermodal connectors -- linkages among the surface modes and connections at public ports, terminals, and the new "logistics centers."

But Carmichael worries that policy makers still do not understand the importance of intermodal and the steps they must take to ensure its success. The problem is rooted in the government's organizational structure, he explained. "By tradition, government agencies concentrate on each mode's infrastructure. Highway agencies build and maintain roads. Airport authorities build and maintain airports," he said, according to the prepared text of the speech. "Our 'infrastructure mentality' also causes government to view the modes in isolation, yet the intermodal system prospers by efficiently unifying them horizontally."

In his address, Carmichael lamented the general ignorance about freight transportation in general and in government, and the implications for public policy. "Among public officials at all levels of government -- including many people in transportation agencies -- the ignorance of freight transportation is almost universal," he said. "Some regional planning agencies have written transportation plans [that] devote more attention to bicycle paths than to freight transportation. … Ignorance about freight leads to bad decisions and missed opportunities.
Nearly all recent progress and innovation in U.S. transportation … [is] attributable to action and investment by the private sector -- not government."

Carmichael urged support of the railroads' proposal to Congress for a 25-percent tax credit for railroad capital investment. He argued that the current rate of capital investments by railroads to expand capacity and enhance intermodal service -- some $5 billion to $8 billion a year -- was inadequate, and that the tax credit would encourage additional spending. That spending could make an enormous difference in the intermodal freight picture, he added. "The huge North American rail system has been single-tracked in the last 30 years. This right-of-way is probably carrying only 25 percent of its capacity. If we go back to double- or triple-tracking, grade separation, and GPS, it would equal three times more capacity -- and this right-of-way already is in place and paid for!"

Carmichael conceded, however, that he doesn't expect to see much leadership on freight transportation issues from Congress. "Congress still operates as if this were the 1950s," he complained. "Members talk intermodal but vote for traditional highway projects." - Peter Bradley, DC Velocity.com

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BNSF CAMPBELL SUBDIVISION BLITZ A SUCCESS

When most people think of more than 250 people gathering in one place, it’s hard not to imagine chaos, confusion and disarray. But BNSF Railway Company Engineering forces working on the Campbell Subdivision proved otherwise.

Crews from throughout the system joined forces last month for an extensive track project on a nine-mile stretch east of Gillette, Wyoming.

In spite of the relentless Wyoming wind and rain, employees completed a multitude of projects in an organized, highly coordinated manner working within a 14-hour window.

"It was work that needed to be done, so we decided to have it all completed at once," says Scott Lockwood, supervisor, Maintenance Planning. "The weather didn’t stop these crews, but made for some miserable conditions."

If the crews were miserable, it was hard to tell -- everyone made the best of the conditions and most were grateful that it was rain and not snow.

"We work in rain, sunshine or snow," says Brandon Hawthorn, gang trackman, Maintenance of Way. "It’s part of the job. We don’t let the weather bother us, but we definitely make sure to pay attention to our footing."

During the three days, crews:

• undercut more than 18,513 feet of track,

• surfaced 22.16 pass miles, including all turnouts and grade crossing on the subdivision,

• welded 138 thermite welds,

• eliminated 80 rail joints making the subdivision joint free,

• relaid 25,806 lineal feet of rail,

• replaced three switch machines and two turnouts,

• and installed 180 concrete ties, 187 wooden ties and five insulated-joint panels.

All turnouts on the subdivision were ground with an MC3 grinder and four turnouts were undercut with an off-track undercutter.

The set-out track off the mainline at Clovis Point was extended by 140 feet; two Zukinut detectors were replaced with paddles; the guard rail was replaced at East Fortin; and one signal mast was relocated. All slow orders were removed on the subdivision as a result of the work.

"Everything went as planned," says Tom Smith, manager, Maintenance Planning. "We got a lot accomplished in a short amount of time."

The workforce may have gotten wet and muddy, but when all was said and done, Lockwood proudly announced they accomplished the project on time with zero injuries or incidents. - BNSF Today

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PONDERING PAINT ON BRIDGES AND TRAINS

People who write on the underside of bridges don't have the grammar skills they need to craft their message. I'd give examples of heinous language violations seen under bridges along the North Platte and Platte rivers, but then this couldn't be published.

Suffice it to say that -- in all the miles from Henry to Columbus -- I've seen no evidence that Nebraska contains a bridge-graffiti person who knows when to use "you're" instead of "your."

At the first bridge it was possible to believe only one person was responsible for all the errors, but since the lack of grammar has continued from bridge to bridge and county to county, it's clear the problem is widespread.

Only a chemical expert could tell for certain, but all the errors look to be done in paint fresh enough to have come after No Child Left Behind.

Maybe bridge sprayers think the word doesn't matter, and they use the shorter one to conserve paint. Apostrophes can be tough to finesse with a spray can, it's true. But they apparently don't realize using the wrong word turns their name-calling back on themselves, in the same way signing a letter "your blonde" refers to the person signing, and "you're blonde" refers to someone else.

English teachers could use problematic, unclear bridge grammar to point out the real-world usefulness of the information they're passing along. "Okay, not everybody cares about college, but you will all walk out of my class knowing how to be clear about the subject and the object, even in incomplete graffiti."

It's not like any instructions about the importance of grammar in short messages would be wasted on students who don't spray bridges. What's good for graffiti is triply useful in text-messaging.

While bridge sprayers fall short in grammar and content, many train sprayers, surprisingly enough, display not only a rudimentary knowledge of grammar but also a far more advanced sense of style.

Following the river across Nebraska means being in close proximity to trains, and waiting at occasional crossings while railroad car after railroad car rolls by. On the same afternoon in which we viewed a bridge marred by someone with a nasty mood disorder, we saw several railroad cars decorated by souls at the happier end of the psychological spectrum. Bright colors, clear designs, witty words.

In eleven days of observing bridges and trains, the pattern held true. Bridge sprayers often barely manage legible block lettering, while many train sprayers create art. Bridge sprayers do names and insults, while train sprayers tend toward visual gymnastics and original fonts.

So, why the difference? Wouldn't it make more sense for stationary bridges to have higher quality results than mobile trains?

If a person wants to put a Thoreau quote or a reproduction of an ocean sunset on a large piece of someone else's property -- a bridge offers the opportunity to come back and do touchups. Forgot a comma? Want to add more orange? The bridge will be there. If a person painting on a train doesn't finish in one session, their project could be whisked several states away, out of reach.

The difference in quality could be all about sense of purpose. It's possible bridge sprayers leave their messages due to a tantrum, when they grab a can of paint from the garage during a tiff with an ex-friend whose name later ends up on a cement crossbeam with expletives and anatomically incorrect drawings.

But the train sprayers – those who do the spectacular stuff -- select their paint and project with care. They have a specific result in mind, and want to create an image for the world to view. The bridge sprayer merely wants to express irritation in a size that doesn't fit on a page. It's impossible to know for sure, but I'd swear some of the railroad designs I've seen were made by the kind of person who'd be haunted for life if they planned a four-color project and dashed out of the house with only three.

I don't pretend to understand either bridge or train sprayers. I don't know why the gifted train sprayers would put their time and energy into projects that involve sneaking into train yards, and I can't understand why bridge sprayers would wade through weeds and ticks to empty a can of paint expressing crabbiness they'll likely be over before the sun comes up.

I asked my family for their thoughts. Sheila says the bridge sprayers get satisfaction out of doing something they're not supposed to do, and they're totally used to not being understood.
And why does one group excel over the other? Ron says it's obvious -- "training" always makes a difference. - Tammy Hansen Snell, Nebraska Statepaper.com

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SILENCING TRAIN HORNS WOULD COST MILLIONS

MANTECA, CA -- Is silencing the sound of trains passing through the city worth millions of dollars? That's the question city leaders will be looking at during tonight's meeting.

The issue -- scheduled to make a stop at the City Council Chambers meeting about an hour into the 19:00 meeting -- offers the City Council four possible courses of action. Two unlikely options include moving the train tracks or constructing grade separations at the cost of $15 million to $20 million for each of the nine crossings.

With the city's nine railroad crossings, the sound of train whistles reverberates for miles and for several minutes. The two options that make the most sense include leaving the trains alone or installing wayside horns.

Some feel train horns are a familiar sound of the city over its 90 year history, as Manteca roots include the town being a stop along the railroad.

"One could surmise that the railroad and locomotive horns are a fabric of the community," Transportation Analyst David Vickers wrote in a staff report.

The other option is wayside horns -- an automated device that focuses the sound of a roadside horn at the motorist, rather than everyone else.

The solution may be simple, though costly. City officials estimate that the quiet zones could cost as much as $1.6 million -- or $125,000 to $175,000 per crossing, Public Works Director Michael Brinton said.

Projected price tags for a basic active warning system at a intersection range from $185,000 to $400,000, according to Union Pacific, the railroad that passes through Manteca.

In addition to the system cost, the local agency would be required by the railroad to carry extra insurance of $2 million to $6 million. Obtaining this type of coverage will be "difficult, if not impossible," Joe Kriskovich, Director of Administrative Services.

A similar request was denied by the Municipal Pooling Agency in the city of Martinez, because of increased exposure to risk and cost liability that all members of the 19-city agency would have to take on.

Installation of the devices -- which would take 12 to 18 months -- is considered a city responsibility, thus costs for all installation and maintenance issues would fall on Manteca. No known grants or federal funds are available, city staff said.

The topic was brought up when concerned residents, many of whom live along the tracks that cut diagonally through town, began complaining of train whistles blaring during all hours of the day and night.

"My concern is for those who are awakened by train horns in the middle of the night and can't get their rest, those with children and who travel long distances," said resident Joann Biermann.

Train engineers are required by law to blow their horns when approaching an intersection, said Union Pacific spokesman James Barnes.

In 2005, the Federal Railroad Administration published a guideline for horns, requiring locomotive horns be sounded at all public grade crossings 15 to 20 seconds, but not more than a quarter mile before entering a crossing.

Other communities, such as Roseville, say the track-side horns have been overwhelmingly positive. Jason Shykowski -- a senior civil engineer in Roseville -- said that the quiet zones were installed at the city's two major crossings sometime in 2000 or 2001, after an extensive process through the state legislature.

The question of loud train horns has been echoed in Lathrop recently, while Stockton officials are looking at putting quiet zones near residential areas. - Paul Burgarino, The Tri-Valley Herald

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HISTORY DISMANTLED WITH WYOMING RAILROAD

SARATOGA, WY -- It's the end of the line for the old Slow and Easy.

The rail line that linked Walcott Junction and Saratoga for 105 years is being dismantled by a salvage company. The Wyoming and Colorado Railroad Co. has sold the line to A&K Railroad Materials and salvage work began a few weeks ago.

Rail traffic ceased when the Louisiana Pacific sawmill in Saratoga closed in 2003.

Intermountain Resources, which bought the mill, and the Carbon County Commission appealed to the federal Surface Transportation Board to keep the line open, but the board granted the Wyoming and Colorado Railroad the right to abandon the 23.7-mile line last year.

Piles of ties and stacks of rails are all that remain of the rail line now.

The line began as the Saratoga and Encampment Railroad -- hence the nickname, Slow and Easy.

The line was built to ship copper that was mined in the nearby Sierra Madre mountains, hauled out on an aerial tramway and smelted at Encampment.

Saratoga historian Dick Perue said the line was supposed to connect with the Laramie, Hahns Peak and Pacific Railroad, but the two lines never met up; the other ended near Walden, Colorado.

The Saratoga and Encampment Railroad served the mining, lumber and ranching industries until 1928, when it went broke. Local residents bought the line and gave it to Union Pacific.

Perue said UP tried to abandon the line in 1974 but only received permission to abandon the Saratoga-to-Encampment portion.

He said the railroad right of way might still be publicly owned but extensive legal research would be needed to determine that for certain. - The Associated Press, The Denver Post

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TRAIN RUNS OVER RAIL WORKER'S LEGS

CEDAR CITY, UT -- A 52-year-old railroad worker's legs were mangled on Friday in Cedar City, Utah when he was run over by an empty freight car.

Police Sgt. Jerry Womack said Robert Craw, of Minersville, was standing on a ladder on the side of the freight car using a hand break in an attempt to link up with a locomotive.

The coupling failed and jolted the car, causing Craw to fall part way under the slow moving rail car that ran over both legs.

He was flown to a Salt Lake City hospital for reconstructive surgery, said Womack.

The accident, which happened at 14:30 hours, is being investigated by Union Pacific Railroad. - The Salt Lake Tribune

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COAL INDUSTRY KEEPS DIGGING AS PRESSURE RISES OVER CLIMATE WOES

Photo here:

[www.billingsgazette.net]

WRIGHT, WY -- Every second of every day the oversized shovels of the Black Thunder mine claw another three tons of coal from the arid plains of eastern Wyoming.

Sprawled across 20,000 acres, Black Thunder produces more coal than any other mine in the Western Hemisphere. America's thirst for the fuel it provides is larger still: more than 1.1 billion tons consumed in 2006, or almost four tons per person.

But after years of steady growth, spurred by the rising cost of coal's main competitor, natural gas, the industry faces an increasingly uncertain future.

Each ton of coal burned emits more than two tons of carbon dioxide, the prime contributor to global warming. Environmentalists and some policymakers are calling for the country to wean itself from coal by investing in wind, biofuels and other energies and levying new taxes on carbon emissions. In the interim, they want mandates for cleaner power plants.

Yet coal could prove a habit hard to break.

Companies like Arch Coal, the owner of Black Thunder, supply the fuel for more than half the country's electricity. And with the industry's backing, Capitol Hill lawmakers led by U.S. Sen. Craig Thomas, R-Wyo., and House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., are pushing to recast coal's image - from climate change culprit to promising "alternative fuel" that could ease dependence on foreign oil and possibly provide an exit plan for the global warming quandary.

Think of it as diet coal: A new wave of coal-fired power plants would capture carbon dioxide to prevent its release into the atmosphere. Other plants would use a process perfected by the Germans to convert the black rock into diesel or jet fuel, to reduce imports of foreign oil.

Both technologies remain untested in the United States on a wide commercial scale. Thomas said that's why the government needs to step in and spur their development through loans to industry and a mandate for 21 billion gallons a year of coal-derived liquid fuels by 2022.

"We're going to be looking at new sources of energy and indeed we should be," said Thomas, whose state leads the nation in coal production. "What we need to be equally concerned with is what we're going to do now, for the next 15 years or so. Coal is one of the largest fossil fuel resources we have."

Thomas' efforts on behalf of industry stumbled in April, when his proposal was defeated on a party-line vote during a Senate Energy Committee debate over an ethanol bill. He plans to try again in June when the bill hits the Senate floor.

But a neighbor to the north, Democratic Sen. John Tester of Montana, is now saying coal should not expect a free ride. Tester said in a recent interview that any coal-to-liquids plant supported by federal dollars must include technology to capture and store carbon. The plants are projected to cost billions of dollars, making federal backing key to moving forward.

"They can do it with private backing if they want. But if they want public dollars they have to do carbon capture and sequestration. That has to be part of the conversation," Tester said.

Tester said he also wants coal-based fuels to be at least 20 percent cleaner than traditional petroleum fuels. Environmental groups say even then coal-to-liquids proposals are a distraction from the need to convert to more sustainable energy sources.

Still, from the vantage of the Black Thunder mine, it is hard to imagine coal's future dimming anytime soon.

Out of a gaping pit gouged deep into Wyoming's Powder River Basin, an endless procession of house-sized dump trucks haul away boulders of coal extracted from a 70-foot thick seam. From there, it is crushed into smaller chunks, loaded onto rail cars and shipped to power plants across the country.

The mine is one of more than a dozen along the eastern edge of the Powder River coal seam, which accounts for about 40 percent of the nation's coal production.

"In front of us are millions and millions and billions of tons of coal," said Arch Coal Vice President Greg Schaefer. "There is 200 years worth of coal here at present consumption. It's an incredible resource."

The Department of Energy forecasts coal's share of the energy market will increase to almost 60 percent over the next 25 years. Unless cleaner technologies are adopted to lower carbon emissions, that will spur an environmental "catastrophe," said David Hawkins, director of the climate center at the Natural Resources Defense Council and a former senior official at the Environmental Protection Agency.

Yet to replace 90 gigawatts of additional electricity - the amount the Department of Energy says will come from 151 new or proposed coal power plants - would require 60,000 wind turbines or 100 mid-sized nuclear plants.

"There's just nothing that comes in at the scale of coal over the foreseeable future," said James Bartis, a RAND Corporation researcher specializing in energy issues.

But Hawking said that argument should not be extended to coal-to-liquids, which he described as a worse polluter than conventional fuels. He said it would take up to 250 million tons of additional coal production every year to reach Thomas' 21 billion gallon annual mandate.

In the last three years, lobbying expenses by the coal industry more than tripled, from $2 million in 2004 to almost $7 million last year, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics. Much of the money has been funneled through Americans for Balanced Energy Choices and a related organization, the Center for Energy and Economic Development.

Until recently, one of CEED's main goals was to cast doubt on global warming and coal's contribution to the problem. As the science behind climate change has gained traction with policy makers and the public, that message has shifted, said CEED vice president Ned Leonard.

"We can't even get in the door to speak to a governor or a regulator if we're saying, 'First of all, we don't think this is even happening' " Leonard said. "You can no longer get away with talking generically about voluntary action."

What that means for coal production, and the steady march of the Black Thunder Mine across eastern Wyoming, could be decided by Congress in coming weeks.

"Over the next 20 years, the question is not whether the industry will go down," said Bartis. "It's how much will it go up." - Matthew Brown, The Associated Press, The Billings Gazette

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WOMAN KILLED JUMPING FROM TRAIN IN RIALTO RAIL YARD

RIALTO, CA -- A young woman was killed in a rail yard when she jumped from a slow-moving freight train into the path of an oncoming Amtrak train, investigators said.

The woman, described as being in her teens or early 20s, was among six transients who stowed away Sunday on a freight train that was traveling from Bakersfield, officials said.

The group intended to disembark the freight train together at the rail yard, fire Capt. Art Poduska said.

"This is a very, very tragic incident," Union Pacific spokesman James Barnes said.

At least some of the woman's companions were arrested for trespassing, Barnes said. - The Associated Press, The Sacramento Bee

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U.S. SOUTHWEST TOWNS TAP RAIL HERITAGE FOR TOURISTS

NEEDLES, CA -- In 2008, one hundred years after it first opened its doors, local officials hope the El Garces will be back in business and once more lure tourists back to this small California town.

"I love Needles and this town sure could use all the help it can get," said Dick Pyle, head of the town's planning commission and site supervisor on the reconstruction of this former Harvey House - a combined hotel and restaurant for rail crews and passengers.

"The El Garces is part of Needles' heritage as a railroad town," he added, looking round El Garces' gutted and dusty interior which was partially damaged by fire in the 1980s.

With the help of a team that has already renovated a Harvey House further east in Arizona, the Needles town council wants to use the El Garces as the cornerstone of a plan to revitalize this community of 5,600.

As the U.S. railroads spread across the country in the late 19th century and began running passenger cross-country services, Americans often faced rotting meat and week-old coffee at restaurant stops along the way.

English immigrant Fred Harvey opened up eating houses and hotels along the tracks of the Santa Fe Railway - now part of the No. 2 U.S. railroad Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. The first one was in Topeka, Kansas in 1876.

At their peak, there were 84 Harvey Houses, many in towns like Needles that were founded by railroads. But it all changed as rail passenger services faded with the advent of the automobile and highways. La Posada, the last Harvey House built in 1929 in Winslow, Arizona, only stayed open until 1957. El Garces in Needles closed in 1949.

Now less than a third of the former Harvey House buildings survive. A number of towns like Needles, which based much of its business on Route 66 after railroad passenger services dried up until Interstate 40 meant travelers bypassed town at speed, have languished like their former Harvey Houses.

The El Garces, named after Father Francisco Garces, a missionary who visited the area in 1776 -- faced destruction until locals persuaded the town council to buy it in 1999.

Now, with $9 million in federal and state grants, El Garces is the focal point of a plan to bring visitors back to Needles. It includes reopening the town theater and renovating another building in town to house a community college.

"After Route 66 was decommissioned in 1985, Needles didn't have a plan," Needles' Mayor Jeff Williams said. "This comes very late, but at least we now have a plan."

The project manager on the El Garces renovation -- which includes building new 50 hotel rooms and a restaurant -- is Allan Affeldt, who has spearheaded the reconstruction of La Posada since 1997.

"When Route 66 closed down, it was like turning a tap off for the businesses in Winslow," Affeldt said. "More people now think our rail and road heritage is classic rather than just old, and they want to come visit."

Affeldt said he hoped people reliving Route 66 would stay at the two Harvey Houses in Needles and Winslow on their way through.

Over in Needles, locals like Linda Lusk, who works at an insurance office near El Garces, just wants to see the building restored.

"I'm glad they're finally doing this," she said. "It will be great to see El Garces restored to its former glory." - Nick Carey, Reuters

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RAILSWEST ADDS NEW ENGINE

Photo here:

[images.zwire.com]

Caption reads: A diesel-electric locomotive donated by MidAmerican Energy Co. now heads one of two strings of railcars in the outdoor exhibition at the RailsWest Railroad Museum at South Main Street and 16th Avenue. (Tim Johnson/The Council Bluffs Daly Nonpareil)

COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA -- History, as seen at the RailsWest Railroad Museum, is going to change.

The museum, located at South Main Street and 16th Avenue, recently received a diesel-electric locomotive donated by MidAmerican Energy Co. The engine will remain on permanent display with the museum's other railcars on the tracks east of the building.

It's the museum's newest locomotive and its first diesel-electric, said Michele Stephens, executive director of the Historical Society of Pottawattamie County, which operates the museum.
Though the 30-foot engine is modest in size compared to the museum's older, steam-powered locomotives, it represents another phase in the city's railroad heritage.

"It's a wonderful addition to our collection of outdoor railcars," she said.

MidAmerican's gift was a sizeable one, said Larry Mendenhall, who works part-time for the society. It was hauled in by truck, then placed on the track by crane.

"They donated the diesel, which was valued at $15,000, and then they paid about that much to have it moved," he said.

Said Stephens, "They could have scrapped it and gotten quite a bit of money for it."

The locomotive is a 1953 Plymouth equipped with twin diesel engines and generators, Mendenhall said. It was used to shuttle coal around the loading area of the company's Council Bluffs power plant until it was retired about eight years ago.

"It had plenty of power," he said. "It also had air brakes; so they'd back it up to another car, and they could stop the wheels (quickly). Dave Van Houten had it running a year ago at the power plant when they moved it. They took it off the main track and put it on a stub track, and that's where it sat."

Stephens credited Van Houten and Grant Weis with guiding the engine to its new home.
"They both spent a lot of hours researching and trying to find the resources to bring it down here," she said. - Tim Johnson, The Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil

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RAILROAD WORKER CITES FELA FOR INJURY ON TRAIN

BEAUMONT, TX -- Injuring himself while installing an end-of-train device for the BNSF Railway Company, Eldwin Garrett is citing the Federal Employers Liability Act and suing the company for negligence.

Garrett filed his personal injury lawsuit with the Jefferson County District Court on May 31. Judge Donald Floyd, 172nd Judicial District, will preside over the case.

According to the plaintiff's petition, on Nov. 11, 2006, Plaintiff, Garret was injured while in the process of installing an end-of-train device on a train in Dayton, Texas.

"The injuries to plaintiff were due in whole or in part to the negligence of defendant, its agents, servants or employees acting in the course and scope of their employment," the suit said. "Defendant failed to provide plaintiff with a reasonably safe place to work."

Garrett claims he suffered injuries to his head, neck and shoulders, and other parts of his body. However, the suit does not specify how he injured himself or the direct acts of negligence allegedly committed by BNSF Railway Company.

The suit only says the incident caused Garrett to suffer "physical and mental pain…and, in all reasonable probability, will continue to suffer in this manner for a long time into the future. The injuries have had a serious effect on plaintiff's health and well being."

Garrett is suing for past and future medical expenses and impairment.

He is represented by Friendswood attorney Sara L. Youngdahl of the Youngdahl Law Firm. - David Yates, The Southeast Texas Record

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ALL ABORAD! FOR A MEMORABLE TRAIN RIDE

HAVRE, MT -- Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line members are gearing up for the ride of their life -- a BNSF Railway Company vintage train with 13 passenger cars is coming their way to take them on a journey of railroad adventure on Friday, June 15.

The Boys & Girls Club of Havre has been selected as one of five stops in this year’s “BNSF Railway Special,” a unique railway experience for members and an opportunity to raise funds for the youth organization. The club will receive a $10,000 contribution from the BNSF Foundation that will be matched by local sponsors Klabzuba Oil and Gas, Northern Montana Hospital and Schine Electric.

Havre has 330 tickets available for the passenger car adventure, and club members will ride free. Twenty-eight of the tickets allow exclusive access to the Fred Harvey Dining Car, where the local club’s youth of the year, Donald Cox, will speak at a sponsor-honoring engagement. “We were selected as one of four clubs in the region,” Krista Solomon of the Hi- Line club excitedly said of the fundraiser. “We’ve earmarked the money that we raise for our transportation fund. This special fund is going to help us allow kids to get to the club in the summer months. Our attendance drops from 200 to 75, and we know that it is because school buses don’t run in the summer. Our goal is to go out into the community and pick up the kids, so they can enjoy club activities.”

It’s about a two-and-a-half-hour train ride that will take place a week from Friday. Riders will meet at 09:00 in the U. S. Bank parking lot, with everybody on board at 10:00 hours.

The Boys & Girls Club has named Lloyd Kaercher as the honorary train conductor for the Special Railway event. Kaercher has donated countless hours to the club, and the staff chose to name him honorary conductor to thank him for the years of dedicated service to youth. “I think it’s neat that kids who have never rode the train will get to have this exciting railway as their first ride,” Solomon said. “It’s also a neat piece of history -- this train is not like any other train they will ever ride.

There are only 17 vintage trains in America, and the Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line is very fortunate to receive this opportunity to explore the world outside the club.” The transportation committee also will be announcing a wonderful surprise at the BNSF event -- a secret that cannot be revealed until the day of the ride.

The Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line opened on July 1, 2002, serving more than 1,600 members. The club provides daily access to a broad range of programs in five core areas: Education and Career Development; Character and Leadership Development; Health and Life Skills; The Arts; and Sports, Fitness and Recreation.

The railway is a subsidiary of BNSF, which operates one of the largest railroad networks in North America, with about 32,000 route miles in 28 states and two Canadian provinces. There are a limited number of tickets for the general community. - Elizabeth Doney, The Havre Daily News

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TRANSIT NEWS

PANEL FINDS WEAKNESSES IN METRORAIL OPERATION

Photo here:

[images.chron.com]

HOUSTON, TX -- A peer review panel invited by the Metropolitan Transit Authority to investigate a May 9 incident that could have become a head-on collision found several flaws in the agency's light rail operation.

Crucial among them was a need for more MetroRail control staff at the Houston TranStar traffic center and a clear definition of their authority, responsibility and accountability for the rail operation.

Metro officials said a new light rail operator, less than three weeks at the controls, was waved onto the opposite-direction track by a member of a signal maintenance crew, and proceeded without asking the controllers at TranStar for permission.

The workers' presence and activities were known to controllers, but the switch — which was being opened and closed during testing — was supposed to be closed when trains crossed it, Metro said.

Metro officials said the train traveled about a half-mile north on the southbound track until reaching the Texas Medical Center, where the operator called the controllers on her cellular phone for guidance. They told her to stay put, then sent the same order to an oncoming train at the next station.

Following the incident, one member of the signal crew resigned. Others involved in the incident received suspensions and close supervision after returning to work.

The four investigating panelists are from the American Public Transportation Association and transit agencies with street-level rail lines in New Jersey, Maryland and Utah.

Although a final report may be weeks away, Reginald Mason, Metro's chief safety officer, presented preliminary findings to the Metro board last week.

Besides having more control staff at TranStar, the panel suggested installing an "audible alarm" there to sound when a switch is in a dangerous position. The situation is displayed visually now but might not be noticed in time to prevent an accident.

The panel also found Metro's light rail rules are unclear in assigning safety responsibilities, leading to confusion among those involved in the incident.

"It was very unclear who had control of the mainline operations," Mason said, referring to the train operator and her superiors, the maintenance staff or the controllers at TranStar.

The panel said the MetroRail rule book should be revised "to ensure clear responsibility and accountability," and Metro should hold daily meetings among personnel of the three rail divisions to coordinate their activities safely.

Since the incident, Metro has begun retraining its light rail operators and conducting all track maintenance at night, after the line shuts down, president and CEO Frank Wilson said. For several months, the agency has been installing signals that show rail operators the position of a switch long before the train is close enough for observation of the switch itself.

Wilson said that when MetroRail was designed and built, before his arrival in May 2004, the agency's philosophy called for a "visual flight operation" -- one in which the train operators would depend largely on what they could see to ensure safety.

By contrast, he said, freight rail lines and many transit systems have automated safeguards that alert operators of a danger or even bring the train to a stop to avoid collisions.

"In railroads you need to break through a variety of redundancies and backups in order to have an accident," Wilson said. "In this situation, I can count burning through four redundancies out of six, and the final two saved the incident from becoming an accident.

"Let's not count on luck," Wilson said. "It's better to backstop with technology that can work when humans fail." - Rad Sallee, The Houston Chronicle

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FROM COACHES TO 'L' CARS

CHICAGO, IL -- A new book comes out Monday that should be on the reading lists of Illinois lawmakers as they decide the future of mass transit in the Chicago region.

"The Chicago 'L'," by Greg Borzo, is a photographic history, so it won't be too difficult of an assignment for politicians accustomed to voting on legislation without reading it.

The book traces the living story of Chicago's elevated train system -- chronicling rail line expansions and demolitions over the last 115 years -- and it celebrates the "L's" ongoing contribution to shaping the city and the suburbs. It is a story that runs much deeper than just transportation.

"I've had a longtime fascination with the 'L,' riding it almost every day for 20 years and always looking out the window," said Borzo, a science writer at the Field Museum who said he strove to steer clear from presenting too much technical detail in order to appeal to a mass audience.

"The 'L' is not only a way to get to work. It is fun and democratic. Crowded trains help us rub shoulders together, rich and poor, making us more aware of our fellow citizens than we would be sitting alone in a car," said the Borzo, 53, a lifelong Chicagoan.

The book takes readers from the mid-1850s, beginning with Chicago's first form of mass transit, the omnibus -- a kind of stagecoach that bounced through the rutted streets -- through the development of horse cars, the steam locomotive, cable cars, trolleys, streetcars powered by overhead electrical wires and elevated trains, which initially carried freight instead of people.

"The Chicago 'L,'" published by Arcadia Publishing (http://www.arcadiapublishing.com), uses photos from the collection of the Chicago Transit Authority and other sources. Borzo said some of his favorites in the 168-page book include pictures from the Columbian Intramural Railway, which carried about 6 million fairgoers at the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 on a 3-mile route.

"The exposition gave us more than the Ferris wheel and Cracker Jacks. The 'L' technology that is used today on the CTA -- the uncovered third rail at the side of the track -- was pioneered at the World's Fair," said Borzo, who conducts "L" tours for the Chicago History Museum.

Chicago's first "L" line, the Chicago & South Side Rapid Transit, was incorporated in 1888 and opened in 1892. It was followed by the Lake Street Elevated Railway , where riders were introduced to center-facing seats. It's a seating configuration that the CTA is considering bringing back today with the planned purchase of new rail cars.

But back in 1900, Borzo noted in his book next to a photo of a railcar interior, some people considered it "risque for unacquainted men and women to sit side by side in such an intimate, unchaperoned setting." The Chicago & Oak Park Elevated Railroad, which took over the Lake Street "L" in 1904, installed reversible seats allowing all passengers to ride facing forward.

Following construction of the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad, the Loop "L" and the last of the original elevated lines, the Northwestern Elevated Railroad that operated along the North Side, work began to build branches of the main line tracks. The Stock Yards branch of the South Side "L" opened in 1908.

A photo in the book shows an elevated train traveling directly over stockades taking passengers to stations with names that included Armour and Swift. The caption comments: "The most colorful (and odoriferous) branch went through the stockyards carrying workers to packinghouses -- as well as tourists to see the slaughtering and dine at fine restaurants in the vicinity."

The book is chock-full with people shots. One photo shows a group of women boarding a "fresh air car" at Jackson Park in 1915. The rail cars were equipped with windows locked in the open position when the city was struggling with an influenza outbreak.

Shirley Temple is seen in another photo taking the controls of an elevated train in 1938 under the watchful eye of an engineer. And cameras recorded Mayor Richard J. Daley in 1962, at a ceremony for the elevation of part of the Lake Street "L," destroying a crossing gate that was no longer needed, a move that improved safety and lessened traffic congestion.

In some ways, the much-maligned CTA has an easy go of it today compared with its earliest predecessors. Complaints about noise and other side effects of the emerging rail technology began as soon as "L" trains began operating.

The New York Academy of Medicine warned in 1897 that elevated trains "prevented the normal development of children, threw convalescing patients into relapses, and caused insomnia, exhaustion, hysteria, paralysis, meningitis, deafness, and death."

Elevated trains of the past carried not only commuters, but also corpses. Borzo noted that the Metropolitan West Side "L" funeral trains, which operated between 1906 and 1934, gave new meaning to "end of the line." A photo in the book shows a rail car with stained-glass windows, seats for 30 mourners and an oversize door to accommodate caskets.

Who knows, the funeral trains might once again be needed, in light of last week's decision by the Illinois General Assembly to postpone a funding rescue of the CTA, Metra and Pace. CTA officials say the transit agency will be forced to severely reduce service and raise fares in September, and Pace officials say paratransit services to disabled riders will be cut if the legislature does not provide additional operating subsidies.

"To me it is inconceivable that we would be letting any part of the system go when we should be expanding service," Borzo said.

"I would hope that history could be our guide and we start to value our transit resource more. The 'L' has carried more than 10 billion passengers over the last century and looking to the future, it is vital."

Borzo will mark the release of "The Chicago 'L'" with a book signing from 17:30 to 19:30 hours on Thursday in the Chicago History Museum, 1601 N. Clark St. - Jon Hilkevitch, The Chicago Tribune

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FIRST WOMAN TO LEAD LIRR

NEW YORK CITY, NY -- MTA officials are expected to announce today that Helena Williams, former president of Long Island Bus and a deputy county executive for Nassau, will take the helm of the Long Island Rail Road, becoming the first woman to lead the nation's largest commuter rail system.

Williams, 51, of Stewart Manor, said her priority for the railroad is customer safety, including the platform gap problem, which she described as "my first day on the job issue.

"I will be looking at exactly what's been accomplished and what the goals are in terms of further remediation" of gaps, she said. "It's one of my highest priorities."

Williams, who is expected to start June 18, said her review also will focus on security, service reliability and the system's "readiness" to meet future transportation needs.

"She reminds me in many ways of Peter Stangl, who did not have a commuter rail background before taking over Metro-North, but brought similar kinds of assets," said MTA chief executive Elliot "Lee" Sander.

State Sen. Dean Skelos (R-Rockville Centre) expressed reservations about Williams' appointment, citing her lack of railroad experience.

"She's a very capable person, but she's going to face real challenges as president of the Long Island Rail Road," Skelos said. "It's going to take a lot of on-the-job training."

The appointment of an LIRR outsider with MTA experience closes with a twist a debate about whether the new railroad chief should come from within or without. It also confirms that Sander will not move to merge the LIRR with its sister railroad, Metro-North.

"Long Island Rail Road, in many respects, is performing well but needs to be taken to a higher level," Sander said. "I think [Williams] will bring a fresh vision and energy to the railroad."

As president of Long Island Bus from 1993 to 1998, Williams converted a diesel-powered fleet to eco-friendly natural gas buses. The first woman to head an MTA agency, she introduced a service for disabled riders and slashed fares by introducing the MetroCard, which eliminated transfer charges for Nassau-Queens commuters and sparked a ridership jump.

Williams later served as counsel and deputy county executive for Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi, helping to turn around the county's near-bankrupt finances and shepherding the Nassau Hub project.

Yesterday, Williams did not elaborate on her plans for the railroad, saying she intends to seek input from employees and riders, and "take a fresh look at what can we do to make the commuter experience better."

Acting President Ray Kenny, a 34-year LIRR veteran who applied for the permanent post, did not say yesterday whether he intends to stay on or retire. "It has been a distinct honor to serve as the acting LIRR president for the past nine months - a time when we have faced and effectively managed many challenges," he said in a statement.

Mitchell Pally, who represents Suffolk County on the MTA board, praised Kenny's interim leadership and called Williams "an excellent choice." - Jennifer Maloney, Newsday

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THE END