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As a reader of the weekly update and a general supporter of the Center, you have surely heard a lot about the National Signals Training Consortium. In a nut shell, this group
of 20 mass transportation locations from around the country are
working together, and
sharing the costs - to develop a comprehensive,
standardized training program for Signal Maintainers. This work includes: instruction-ready
courseware, apprenticeship guidelines,
train-the-trainer and now assistance in
recruitment to fill the skills gap that is coming down the line.
Not only are
top-rate products being developed but they are being produced at a premium price.
Cost-sharing amongst 20 locations and the federal government means that each location is basically getting
40 for the price of one deal.
The Center will be hosting a meeting of the Consortium this coming week in Chicago. In order to welcome new members, we are holding an
orientation session on Monday 26 at 12pm ET. We are opening this live meeting up to other parties, like you, that are interested in learning more.
To register for the
FREE webinar, email Program Manager of Instructional Design
Julie Deibel.
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The city of Bristol will host a Passenger Appreciation Day, on Thursday, October 29 for all those who take part in public transportation.
Anyone riding the city buses that day will ride for free, according to a written statement. A free lunch will also be provided to transit passengers from 11 a.m.-1 p.m., at the Downtown Center on Shelby Street. Hotdogs and hamburgers will be offered along with drinks and cookie and there will be live music.
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The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) last week appointed Lisa Marie Alley chief of communications. Alley will be responsible for the development and implementation of all internal and external communications activities, including media relations, CHSRA officials said in a news release. Additionally, she'll oversee a comprehensive stakeholder outreach campaign to build support for the high-speed rail program, and will be responsible for the agency's small business outreach strategy.
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International rail giant Siemens wants to turn the capital city into the country's bullet train manufacturing hub. After six years of prep work at its sprawling French Road plant in south Sacramento, the German company soon may get its chance to try. State high-speed rail officials confirmed last week they plan to call for bids from high-speed rail companies in mid-2016 to build the sleek aluminum trains that will run at 200-plus mph between San Francisco and Los Angeles. The state is expected to need about $3.2 billion worth of train "rolling stock" to serve the new system.
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The executive behind SEPTA's push for a new fare system said that by 2016, riders should be able to use their transit cards as debit cards, and that they may be able to use their debit cards to pay for rides on buses, trolleys and the subway systems. Kevin O'Brien, the project manager for SEPTA Key said in an interview Monday that the new fare system will debut for riders on city buses, trolleys and subway lines by the end of the year, with new features rolling out over the next several months. The system should go on line for regional rail riders in 2016.
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The MTA now finally has a (mostly funded) five-year capital plan. This means $26.1 billion worth of state-of-good-repair projects, upgrades, and expansions. So what will this mean to you, transit rider? Probably not that much. "Customers won't notice the vast majority of the capital program," said MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz, "because it's work that happens behind the scenes inside tunnels and other locations not accessible to the public." And most of the biggest projects take longer than just - just?! - five years to design, build and complete.
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Major rail companies on Monday intensified their demands that Congress give them more time to roll out a complex accident prevention technology that can take control of trains to help mitigate human error - or warned that they could face major service shutdowns around the country. Companies have been working for seven years to develop and install the multi-faceted technology - called positive train control - since receiving a federal mandate in the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008. That legislation contained a deadline of Dec. 31, 2015, to fully implement the computer system that, most prominently, can automatically brake locomotives when traveling over the speed limit or approaching a work zone or misaligned switch.
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Members of three area ATU locals -- 689, 1300 and 1764 -- joined together on Friday to stand in solidarity with the paratransit workers at First Transit/Metro Access. "First Transit has been refusing to give their workers 40 hours a week, they have been firing their workers over the phone to avoid confrontation with union representatives, and they have had a 100% turnover rate since this time last year," reports ATU 689.
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Building Transportation Infrastructure
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Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are using Legos to map out how changes in bus-rapid transit systems could affect Boston. The MIT Department of Urban Studies, the Changing Places group at the MIT Media Lab, and the Barr Foundation worked together to build three models: one of Dudley Square, one of a Boston street, and a touch screen interface that can represent an entire region according to citylab.com.
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Currently, many transit agencies across the United States are experiencing the need to build new lines and expand service while needing to maintain their existing systems in a state of good repair. As a result, the pipeline of new starts, small starts and core capacity projects continue to grow. While the demand for mobility is growing, funding challenges persist. This makes it extremely important for project sponsors to make smarter use of the innovations offered in MAP-21 of 2012 and generally available in the marketplace.
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