Posts tagged Rail
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Is it time to bring back the W&OD as commuter rail?
Provide an “express” commuter rail option for people across the region, and connect Loudoun County to transit. How? By rebuilding the Washington & Old Dominion as a commuter railroad. Keep reading…
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Who rode it best? Transit group wins first Ride for the Region
What’s the opposite of an underdog? Staff at the American Public Transit Association (APTA) won first place in Ride for the Region, a competition in the Washington area to encourage employees to ride transit. Keep reading…
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National links: California may soon enact a much-needed housing bill
SB423 would streamline affordable housing and mixed-use development approvals across California until 2036. Norway’s record-breaking bike tunnel. Momentum builds for a rail line in Colorado. Keep reading…
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New crossing gates between DC and Richmond to prevent reckless drivers from entering train tracks
USDOT awarded $3.2M in federal infrastructure funds to Virginia to cover the cost of installing new at-grade crossing gates in four locations between DC and Richmond, designed to stop drivers from trying to enter the tracks ahead of trains. Keep reading…
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Maryland has a lot of rail plans. These bills could finally make some of them reality.
Two bills proposed in the Maryland legislature would help make big plans for rail expansion and surrounding development a reality. Keep reading…
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National links: Paris plans to limit pass-through traffic in the city center
Paris: drive to it, but not through it. Denver trains don’t go where people need them. A gas tax could spark a trade dispute Keep reading…
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More rail could be coming to Southwest Virginia
Although the General Assembly approved an $83.5 million budget amendment this session, in part to extend passenger rail service deeper into Southwest Virginia, that doesn’t change the fact that there isn’t a train station or even a platform in the New River Valley. However, legislation from local lawmakers that is heading to the governor’s desk aims to fix that by creating a new regional body to raise money for the facility. Keep reading…
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Some rail advocates hope Virginia’s new authority will help remove some of the politics out of rail policy
When former Gov. Doug Wilder sold off the state’s interest in hundreds of miles of track and rail right of way in the early 1990s, the move was applauded by the Republican-dominated legislature as a prudent divestment to help balance the annual budget. Since then, though, the state has spent millions more on track improvements benefitting railroad corporations in exchange for every increase in passenger train service Virginia has sought. To avoid another such flash sale of Virginia’s rail infrastructure and to oversee an increasing focus on boosting passenger rail capacity to combat congestion, 2020 the General Assembly created the brand new Virginia Passenger Rail Authority. Keep reading…
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What does legislation about freight crew size have to do with the climate and the future of rail?
Freight crew size requirements may not seem especially relevant to the present; however, the dogged, state-by-state fight over their adoption says a lot more about the future of American rail, the economy, and the climate. Keep reading…
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Comprehensive regional rail from Baltimore through to Richmond by 2045? A new coalition thinks it’s possible.
A coalition of business groups, legislators, transit agencies, and other groups recently launched the Capital Region Rail Vision Project. The initiative will bring interested parties together to map out the path to an efficient, interconnected rail system connecting the entire region before 2045. Keep reading…