No immunity in train accidents

Click title for full story. March 26, 2008 OFFICIALS have not yet determined who was responsible for the accident that injured 150 commuter rail passengers in Canton Tuesday evening. If CSX freight company workers are to blame, the company can and should be held liable, something CSX opposes on another commuter rail line it is negotiating to sell to the state. The company needs to back off its insistence on immunity. CSX workers left four boxcars full of lumber at a siding next to the commuter rail tracks. One car broke free and struck the commuter train. The track is owned by the MBTA, and no special exemptions from liability are in place. So any party responsible for the accident can be sued for personal injury, the kind of litigation that ought to encourage improved safety procedures.

Orlando Commuter Rail Bill Ballons

Click the title for full story and to add a comment! Orlando commuter rail bill balloons The state's cost to bring controversial commuter rail to central Florida will be $650-million, more than the $491-million originally forecast, a Florida transportation department spokesman confirmed today. The hike is mostly due to the cost of five overpasses jumping from $59-million to $204-million, which spokesman Dick Kane attributed to uncertain early estimating. While Orlando lawmakers push the deal, the new cost sparked more distaste from critics who say the 2006 deal never got enough public debate. "It's amazing. We're in the tightest budget year in 10 years, and they just keep finding money," said Sen. Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland, whose city faces more CSX freight traffic due to the 2006 deal.

No Liability For CSX?

Freight Car Hits Boston Commuter Train CANTON, Mass. (AP) — A train car loaded with lumber hit a stationary commuter train during the Tuesday afternoon rush hour, injuring dozens of people, authorities said. About 50 people reported mostly minor injuries, and 10 passengers and crew members were taken to hospitals, said Scott Farmelant, a spokesman for Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail. He said he did not know the extent of those injuries. The commuter train's locomotive was not moving when it was hit by a CSX freight car that had rolled from a branch onto a main track south of Boston, said Joe Pesaturo, spokesman for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. The commuter train's engineer was among those injured, he said. The engineer saw the approaching freight car and stopped the commuter train before the impact, Farmelant said. It was not immediately known how many people were aboard the train. Passenger, Gary Rozenas, 55, told the Boston Herald that the crash ignited a small brush fire. "All the lights went out and people were flying down the aisles and people were on the floor of the car," he said. "The car began filling up with dust and the scary part was part of the woods was burning up outside the doors." Another passenger, 42-year-old Tony Phillips, told The Boston Globe the train stopped suddenly as it approached a station. "All the sudden, there was a bang. ... People were screaming, 'Oh my God, what happened?'" he said. The flat car, loaded with lumber, had been placed at a customer's location earlier in the day, said CSX spokesman Gary Sease. The company is cooperating with the investigation, he said. "Our first concerns are the safety of the passengers and train crew," Sease said. The commuter train had left Boston's South Station for Stoughton, southeast of Canton. The crash was affecting service on one line, Wilbur said.

Gardner will consider tax abatement for intermodal hub

Click the title for the full story. This seems like the dumbest thing a city could do, especially with developers willing to come to this area, at full tax value. Wednesday, March 12, 2008 - 2:45 PM CDT Gardner will consider tax abatement for intermodal hub Kansas City Business Journal The Gardner City Council will meet Wednesday to discuss granting an extraordinary tax abatement and seeking state help with bond financing to support a BNSF Railway Co. intermodal logistics hub. David Drovetta, the council's president, said the council called a special meeting so the Kansas Legislature could act on the request before its annual session ends. State financing would let the city meet a previously set timetable of annexing property for the hub in April, Drovetta said. The council will consider abating the hub's property taxes by 85 percent for 10 years, Drovetta said. The cut is 35 percentage points above the city's standard abatement and would let the hub compete with other incentive-supported development elsewhere in Johnson County, he said. The council's Wednesday agenda also includes asking the state to back the city's draw from the state's transportation revolving loan fund.

County may sue to block rail yard

County may sue to block rail yard NS has ruled out Salem for the site; a supervisor said Montgomery County doesn't want it. By Tim Thornton 381-1669 Norfolk Southern Corp.'s intermodal rail yard isn't coming to Salem, and Montgomery County may sue if it comes to Elliston. That's what Montgomery County Supervisor Gary Creed said Saturday. He also said that state Secretary of Transportation Pierce Homer told him to keep the site selection information under his hat. "I'm not sure it should stay there," Creed said. "It's kind of an important thing." Supervisors discussed the possibility of a lawsuit in a closed session Feb. 25. They have not voted to sue, Creed said, but, "Everybody's in agreement." The Roanoke Region Intermodal Facility, which was announced 22 months ago, is part of the Heartland Corridor plan, which aims to move doubled-stacked freight containers between Columbus, Ohio, and Norfolk faster and more efficiently. An intermodal rail yard transfers trailer-sized containers between trucks and rail cars. There has been no official site announcement and Homer said Saturday that no decision has been made. Del. Dave Nutter, R-Christiansburg, said Homer told him he hadn't been "released" to approve the Elliston site, but Homer made it clear to Nutter there are fundamental issues with other sites. The state paid NS more than $200,000 to conduct detailed engineering reviews of three sites -- sites the company had already evaluated before choosing Elliston. "I would feel more comfortable if we had some outside engineering," Nutter said. Homer said Saturday there are "significant cost and operational issues" at potential sites in Salem and Roanoke County. The Elliston site's issues are related to cost, not operations, he said. One of the potential costs at Elliston is improving North Fork Road (Virginia 603) between U.S. 11/460 and Interstate 81. Nutter said that would cost about $15 million. Cove Hollow Road, which runs across the property where NS wants to build, would have to be rerouted to accommodate the facility. A bridge would have to be built across the South Fork of the Roanoke River. "You can't expect Montgomery County to pay for that stuff," Nutter said. The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors has passed three resolutions opposing the Elliston site. They also passed a resolution supporting Nutter's failed attempt to prevent state money from being spent on the facility unless it is built in Salem. Fifteen elected leaders from Franklin County to Covington signed a letter supporting the intermodal rail yard, but only Salem officials have volunteered to host the facility. Salem Mayor Howard Packett said it has been months since the city has heard from Norfolk Southern. "As long as it's somewhere in the Roanoke Valley, we're fine with that," Salem spokeswoman Melinda Payne said about Salem being ruled out as a site for the intermodal rail yard. Roanoke County has made it clear it has no interest in hosting the facility. Residents of Salem and Montgomery County have opposed the proposed sites vigorously. Montgomery County's Citizens for the Preservation of Our Countryside urged supervisors to pass an ordinance making it illegal for corporations to use eminent domain; declaring "natural communities and ecosystems" to be legal "persons" and declaring that corporations are not "persons" in Montgomery County. It would forbid corporations -- along with their agents, directors, officers, owners or managers -- from contributing to political candidates in the county. It would also make it illegal for corporations to sue for "future profits." The board did not adopt the ordinance, saying it would not survive a legal challenge. Now the board seems willing to go to court on the strength of language in a contract between the state and NS that seems to say the project will abide by local law. The intermodal yard would not comply with local zoning, but federal law gives railroads the power to override local land-use regulations. And, like local governments, railroads have the power of eminent domain, which means they can take property even if owners are unwilling to sell. The Heartland Corridor is supposed to take about 200,000 trucks off Virginia's roads. But it's likely to increase truck traffic on Interstate 81 and other roads near the site, according to a recently released state-funded report. The report said the facility could "negatively impact local residents because of increased congestion-related air pollution, scenic alterations, light pollution, or water quality changes." Congress has appropriated almost $100 million for the corridor, with more than $5 million of that to be spent in Virginia. NS is expected to contribute $9.6 million for related projects in the commonwealth. Public funding would be recovered in about five years, according to the report, mostly through reduced accident costs and pavement maintenance costs. The study said the freight yard would create eight to 12 jobs and add $3.5 million to $5.3 million to the regional economy annually. That covers nine counties and five cities, from Lynchburg to Radford, from Franklin County to Monroe County, W.Va. The study also said related development would create 740 to 2,900 jobs; put $140 million to $550 million into the economy each year; and generate $18 million to $71 million annually in taxes. In addition, the facility's construction would add $38.6 million to $57.9 million to the economy. State officials fear the wrangling could cause Virginia to lose the intermodal site and its potential economic benefits to West Virginia or Tennessee. Staff writers Marquita Brown and Michael Sluss contributed to this report.

Driving That Train, High on Industrial Solvents

Driving That Train, High on Industrial Solvents More than 600 railroad workers, from Maryland to Kentucky to Montana, have been diagnosed with brain damage over the last 15 years from handling toxic degreasing solvents, reports the Louisville Courier-Journal after a 10-month investigation. Thousands more may be ill, but not know why. Railroad companies, particularly CSX Transportation, have paid tens of millions of dollars to settle workers' solvent lawsuits, while denying any link between exposure and brain damage. Meanwhile, millions of Americans are exposed regularly to the same solvents and related chemicals at work and at home. straight to the source: Louisville Courier-Journal, James Bruggers and Sara Shipley, 13 May-16 May 2001

ALL ABOARD OHIO APPLAUDS GOVERNOR STRICKLAND AND ORDC

Click title for full story FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact information: Andrew Bremer, Executive Director Andrew@allaboardohio.org w: 614-228-6005 c: 614-657-4184 March 7, 2008 Columbus, Ohio Options for Cleveland - Columbus - Cincinnati Service Sought (Columbus, OH) All Aboard Ohio is grateful to Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland for asking Amtrak to investigate the potential ridership and costs of starting fast, convenient and modern passenger rail service in Ohio’s busiest and most populous travel corridor. Starting passenger train services on existing, high-quality freight railroad tracks linking Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati means that congested freight infrastructure “choke points” will need to be addressed.

Growth of new CSX terminal is on track, increasing each month

By JIM HOOK Senior writer The CSX intermodal terminal at Chambersburg seems more like a truck parking lot than the precursor to a $1 billion boost to the regional economy. The $46 million terminal on Kriner Road opened in September and has been ramping up operations as crews continue to lay rails. The rail-truck yard is operating at less than half speed. "(As an industry) we hit our peak in November and December," Chambersburg Terminal Manager Alison O. Smith said. "We have not experienced the (seasonal) slowdown other areas have. Our business is growing more every month." "At this point from everything I know, it's working as originally designed," said L. Michael Ross, president of the Franklin County Area Development Corp. "Is it getting the attention of other shippers? Yes. It is essentially building consistently." Smith posts aerial photographs of the terminal on the wall of her temporary office as construction progresses. "I didn't want to be a teacher or a nurse, I wanted to drive the train," said Smith, whose parents worked for the railroad, too. "This is a dream come true for me." She oversees an operation that is expected to do 90,000 lifts a year. A "lift" is loading a container on a train or unloading it. Crews currently accomplish about 132 lifts a day. A crane operator pinches a container to within an inch, lifts it off the rail car and sets it onto a truck trailer, again to a tolerance of an inch. A yellow "yard jockey," or Hostler truck, drives off with the trailer and parks it. The crane moves to the next rail car. The rail operation is located away from the trucks coming off the highway to drop off a trailer and pick up another. "For the most part there will be only one train a day," Smith said. "We can't order an extra train." The train can be up to 9,000 feet long and carry about 150 containers. "There's obviously room to grow," CSX spokesman Bob Sullivan said. "That will happen as the region grows." Until Country Road is closed and tracks south of the road are joined with tracks in use to the north, trains must back into the terminal, and so block traffic on Orchard Drive. The tracks are to be joined three or four weeks after the road is closed, according to Sullivan. Cul-de-sacs on either side of the road were completed in mid-January. "We think we're going to be able to impact the region," Sullivan said. "This is going to be a driver of economic growth here. We're delighted to be here in Chambersburg. We've been welcomed here. Our goal here is to be not just an economic asset, but a good neighbor and an active neighbor." Rail is making a comeback nationwide. Trains offer economies of scale, but rail also is attractive to shippers because it doesn't have to deal with the issues facing the trucking industry -- lack of drivers, high cost of fuel and traffic congestion. "We have trucking companies that are customers of ours," Sullivan said. Trucking companies more easily can recruit short-haul drivers than truckers expected to be away from home for days on end. Ships deliver to the ports on the West Coast, and trains haul the goods to the East Coast. "We're helping move everyday things you use and get them to the stores so you can use them," Smith said. The demand for shipping is expected to increase 67 percent by 2020, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. A train can pull one ton of freight 423 miles on a gallon of diesel fuel, Sullivan said. More than 30 million square feet of warehousing is within 150 miles of the Chambersburg terminal. The terminal is near Interstate 81 and had a relatively low impact on the public, Sullivan said. CSX supports construction of a proposed I-81 exit nearby, according to Smith. The exit could be located at Guilford Springs Road. CSX, however, does not want to see truck traffic limited at Wayne Road (I-81 Exit 15) where access to Kriner Road is convenient. The terminal's container train is expected to take 300 long-haul trucks off the highway. More than 15,000 trucks a day travel Interstate 81 in the vicinity of Chambersburg. "When you look at I-81 it's not having a noticeable impact, but every little bit helps," Ross said. "I'd rather have those 300 off than on." At night Smith can see the lights of the terminal from I-81. "I'm such an intermodal junkie it takes my breath away," she said. ---------- Jim Hook can be reached at 262-4759 or jhook@publicopinionnews.com. Terminal's staff CSX Intermodal Terminal at Chambersburg has a small staff. Open from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m., the rail-truck yard at 700 Kriner Road employs two shifts. CSX has eight employees on site. The company's five vendors have a total of 35 employees at the terminal. The vendors each specialize in one area: lifting containers, repairing containers or trailers, repairing rail cars, maintaining lift equipment and switching rail cars to build a train.

CSX Needs to go Green

Click title for full story Railroad laments stalled San Pedro port yard By Art Marroquin, Staff Writer 02/25/2008 11:39:02 PM PST A $300 million "green" railroad line serving the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach might finally be considered by summer, about three years after the massive project was first suggested, officials said Monday. The Southern California International Gateway rail yard designed by Burlington Northern Santa Fe boasts elements to reduce air, lighting and noise pollution by using cleaner-burning cranes, locomotives and trucks, while also removing about 1million trucks annually from the Long Beach (710) Freeway.

Lakeland Chamber Says CSX Proposal Needs More Study

Wednesday, February 27, 2008 - 7:06 PM EST Lakeland Chamber says CSX proposal needs more study Tampa Bay Business Journal - by Michael Hinman If CSX Corp. wants to build a integrated logistics center near Winter Haven, it first should make sure every impact to surrounding communities is studied and mitigated. That was the gist of a resolution passed Wednesday by the Lakeland Area Chamber of Commerce. It is asking the state government to fund and undertake a comprehensive feasibility study to "evaluate and determine the most efficient and cost-effective manner to meet Florida's current and future needs for the movement of freight and passenger rail, along with vehicular traffic, prior to committing to this project." Jacksonville-based CSX Corp. (NYSE: CSX) has plans to build a 5 million-square-foot ILC on more than 1,200 acres in southern Winter Haven executives say could boost the state's economy by more than $10 billion while creating more than 8,000 jobs. The proposal, however, has not been met well with Lakeland business owners, particularly those in the downtown district where CSX tracks would potentially experience higher traffic and create tie-ups that could discourage shoppers from going there, opponents say. "The chamber, city of Lakeland and Lakeland CSX task force have been working over the past several months to thoroughly analyze the impact that the proposed CSX ILC and Central Florida Commuter Rail projects will have on Lakeland and other communities throughout our region," said Tim Campbell, chairman of the chamber's board of directors, in a release. "As a result, we feel that it is essential that the Florida Department of Transportation fund and conduct a complete study and statewide analysis of freight rail corridors to identify alternatives for the routing of freight trains away from existing urban areas and areas that will serve the growing residential needs in the state of Florida." Gary Sease, a Florida spokesman for CSX, said the company has commissioned a number of studies, some of which were required in the development of regional impact evaluation process. The company is also exploring instituting a "quiet zone" in downtown Lakeland which would limit additional warning noise such whistles and horns at certain times of day. These efforts show CSX's willingness to address community concerns over impacts that an additional four trains a day would have on the downtown area, Sease said. Chamber officials said that its 2,100 member are concerned not just about business impacts, but also possible impacts to the economy, environment, safety, and transportation. At the same time, the chamber said it doesn't believe that all the studies necessary to put together such a project have been completed, and that the FDOT should hold off on appropriating nearly $491 million to the project until such studies are completed. Among the other proposals offered by the chamber include FDOT finding alternatives for the "Super Freight Rail Highway" that would route freight trains away from existing urban areas; the impacts of the deep seaport operations along Tampa Bay and the Gulf coast; and providing full cost figures needed to help mitigate increased train traffic in urban areas. All contents of this site © American City Business Journals Inc. All rights reserved.

Fasano Has Concerns About CSX Proposal

Click title to link to full story! February 21, 2008 Fasano has concerns about CSX proposal Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey, told the Buzz this morning he has "concerns" over the proposed $490-million deal that would have the state buying rail lines from CSX, and over proposed legislation that would exempt CSX from any liability as they operate. Fasano said the DOT is planning to delay more than half a billion in road projects including $123-million in Tampa Bay, and in tight budget times like these smart choices must be made.

$491 Million NAFTA Rail Deal

Whistleblower says it's about carrying cheap China goods Posted: August 21, 2006 1:00 am Eastern © 2008 WorldNetDaily.com A $491 million public-financing deal promoted by Florida Gov. Jeb Bush as a boon to commuters actually paves the way for shipping more cheap goods from China to the North American marketplace, charges a whistleblower. Ex-CSX Transportation employee Dave Nelson told WND the deal in Florida amounts to providing CSXT with a public subsidy. Money from the public purse will position the railroad company as a major freight carrier throughout Florida, transporting cargo containers filled with cheap goods coming into the NAFTA marketplace from China. CSXT is positioned to receive millions in the deal. Under the terms of the agreement, the state of Florida will invest $318 "in partnership with CSXT" to improve the infrastructure and expand capacity on existing train tracks. According to CSXT, the breakdown of how the Florida subsidy will be spent is specified as follows: $198 million for projects on the CSXT rail line between Baldwin to Plant City, referred to as the "S" line; $ 59 million to build five road overpasses in Alachua, Sumter and Marion counties on this line; $ 52 million on other CSXT rail lines around the state; and $? 9 million to build access roads to the new Integrated Logistics Center in Winter Haven ? the mother of all rail yards ? which will be built by CSXT Commuter lines, when opened, will only operate five trips at peak morning and afternoon rush hours, with the commuter trains running again only at two-hour frequency in non-peak hours. At other times, CSXT will use the commuter rail lines for transporting freight. Dave Nelson told WND the Florida subsidy for CSXT reflects a nationwide trend. In 2005, the Bush administration passed through Congress a $286.4 billion transportation bill, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act ? A Legacy for Users. The purpose of the legislation was supposedly to provide funding for federal highways and transit programs. But Nelson told WND the bill was being used to provide a public subsidy for upgrading freight railroads such as CSXT on taxpayer dollars. "This CSXT deal in Florida reflects a national strategy that falls in line with President Bush?s $286 billion transportation spending package for highways and railroads," he said. "What the federal government plans to do is to buy up unused and aging rail lines all across the country and to use taxpayer dollars to pay for upgrading the infrastructure. What is left unsaid is that the railroad freight companies CSX will get priority over mass transit for the use of the new rail lines." Nelson also told WND that CSXT plathat CSXT plans to over-charge the government for upgrading and maintaining rail lines. "CSX will do the maintenance on the rail lines, but state and federal funds will fund the maintenance for CSX," he said. "As I have already proven to the U.S. Department of Transportation, companies like CSX in particular use a form of cost-shifting which permits CSX to take the cost of labor and materials and 'cost-shift' CSX responsibilities over to maintenance, which then will be paid by federal and state tax dollars. Instead of keeping this as a separate entity to improve transportation between two points, the Bush administrations nationally and in Florida are shoving this down the people's throat." Nelson noted that Florida had already voted down the state proposal to build a "Bullet Train? for rapid rail mass transit "because the state couldn?t prove the economics of the deal or how many riders the Bullet Train would actually have." The economic benefit to CSXT is clear, Nelson told WND: "CSXT sells abandoned or obsolete rails to the state government at an astronomical price. Then CSXT gets tax dollars to pay for modernizing the railroad infrastructure and maintaining it afterwards. The result is that CSXT gets priority over the new rail lines, pushing mass transit to a second, very distant position. Cost-shifting is a great deal for CSXT, but a lousy deal for the taxpayers." In 1993, Nelson's allegations that CSXT was over-charging for improvements made to railroad crossings resulted a Federal DOT investigation in conjunction with the Florida Attorney General's Office. To resolve the RICO charges, CSXT made a "voluntary refund" of $2.1 million to 18 states in restitution for overcharges. In 1994, Nelson filed a False Claims Action against CSXT that was settled in 1995 when CSXT offered the U.S. Department of Justice a $5.9 million payment for the overcharges. In 2005, New York Times reporter Walt Bogdanich won a Pulitzer Prize for series of articles entitled "Death on the Tracks," investigating railroad company cover-ups regarding faulty equipment, overcharges and fatal accidents at railroad crossing accidents. Bogdanich's investigation was prompted and advanced by inside information Dave Nelson supplied. Nelson maintains that a primary purpose of SAFETEA-LU Act is to provide a NAFTA infrastructure for moving cheap goods from China into the interior of the U.S. Currently, Dave Nelson, is on leave for a back injury from a stockroom job at Lowes in Florida, working the midnight shift stacking shelves for $9.48 an hour. Nelson said he connected the dots between his railroad experience and what he perceives is the government plan to build NAFTA railroad corridors. "If you go to Lowes you will now see that 75 to 80 percent of all the inventory on the shelves comes from China," he said. "First you have to produce these goods at low cost and China has the lowest possible labor cost using child labor, slave labor, or labor at practically no cost that American workers can?t possibly compete with. So, our government has allowed a huge number of manufacturing jobs to go to China, but then you need to move these goods back to the end-user in the U.S. Then you get into logistics. This involves maritime, trucks, and rails. The goal is to improve the railroad infrastructure to increase the speed freight trains can move through the U.S. The government doesn?t want to tell the U.S. taxpayer that $284 billion in tax dollars are going to be moved into private railroad. So, the government instead argues that the goal is to improve the infrastructure by developing mass transit, just like you see going on in Florida right now." In return for his role in the 1994 False Claims settlement with CSXT, Nelson received a $1.18 million payment. WND called John Long, a special investigative agent with the U.S. DOT in Washington. Long abruptly ended a phone call concerning Nelson's allegations by stating: "We wouldn't have any comment. We?ve investigated Mr. Nelson?s allegations and the case is closed." Still, Long's comment to WND served to verify that an investigation of Nelson?s charges did exist, even if the investigation was now terminated. Even today, Nelson's allegations remain emotionally charged. His allegations concerning CSXT overcharges involve the management of CSXT while John Snow, former U.S. secretary of treasury, was still the CEO of CSXT. Nelson maintained to WND that John Snow was nominated and sworn-in as secretary of the treasury "while he was still under investigation for the allegations I have been making ever since 1993 of what I believe are CSXT overcharges and fraud continuing even today."

Lakeland Nearer to Criticizing State

Click title for full story By Diane Lacey Allen The Ledger LAKELAND The Lakeland City Commission came closer Friday to endorsing a resolution criticizing the state for not having a long-range commuter rail program. The resolution also denounces any action by the state Legislature that uses "high levels" of taxpayer money to support the proposed CSX freight-transfer facility in Winter Haven until there is a comprehensive state and regional analysis. Commissioners are set to vote Monday on the document that warns of fallout from the proposed CSX facility.

No One Asked For An Overpass

Was this statement a serious one? Must a drowning man ask to be saved? Click title for story link. Posted by Bill Rufty on February 14, 2008 1:50:35 PM A CSX official told The Ledger Editorial Board today that the cities of Waldo and Ocala will get overpasses in the wake of increased train traffic from its new freight terminal in Winter Haven, but not Lakeland because "The City of Lakeland never asked ..." It never did, various local officials said, but not necessarily because there was disinterest in running roads over or under the train tracks. "My understanding from the Ocala mayor when he came here last month is that was because Ocala and Waldo were taken care of by the Florida Department of Transportation before Lakeland officials were even notified of the (ILC project and increased trains),'' Lakeland City Commissioner Gow Fields said. "He also told us that the mitigation still wasn't adequate for his city.''

CSX Train Creates Traffic, Safety Issues In Downtown Orlando

This could be anywhere in Polk County!!!

Click title for full story!

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Frustrated drivers are breaking the law just so they can get by a train. The train has been routinely blocking cars and emergency vehicles in downtown Orlando. Drivers are furious and so are emergency workers.

At issue is a railroad crossing at the intersection of South Street and Boone Avenue, just south of Church Street station. Eyewitness News discovered a CSX train often blocks the road for 30 minutes at a time.

Freight Centers Weigh On Residents

Click title for full story Intermodal sites bring economic growth, worries about impact By Mary Ellen Podmolik Special to the Tribune December 9, 2007 Blair Purcell spent his first 28 years of life in LaPorte County, Ind., and after a 40-year absence, he and his wife, Margot, returned to the area nearly two years ago. They expected to live quietly in retirement on 2 1/2 acres in the countryside. But it hasn't exactly worked out that way. For the past six months, the Purcells, along with a handful of others, have organized meetings, launched Web sites and worked the tables at community events, all with the goal of galvanizing opposition to a sprawling 3,000-acre intermodal rail facility proposed for LaPorte's farm fields.

CSX Liability Plan Criticized By Lawmakers

Full story, click title above. Accident Responsibility CSX Liability Plan Criticized By Lawmakers Proposal is linked to sale of tracks to create a commuter rail system around Orlando. By Joe Follick Ledger Tallahassee Bureau TALLAHASSEE A move that could leave taxpayers paying for accidents caused by CSX Transportation on a new passenger rail line drew strong criticism from the state's chief financial officer and lawmakers Wednesday. But even critics said it was not likely to stop the state's $491 million plan to launch commuter rail service in Volusia, Orange and Osceola counties.

Foes of Rail Yard

For full story, click on title Foes of Pinal rail yard find friends at Capitol Bill would require review by state panel Howard Fischer Capitol Media Services Feb. 7, 2008 12:00 AM Foes of a proposed rail yard near Picacho Peak are making another effort to throw legal roadblocks in the path of Union Pacific. New legislation being put forward at the state Capitol is designed to give landowners around the site a chance to battle efforts by the railroad to acquire some state land and construct a 6-mile-long switching yard. Opponents contend it would not only be unsightly but also threaten an underground water supply.

Another CSX Intermodal!!!

For full story, click title Supporters show for Seneca railport January 31, 2008 By Christina Chapman SENECA — As people drove into the parking lot of Seneca Township High School for the Plan Commission’s public hearing on a proposed intermodal park, they were greeted by a big sign stating "I support Seneca I-80 Railport." Speckled throughout the crowd were stickers and signs showing support, a visible change from previous meetings. But the crowd of more than 364 people in the school auditorium also had its naysayers. Many were union workers stating appreciation for closer work, but many others are still in fear of losing their quiet small-town lifestyle.

Jacksonville Commuter Rail

Here we again folks! More state money! The Florida Times-Union February 1, 2008 Commuter rail study under way By DAVID HUNT, The Times-Union The Jacksonville Transportation Authority reached out to urban planners and retired railroad workers Thursday to give suggestions for a possible commuter train system in the region. -------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- The exchange between the group and those conducting a roughly $400,000 rail study signified the first meeting of the commuter rail citizens advisory panel. The study, headed by Camp Hill, Pa.-based consultants Gannett Fleming Inc., is expected to conclude by December. "Based on our congestion and the rail system we have now, we'd like to think it's feasible," said James Boyle, regional transportation planner for JTA. "But we need the study to make sure it's feasible." Boyle said the panel of about a dozen members was selected for its insight into Jacksonville's transportation needs. Among the group was Jerry Sullivan, a retired CSX worker who heads the North Florida chapter of the National Railway Historical Society. He said Jacksonville's scattered geography was a chief concern for commuter rail. "When I came here in 1986, the first thing I noticed was downtown was basically dead. Everyone was building their office parks outside of the city," Sullivan said. Other issues include cost effectiveness, parking availability and how to arrange train stations in a way that would shave time for commuters who'd otherwise be driving. The group met for about 90 minutes and plans to meet again in the spring. "This is the right time to be having this discussion," said Tom Hickey, the project manager for Gannett Fleming. The good news for the plan is that Jacksonville has six rail lines, each of them in good shape. The bad news is that the tracks are privately held by CSX, Norfolk Southern and Florida East Coast Railway. Access to the tracks likely would carry a price. An example: Last year the state signed a nearly half-billion dollar contract with CSX to make way for a Central Florida commuter rail network expected to be running in 2010. david.hunt@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4025 This story can be found on Jacksonville.com at http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/020108/met_242544190.shtml.