Photo Courtesy Watco Companies
WATCO MOVES DOWN UNDER
In May, “wagon” loads of grain are expected to be brimming Down Under on trains operated by Pittsburg, KS-based Watco Companies for CBH Group of Western Australia. Trains are moving ahead of schedule and should be in full force once more equipment arrives.
CBH, a farmer-owned cooperative established in 1933, awarded Watco a 10-year grain rail contract in late 2010. Watco is providing logistics, which includes operations and scheduling, tracing, and railcar and locomotive maintenance and inventory control.
In February, 50 of 574 new wagons or cars being produced arrived in Western Australia and went into action sooner than expected.
On March 30, Watco ran the first train from Merredan to Kwinana Terminal. The train consisted of 50 wagons hauling more than 35 tons of wheat.
“Given the record harvest just gone and the need to get better performance from rail to meet our export task, we pushed hard to get on the tracks earlier than the original 1 May commencement date,” said CBH General Manager Operations Colin Tutt. “We are ready, willing and able to get out there and provide more capacity on rail.”
For more on this story, see the May/June 2012 issue of the Cowcatcher Magazine!
(May 1, 2012)
DART ORANGE LINE TESTED
Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) successfully completed the first light rail test train to Irving, TX, in April after finishing the five-mile section between Bachman Station and the Irving Convention Center.
The first section of the 14-mile Orange Line opens July 30.
Tests for train movements, the overhead electrical system and vehicle clearances were in advance of integrated testing and safety certification.
DART was scheduled to conduct a similar live wire test of the five-mile Blue Line extension from Downtown Garland Station to Downtown Rowlett Station in late April.
(May 1, 2012)
Farmrail photo courtesy Ron Roman
FARMRAIL 30 YEARS OLD
Farmrail marked its 30th anniversary in November. Since its arrival in western Oklahoma, the company has grown from a 35-mile short line linking Clinton and Elk City, OK to a 369-mile network.
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See the current issue of the Cowcatcher Magazine for more regional model railroad/rail enthusiast news!
News From The Region
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ODOT SIGNS AGREEMENT TO RECEIVE TIGER III FUNDING
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation formally signed an agreement to receive $6.75 million from the Transportation Investments Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) III program to rehabilitate 49 miles of state-owned rail line between Elk City and Sayre, OK, in the Anadarko Basin, according to U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.
The Federal Railroad Administration announced in December that ODOT was awarded the funding.
Farmrail, a short line that serves the region, will benefit from track improvements that are expected to reduce transportation costs in bringing crude oil and gas to market quicker. The railroad has made recent investments in equipment to keep up with more outbound crude and inbound frack sand trains coming from the Basin.
The track rehabilitation will allow for speeds up to 25 miles per hour with fewer restrictions on the number of cars per train.
(May 10, 2012)
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MIDWEST RAIL NEEDS LONG-TERM PLANNING, FRA OFFICIAL SAYS
KANSAS CITY, MO — Speaking at the Northern Flyer Alliance’s Passenger Rail Symposium in April, Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph C. Szabo stressed the need for long-term planning to create market-driven passenger rail corridors.
The symposium, at Kansas City’s Union Station, was held to create a venue for public officials, business owners, community leaders and other stakeholders from Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas to discuss the expansion of passenger rail as a fiscally sound approach to the region’s transportation issues.
With population expected to grow by 100 million in the next 40 years, America’s economic competiveness in the 21st century will require its highways, airports, railways and public transit systems to work together seamlessly in a way that moves people and goods faster and more efficiently, Szabo said.
“Progress doesn’t happen overnight – it becomes a reality after each state lays a solid foundation through good planning and analysis,” he said. “I am pleased to see the planning work currently taking place in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, proving that strong, long-term planning leads to the creation of a market-driven rail plan that benefits communities throughout the corridor.”
With more than $10 billion in funding, the FRA and 32 state partners are proceeding with 154 High-Speed and Intercity Passenger Rail Program projects. A federal investment of $2.5 billion thus far has allowed the Midwest region to improve reliability, trip times and station development in the last three years.
(May 1, 2012)
TEXRAIL GETS FEDERAL APPROVAL TO START PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING AND DESIGN
Another commuter rail line appears headed for North Texas.
The Federal Transit Administration gave the okay in March to start preliminary engineering and design for TEXRail, a proposed $758 million commuter line along 37 miles of the Cotton Belt corridor stretching from far Southwest Fort Worth to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
TEX Rail would join two other area commuter lines – Trinity Railway Express and Denton A-Train – in the Southwest’s fastest growing passenger rail market.
The FTA notified the Fort Worth Transportation Authority by letter dated March 23 that it had given the go-ahead. The T, however, must secure a federal grant for about half the project’s cost before dirt can move. The North Central Texas Council of Governments is seeking additional public and private funds for the project.
TEX Rail, if approved, could begin service by 2016.
(May 1, 2012)
KCS TO GET 30 NEW LOCOMOTIVES
WASHINGTON – The Federal Railroad Administration announced a $54.6 million loan to Kansas City Southern Railway Co. (KCSR) for the purchase of 30 new General Electric ES44AC locomotives. The diesel-electric locomotives, to be built in Erie, PA, are more energy-efficient and produce significantly less carbon emissions than the locomotives they are replacing.
The locomotives, which will be funded by the FRA's Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing Program, will be deployed throughout KCSR’s system to accommodate increased demand for shipments of coal, chemicals, grain, sand, stone, gravel, plastics, metals, and automobiles.
RRIF provides direct loans for eligible borrowers to acquire, improve, or rehabilitate rail and rail-related intermodal equipment and facilities. There is currently up to an aggregate of $35 billion available in the RRIF program for these types of projects.
(IDOT GETS FUNDING FOR HIGH-SPEED RAIL
U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today awarded more than $186 million to the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) for a high-speed rail project.
The project will extend construction of the corridor north to Joliet, allowing for 110-mph service along nearly 70 percent of the route. Construction is already under way on the Chicago – St. Louis corridor, and work on the extension to Joliet will begin this spring. Once construction is complete, travelers can expect reductions of more than an hour in trip time, with improved on-time performance as well. Ridership has grown 137 percent over the last five years. The state has plans to add more frequent trips, and further reduce trip times on this popular route in the future.
The corridor will also benefit from next-generation American-made trains, funded as part of a previously announced $782 million grant that will pump new life into domestic manufacturing. States will purchase 33 quick-acceleration locomotives and 120 bi-level passenger cars to operate in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Iowa, Missouri, California, Washington and Oregon.
Illinois is among 32 states throughout the U.S. and the District of Columbia that are laying the foundation for high-speed rail corridors that will link Americans with faster and more energy-efficient travel options. To date, the U.S. Department of Transportation has invested $10.1 billion to put American communities on track towards new and expanded rail access and improved reliability, speed and frequency of existing service.
(January 4, 2012)
PATRIOT RAIL ADDS FRAC SAND BUSINESS
Patriot Rail Corp. was busy in the final months of 2011 in Louisiana and Arkansas.
The short line and regional freight railroad holding company based in Boca Raton, FL, signed a rail car service agreement and added new frac sand business. The company owns and operates 12 short line freight railroads comprising approximately 500 rail miles in 12 states.
In November, Patriot Rails’ Louisiana and North West Railroad (LNW) signed a five-year agreement with Pro Sands Processing, LLC, a frac sand supply, storage and delivery company serving the oil and gas industry. Pro Sands will lease 10 acres at LNW’s new Iron Ridge Road transload facility in Gibsland, LA. LNW will deliver freight carloads of frac sand to Pro Sands there, and the product will be dried, processed and transloaded to truck for delivery throughout the region.
Pro Sands has initially committed to moving a minimum of 2,400 carloads a year into the facility, with a target of 5,000 carloads once the Pro Sands facility at Iron Bridge Road is fully operational.
Over the past year, Patriot has invested more than $3 million to develop the Iron Bridge Road facility, a 40-acre transloading site adjacent to the Haynesville shale natural gas field in northwest Louisiana and southwest Arkansas. The Iron Bridge Road facility, which officially opened Oct. 5, 2011, allows energy producers to transfer bulk cargo such as frac sand, aggregate and other commodities from rail cars to trucks.
“Patriot is committed to improving our short line railroads, serving our customers and strengthening local economies,” Patriot CEO Gary O. Marino said.
In 2008, Patriot bought the 68-mile L&NW, which connects the Haynesville shale formation – one of the nation’s largest natural gas fields – with Class I railroads Kansas City Southern and Union Pacific. Headquartered in Homer, LA, the L&NW was incorporated in 1889 and operates trains from Gibsland, LA, to McNeil, AR.
The Iron Bridge Road project comprises 40 acres. General manager Johnnie Raab said the company is negotiating for an additional 100 acres.
Raab said L&NW will be hiring new crews, maintenance workers, office personnel and security professionals, while its customers will be adding operational positions in the Iron Bridge Road yard. “We expect to bring a substantial number of new jobs to Gibsland in the next year,” he added. “That’s just the tip of the iceberg once things really get rolling.”
Located 100 miles east of Shreveport, Gibsland has about 1,000 residents and one of Louisiana’s highest unemployment rates, according to Pat White, who served as mayor in 2009-10 and is now retired. “I pushed hard for this project, because it will bring so many benefits to our community,” he said.
Patriot Rail also recently announced that it had entered a long-term rail car services agreement with CF Rail.
CF Rail leased the rail car and locomotive inspection and repair facilities at Patriot’s DeQueen & Eastern (DQE), Columbia and Cowlitz (CLC) and Golden Triangle (GTRA) railroads. CF Rail will perform rail car and locomotive repairs on system and privately owned cars and locomotives at these facilities, including cars and locomotives owned by Patriot.
The repair facilities include state-of-the-art locomotive, rail car and locomotive wheel shops in DeQueen, AR, and a rail car shop in Valliant, OK, all on the DQE; locomotive and rail car shops in Columbus, MI, on the GTRA; and locomotive and rail car shops in Longview, WA, on the CLC.
SEE MORE REGIONAL SHORT LINE NEWS IN THE CURRENT ISSUE OF COWCATCHER MAGAZINE
(January 2, 2012)
WATCO FORMS SHORT LINE TO SERVE ENERGY SECTOR
PITTSBURG, KS — Watco Transportation Services, LLC announced in December the formation of the short line Swan Ranch Railroad to serve the growing needs of the energy sector. The SRR will operate within the newly developed Swan Ranch Industrial Park in Cheyenne, WY, the largest logistics hub in the Rocky Mountain Region.
Watco filed a petition with the Surface Transportation Board for the SRR to operate 17,192 feet of track as a switching railroad. This landmark railroad will be the first Watco-owned short line operating in Wyoming and within an industrial park.(January 2, 2012)
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Top Stories
AMTRAK, TxDOT TO STUDY NEW SERVICE BETWEEN SHREVEPORT AND D/FW
May 1, 2012
Amtrak and the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) have agreed on the scope of a feasibility study for new Amtrak service between Bossier City-Shreveport in Northwest Louisiana and along the Interstate 20 corridor to Dallas and Fort Worth.
TxDOT and Amtrak officials joined members of the East Texas Corridor Council in March to recognize the start of work to study new service by conventional trains with a maximum speed of 79 m.p.h..
Amtrak will estimate order-of-magnitude capital requirements and operating costs needed to provide state-sponsored passenger rail service, with trains making up to seven intermediate stops and operating up to two daily round-trips.
The study will consider potential schedules, operating costs, revenue and ridership, railcar and locomotive requirements, and capital needs for infrastructure improvements.
Union Pacific Railroad, which owns much of the route, will determine rail capacity.
The rail segment between Marshall, TX, and Fort Worth is served now by Amtrak’a Texas Eagle as part of its Chicago-San Antonio/Los Angeles route with one daily frequency in each direction and intermediate stops.
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DCTA DEBUTS FACILITY, STADLER BUSSNANG AG A-TRAIN CARS AT RIBBON CUTTING
By TIM BLACKWELL
January 13, 2012
DENTON, TX - Local and state officials were on hand today for the ribbon cutting of Denton County Transportation Authority's new maintenance facility, which will service Denton A-Train's fleet of Stadler GTW 2-6 Diesel Multiple Unit rail vehicles.
The 47,000-square-foot facility, located on an 80-acre site in Lewisville, houses more than 30 DCTA employees and the maintenance and operations staff of Herzog Transit Services, Inc., which is contracting with DCTA to maintain the fleet and line.
One of the three sets of GTWs that DCTA has already received was on display inside the facility and available for tours. A second set was staged outside for a brief run down a side track closest to the parking lot.
Bill Glavin, Texas Department of Transportation Rail Division Director, told about 200 hundred in attendance that transit rail operations like DCTA are essential to the development and sustainability of a regional and national rail network.
"We have to have alternatives like DCTA for citizens to be mobile and move around in these communities," he said. "This is the first step."
When DCTA receives its full 11-car, five-set order of the GTW DMUs, the A-Train will boast one of the most advanced fleets in the country for the run to and from Denton and Carrollton.
Transit officials have spent the past two years working with Stadler and the Federal Railroad Administration to modify the cars to comply with American safety standards and eventually operate concurrent with FRA compliant equipment through an Alternate Vehicle Technology (AVT) crashworthiness waiver.Modifications include changes to the fuel tank design, emergency exits, and passenger and operator seats. Braking and crash energy management systems are also advanced.
"Stadler is known world-wide for the quality of their products," DCTA President Jim Cline said. "We are excited to be able to deliver a premium rail car for our customers. Our efforts to make the vehicle meet FRA's standards will greatly expand the regional rail opportunities in North Texas and the United States."
DCTA expects to receive the remaining five cars being built overseas by early summer. Cars 7 and 8 are to arrive before the end of January, with Nos. 9 and 10 coming in March and No. 11 by May, according to a Stadler Bussnang spokesman who was at for the ceremony. Two of the sets have been fully tested and are ready for duty.
A-Train officials did not say when the cars would go into revenue service.
DCTA is awaiting an AVT waiver by the FRA before it can replace the RDCs that are currently running. If the waiver is obtained before the full order is received, DCTA will begin transitioning fully-tested cars onto the line.
The opening of the $17 million rail facility is the last remaining component of the A-Train construction project. The train began running in June 2011 and has already carried more than 200,000 passengers.
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WOODLAND SCENICS "BUSINESS AS USUAL" AFTER BLAZE
January 11, 2012
It was business as usual for Woodland Scenics' entire work force, which returned Monday after a fire last week destroyed one of the company's buildings, according to a company statement.
Much cleanup remains after the Jan. 5 fire halted production at the Woodland Scenics'' downtown manufacturing facility in Linn Creek, MO. The company is a large producer of model railroad scenery products.
The fire affected only 8 percent of the company's operations, unlike intial reports that indicated much of Woodland Scenics had been destroyed. The company has other facilities outside of downtown which were not affected.
The blaze, which required firefighters from about 20 surrounding districts to extinguish, was caused by an electrical motor failure. All of the company's employees were safely evacuated.
A skeleton crew of employees returned to work on Friday and worked through the weekend to get the company back on line. A post on the company's Facebook page said that by following "thorough safety procedures" everybody was able to escape unharmed.
CEO Dwayne Fulton said employees quickly jumped in to clean up afterward and the company received an outpouring of support.
"While we still have some clean-up to do, our dedicated Woodland Scenics team has pitched in 110 percent to make sure we continued with business as usual," Fulton said in a statement. "We are most grateful that no one was hurt. Friends and customers from all over the world contacted us to offer their encouragement, prayers and help. We are appreciative of this outpouring of support."
Firefighters fought the blaze for at least six hours. Trucks from several districts shuttled water to the scene as water used to extinguish the blaze depleted Linn Creek's water supply.