RT&S July 2019

2019 Midyear Report

When The Weather breaks After frigid and wet start to 2019 industry is recovering well JULY 2019 | www.rtands.com

Broken Spikes

Research shows a certain type of fastener is behind damaged spikes

Fastening Systems Update

A look at the latest products offered

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February 2018 // Railway Track & Structures 1

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contents

July 2019

FEATURES

12

Drying out and pouring it on As much of the railroad industry is recovering from record flooding, Class 1s are piling up financial records.

20

Spiked!

Broken spikes continue to cause problems on the rails, and the focus is on the fastening systems.

26

12 NEWS

4

DEPARTMENTS

Streamlining Pictures of a Norfolk Southern train heading into the city of Atlanta and highlights of Rail Insights 2019.

Crews replace ballast on tracks damaged by floodwaters near La Platte, Neb., in late March.

Story on page 12.

8

TTCI Researcher’s ongoing composite tie test program yields myriad of results.

36

AREMA News Message from the President; Board of Governors election

40 43

Classifieds Advertising Advertisers Index

2019 Fastening Systems Report Fastening systems continue to improve while product lines expand.

32

2019 Special Trackwork Report Rail industry now demanding reliability and extended service life.

Columns

3

On Track Now is the time to be hip

Cover photo credit BNSF

44 Follow Us On Social Media @RTSMag

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Last Stop PMOC—and that spells help

July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 1

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On Track

Now is the time to be hip Vol. 115, No. 71 Print ISSN # 0033-9016, Digital ISSN # 2160-2514 EDITORIAL OFFICES 20 South Clark Street, Suite 1910 Chicago, Ill. 60603 Telephone (312) 683-0130 Fax (312) 683-0131 Website www.rtands.com Bill WILSON Editor-in-Chief wwilson@sbpub.com Kyra Senese Managing Editor ksenese@sbpub.com Bob Tuzik Consulting Editor btuzik@sbpub.com btuzik@sbpub.comCORPORATE OFFICES CORPORATE OFFICES 55 Broad St 26th Fl. 55 Broad St 26th Fl. New York, N.Y. 10004 Telephone New York,(212) N.Y.620-7200 10004 Telephone Fax (212) (212) 633-1165 620-7200 Fax (212) 633-1165 Arthur J. McGinnis, Jr. Arthur Jr. President J. and McGinnis, Chairman President and Chairman Jonathan Chalon Publisher Jonathan Chalon Publisher Mary Conyers Production Mary Conyers Director Production Director Nicole D’Antona Art Director Nicole D’Antona Art Director Aleza Leinwand Hillary GraphicColeman Designer Graphic Designer Maureen Cooney CirculationCooney Director Maureen Circulation Director Michelle Zolkos Conference Michelle Zolkos Director Conference Director Customer Service: 800-895-4389 Customer Reprints: PARS International Corp.

Service: 800-895-4389 Reprints: 253 West PARS 35th International Street 7th Floor Corp.

253 West New 35th York,Street NY 10001 7th Floor 212-221-9595; New York, fax NY212-221-9195 10001 212-221-9595; curt.ciesinski@parsintl.com fax 212-221-9195 curt.ciesinski@parsintl.com

E

very time the Fashion Police comes knocking at my closet door I get off with a warning.

By now they know I will obey the most current law of the wardrobe with a little “motivation.”

OK, truth be told I really do not have any midnight raids at my house where guys flashing badges check to make sure what is in my closet flashes the right colors. However, I constantly find myself just a tad behind the latest look when it comes to men’s fashion. When the pocket square became a vital piece of the suit ensemble, my sport coats were bare of anything worth a look. When I finally convinced myself that spending $12 for three white squares (which by the way turn into nagging pests when trying to stuff them in a coat pocket designed for more of a shortened rectangle), it was not long before it was all about the tie-square marriage. They needed to complement each other. Not too long ago, but long after it became hip, I purchased a couple of $1 pocket squares that had some personality (thanks, Amazon). Light brown shoes and a matching belt became the pair to wear late last year (or was it in 2017?). Yes, I was late to that fashion party as well.

Short line railroad companies have a golden opportunity to bring their customer service into the new millennium (or am I behind the times and

should be calling this century something else?). FedEx, UPS, heck even Domino’s, all offer it. The software allows a customer to track a package, or that meat lover’s pizza they have been craving, every step of the way. For years now all of us have been receiving order confirmations via email, and embedded in the delivery is a link that when clicked on shows the status of where your package is currently located.

So when I ordered those colorful pocket squares, I knew on a certain day it was in Omaha, Neb., en route to my home in Elgin, Ill. While conducting interviews for my 2019 Midyear Report (see p. 12), I asked American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association President Chuck Baker what kind of technology owners were currently using. He brought up tracking devices, but said only a small handful were actually taking advantage of it.

So what is the holdup? Why can’t short line customers track their load? I imagine cost has something to do with it, but the software will pay for itself. In a few years tracking technology will be a requirement. The companies doing it now will be the ones looking sharp.

Bill Wilson Editor-in-Chief

Railway Track & Structures (Print ISSN 0033-9016, Digital ISSN 2160-2514), (USPS 860-560), (Canada Post Cust. #7204564; Agreement #40612608; IMEX P.O. Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2, Canada) is published monthly by Simmons-Boardman Publ. Corp, 55 Broad St. 26th Floor, New York, NY 10004. Printed in the U.S.A. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY, and additional mailing offices.

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July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 3

Streamlining

Atlanta arrival

A Norfolk Southern train pulling a load heads into the city of Atlanta in mid-June. For a Midyear Report on how 2019 is treating the industry, please turn to page 12.

4 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

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Streamlining

Photo Credit: Bill Wilson

For the latest industry news, go to www.rtands.com.

If you would like to contribute a photo to the Streamlining section please send a high-res version to Bill Wilson at wwilson@sbpub.com.

Photos must be no more than a month old.

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July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 5

Streamlining

Very insightful Rail Insights 2019 was held in Chicago in early June. The conference included discussions on the threat of a Mexico tariff, developments on Capitol Hill, technology, equipment, market trends and Class 2 and Class 3 railroads.

6 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

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Streamlining

For the latest industry news, go to www.rtands.com.

If you would like to contribute a photo to the Streamlining section please send a high-res version to Bill Wilson at wwilson@sbpub.com.

Photos must be no more than a month old.

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July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 7

TTCI r&D

TTCI’s Ongoing Composite Tie Test Program Yields Myriad of Results Researcher takes a closer look at two engineered polymer composite ties Yin Gao, Sr. Engineer I Transportation Technology Center, Inc.

E

ngineered polymer composite (EPC) ties, which have been used sparingly in North American revenue service for about two decades, are the most common type of composite ties.

Currently they make up less than 1 percent of the crosstie market in the U.S. The railroad industry has increased interest in the development of composite ties to use in high rot and high decay areas, such as in tunnels, at-grade crossings or in the southeastern U.S. EPC ties are composed primarily of post-consumer recycled plastic. Additives, fillers, and fiber or particle reinforcement may be added to enhance performance and economic characteristics.1 EPC ties have exhibited variability in quality and performance during revenue service testing and implementation. Failure modes of EPC ties have primarily included spike-hole cracking, center cracking and tie plate cracking.2,3 Increases in gage due to thermal expansion of the tie itself also have been identified in research.4 Existing American Railway Engineering Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA) laboratory qualification testing has not proven to be completely effective in identifying these failure modes prior to in-track installation, thus driving the need to develop new test methods to evaluate the performance and safety of EPC ties.

Research Program Overview The Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI) has been conducting research on EPC tie and fastener systems for more than 20 years. Current research work is part of ongoing Association of American Railroads 8 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

(AAR) Strategic Research Initiative (SRI) and Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) research to improve design and testing guidelines for EPC ties.

Two EPC tie designs tested at Transportation Technology Center’s (TTC) Facility for Accelerated Service Testing (FAST) in Pueblo, Colo., accumulated 2,155 and 1,690 million gross tons (MGTs) of traffic, respectively, before being removed in 2015. Four types of EPC ties (100-tie test section for each type) have been installed at FAST for testing in the four years since. Two types remain in the FAST loop. The other two types were removed due to center cracking and spike hole cracking. Besides the FAST tests, two revenue service test zones of EPC ties were installed at a western railroad territory in July 2015. One location in Nebraska consists of two types of EPC tie sections. Each test installation contains 49 contiguous ties. A second test in Illinois is intended to investigate composite tie performance when interspersed with wood ties. Computational modeling also is being used to investigate EPC tie performance.

The following sections summarize the

research activities that have been conducted in 2018 and 2019 and how these results are driving improvements to recommended practice. Previous research work was introduced in an article in the RT&S November 2017 issue.

Tie Performance in Revenue Service TTCI engineers visited the test zones in Nebraska in April and September 2018.

Center cracking was found on one type of EPC tie in both field trips. Of the 49 total EPC ties of this type installed, 16 ties were found to have center cracking during the April’s trip, approximately three years from the installation (approximately 350 MGT). The local maintenance crew replaced 16 center-cracked ties with 16 ties of the other EPC type in this test zone during this trip. In the September’s trip, 3 out of 33 remaining ties were found failed due to center cracking. No spike hole cracking failure was found on any type of the EPC ties in the test zones during these two recent visits.

Besides the visual inspection, TTCI engineers also installed strain gages on the

Figure 1: The EPC tie test zone at the Facility for Accelerated Service Testing in Pueblo, Colo.

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TTCI r&d

center top surfaces of the ties to gather bending strain data. Significant fluctuation in the center bending strain data on the top surface due to temperature change was detected on both types of EPC ties. This thermal effect on EPC ties is discussed in detail in the later section.

An inspection of the test zone in Illinois is planned for 2020.

New EPC Test Section at FAST A new test zone (Figure 1) of 100 EPC ties was established at FAST in the summer of 2018. The ties are made of glass fiber reinforced plastic. The ties were pre-drilled and pre-plated according to the manufacture’s recommendation.

Prior to the in-track installation, TTCI conducted a wear/deterioration test on the ties (an AREMA-recommended fatigue test to determine railseat abrasion or deformation resistance due to repeated loads). The ties met the criteria, and the values of modulus of elasticity (MOE) and modulus of rupture (MOR) provided from another lab were well above the AREMA recommendation. Next, a short section was installed to assess tie resistance to lateral movement through the ballast. Single tie push tests showed acceptable resistance, and the full test section was installed. Approximately 125 MGT has accumulated in this test section thus far at FAST. No tie failures or track geometry issues have been reported.

Thermal Effects on Tie Bending Performance To investigate thermal effects, and to measure bending stresses caused by train loading, strain gages were applied on the center top surfaces (Figure 2) of the two types of ties and the center bending stain data was collected in the morning and afternoon of a day in April 2018. The

EPC ties have exhibited variability in quality and performance. dynamic strain range caused by similar axle loads fluctuated between 1,400 um/m in the morning (9 a.m.) and 700 um/m in the afternoon (2 p.m.). The tie top surface temperatures were 50° and 90°, respectively.5 An example of the strain data is shown in Figure 3. The hypothesis for this phenomenon is related to the ballast

Figure 2: Strain-gaged EPC ties in revenue service.

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support condition and the tie shape change due to the thermal gradient through the tie.

As a result of the lower tie stiffness of EPC ties compared to wood ties, the tie-ballast contact pressure at the rail seat area for EPC ties is higher than that for wood ties.5 Therefore, EPC tie track could develop a center-bound condition more quickly than wood tie track. As to the tie shape change, EPC ties are relatively straight and flat in the morning since the temperature is uniform within the body of ties. When the ties have a center-bound ballast support, the tie ends would have a gap between the bottom of ties and the ballast surface, causing ties to bend more. However, when the top surfaces of ties are exposed to direct sunshine while the bottom tie surfaces are insulated by ballast, the EPC ties could have a much higher temperature on the top surfaces. This differential temperature condition may force the EPC ties to bow, and as a result they reach a more conformal contact with ballast.

Development of Laboratory Center Bending Fatigue Test Center cracking is the most prevalent failure mode observed during in-track testing at FAST and in revenue service. Therefore, TTCI is developing a new laboratory fatigue test to evaluate the bending performance of EPC ties under repeated loads.

The strain data gathered from FAST and revenue service was used for inputs for the laboratory test development. A 4-point bending setup was chosen (Figure 4) because the maximum bending moment is applied to a longer section (30 in.) in the middle of a tie. This exposes a greater portion of tie to critical loads than does a 3-point bending test, which has maximum bending moment at the middle point of the tie. The current test criterion is up to 1.5 million loading cycles or tie failure; whichever comes first. A few ties have been tested and broken in a similar fashion to what was observed at FAST and in revenue service. Therefore, the test showed some capability in quantifying fatigue performance and being indicative of how EPC ties will perform in track. The next step is to further develop this test for evaluating EPC ties and giving better recommendations to the railroad industry.

Future Work Results of ongoing testing have identified the needs for additional research on EPC ties, which includes the next stage of the research July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 9

TTCI r&D

of thermal influence on EPC tie performance and further development of the laboratory fatigue tests for EPC ties. Also, TTCI will continue to work with AREMA Committee 30 - Ties, Subcommittee 6 Composite Ties to ballot revisions and updates to the AREMA Manual for Railway Engineering related to composite tie and fastener systems.

Acknowledgement TTCI appreciates continued input from AREMA Committee 30 Subcommittee 6 Composite Ties, support from EPC tie suppliers, as well ongoing support and guidance provided by the Tie and Fastener Technical Advisory Group.

Figure 3: Thermal effect on the center bending strain values.

Figure 4: Bending fatigue test setup.

Reference 1. American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way, Manual for Railway Engineering. Chapter 30 – Ties. 2018 2. McHenry, M. and LoPresti, J. “Evaluation of Engineered Polymer Composite Ties at FAST.” September 2017. Technology Digest TD-17-21. Transportation Technology Center, Inc. Pueblo, Colo.

3. Gonzales, K. et al. “Evaluation of Tie Plate Cracking on Composite Ties.”

Technology Digest TD-08-009. AAR/TTCI, Pueblo, Colo. 2008.

4. McHenry, M. and LoPresti, J. “Tie and Fastener System Gage Restraint Performance at FAST.” May 2015. Technology Digest TD-15-013. Transportation Technology Center, Inc. Pueblo, Colo.

5. Gao, Y, and McHenry, M (2019), “Simulation of The Thermal Effects on Engineered Polymer Composite Ties.”

Proceedings of the 2019 ASME/IEEE Joint Railroad Conference, 2019

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Midyear Report

Drying out AND

I

ce turning to water always creates a mess. For the railroad industry, the first half of 2019 featured a historical fist pounding from Mother Nature.

First came the Polar Vortex in late February, and that was followed by heavy rains and flooding a month later. It was not your typical flooding, either. Not only was it the worst in years, but according American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) President Chuck Baker the flooding was monumental in terms of volume and velocity.

“These floods were not one time,” he told RT&S. “It was like, we are gone, we are rebuilt, we are gone again, we are rebuilt, 12 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

we are gone again. It was the kind of soulcrushing repetitive flooding.”

Many short line railroad companies are back up and running and some of the Class 1s were not even affected by the flooding, but then there are those like BNSF, which at press time was still putting in work to make the necessary repairs.

“BNSF continues to address flood-related track outages that have caused ongoing service challenges in the Midwest,” BNSF said in an e-mail response to RT&S. “BNSF engineering teams are responding to outage locations with the necessary resources to restore service as quickly as possible as well as shore up other at-risk locations to

mitigate any potential impacts.”

The impact 2019 has had on Class 1 revenue growth has so far been positive.

Kansas City Southern reported record first quarter revenues of $675 million, an increase of 6 percent compared to first quarter 2018. Norfolk Southern Corporation also set a record to start the year. In fact, according to Alan Shaw, executive vice president and CMO of Norfolk Southern, first quarter 2019 marked the ninth consecutive quarter of year-over-year revenue gains. Canadian Northern set a new mark in first quarter carloads while adding $350 million of top-line growth, while Canadian Pacific revenues spiked 6 percent in the first rtands.com

Photo Credit: Kansas City Southern.

pouring it on

Midyear Report

As much of the railroad industry recovers from record flooding, Class 1s are piling up financial records

By Bill Wilson, Editor-in-Chief

business could be better, especially with the economy growing. Last year was relatively flat as well.

“As an industry we would like to be growing faster than we are and we would like to be taking an increasing share of freight movement,” said Baker. “It has been a flat year this year as the economy continues to grow, so that is a little frustrating.”

The return of the 45G tax credit, which has been around since 2005 but expired in December 2017, could help with growth.

At press time, the House Ways & Means Committee reported-out H.R. 3301, the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2019. The bill extends 45G to Jan. 1, 2021 and retroactively to Jan. 1, 2018. The Senate’s version of the bill, S 203, had up to 50 co-sponsors. “[The tax credit] is very powerful,” said Baker. “It works, and yet it has been expired since the end of 2017. “It is fair to say that we are encouraged by recent actions both in the House Ways & Means and in the Senate Finance Committee side. We are cautiously optimistic that the credit will be renewed at some point.”

On June 13, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced 45 projects in 29 states would receive over $326 million in grant money under the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Program and the Special Transportation Circumstances Program.

On the short line side, 21 different projects were awarded grants totaling $150 million.

First-quarter firsts As noted above, it has been a strong start to 2019 for most of the Class 1s. The following is a more detailed update on all with the exception of Union Pacific.

quarter of 2019.

“Looking forward with the recovered network, I’m encouraged by the momentum we’re building and extremely inspired with the opportunities that lay ahead of us,” Keith Creel, president and CEO of Canadian Pacific, said during a first quarter results teleconference.

Meanwhile, CSX’s operating ratio set a company first quarter record of 59.5 percent, a significant improvement from the 63.7 percent recorded in the first quarter of 2018.

Relief in sight?

On the short line side of the industry, rtands.com

Kansas City Southern Along with the first quarter record in revenues ($675 million), an increase of 6 percent from 2018, KC Southern’s adjusted operating income of $242 million also was a new company mark. Revenues in the first quarter 2019 increased in four commodity groups, led by a 21 percent increase in chemicals and petroleum due to refined product shipments to Mexico. Agriculture and minerals increased 8 percent thanks to improved network cycle times. Energy and industrial and consumer products went up 5 percent and 2 percent, respectively.

On April 29, Kansas City Southern revised the definitions of two key service metrics that it uses to measure operating

performance: Operational Cars Online (formerly Cars Online) and Gross Velocity (formerly Train Speed).

Operational Cars Online is a car-level metric representing the number of cars on the Kansas City Southern network that are not at a customer’s location. Gross Velocity is a train-level metric measuring the average velocity of a train between its origin and destination stations, calculated as the sum of the miles traveled divided by the sum of total transit hours. Transit hours are measured by calculating the difference between a train’s origin departure and destination arrival date and times broken down by segment across the train route.

This metric includes all time spent at intermediate locations between a train origin and destination.

In January 2019 KC Southern announced it was working on expansion projects at Spears, Weatherford and Corpus Christi Yard. The grading is complete at Spears.

The track is skeletonized and ready to install ballast, tamp, regulate and de-stress.

Signal work was expected to begin in late June. The project is 85 percent complete with anticipated full completion by midJuly. The grading at Bentonville (Weatherford) was at 95 percent and track work is currently in progress. The project is 55 percent complete with an anticipated full completion by mid-September. As for the Corpus Christi Yard expansion, grading work began in June and track work was expected to begin in July. Full completion is set for November.

Kansas City Southern is wrapping up its Dynamic Track Chart project, which primarily updated company track charts from static to truly dynamic charts based on PTC data with interactive search and sort functions, as well as Web Viewer applications. The project is creating databases of information that were previously only kept on the track charts themselves, now allowing for better access to important historical track asset data.

Kansas City Southern is in the process of completing the purchase of 50 locomotive units. Forty units were in service in June, with the remaining 10 delivered at the end of the month.

BNSF The emphasis of BNSF’s 2019 capital plan continues to be maintaining and expanding its network with an “unwavering focus on operating a safe railroad that meets customers’ demands.”

July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 13

Midyear Report

our velocity and will reduce our circuitry and our train miles and make our railroad more resilient and give a great capacity for growth,” added Alan Shaw, Executive Vice President and CMO at Norfolk Southern.

In January BNSF announced it was going to install 10 miles of track between Belen and Dalies, and that project is complete and in service. BNSF also has an eye on expansion projects in Belen, Fort Work, Hebron and Sherman. The railroad company was currently analyzing some different configurations for the Belen mainline extension project. The other three projects were still in the early or planning stages in June.

Back in March BNSF announced construction was underway at its newest logistics center, Logistics Center Hudson.

The fully permitted development is designed to help customers more easily reach Denver and surrounding markets via new rail-served sites.

BNSF was largely on pace with its overall bridge maintenance replacement program for 2019, but spokesperson Benjamin Wilemon told RT&S “it is important to acknowledge the flooding which has plagued the Midwest has impacted our network tremendously. This disrupts schedules for trains and maintenance activities alike.”

Norfolk Southern Norfolk Southern registered first quarter records in operations income ($966 million, a 16 percent increase vs. 2018) and net income ($677 million, a 23 percent increase). The first quarter year-over-year revenue growth of 5 percent marked the ninth consecutive quarter of year-over-year revenue gains and a record for first quarter revenue. Demand increased in corn and feed volumes.

14 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

In early June Norfolk Southern was preparing to roll out TOP21, the railroad’s new precision scheduled railroading operating plan to enhance customer service, increase operating efficiencies and support growth.

TOP21 is a key initiative of Norfolk Southern’s three-year strategic plan. The first phase of TOP21 will focus on the company’s general merchandise market.

Norfolk Southern already made initial

“

[The tax credit] is very powerful. We are cautiously optimistic it can be renewed at some point.

changes to its train plan for TOP21, and the rest of the changes will occur in early July.

“Two big drivers of [TOP21] is going to be reduced train miles and reduced circuitry at the car level,” Michael Wheeler, Executive Vice President and COO of Norfolk Southern, said during the company’s first quarter results meeting. “So both of those are good news from a productivity standpoint and good news from the customer part.”

“We are all very encouraged by what we’re seeing so far because it will improve

Canadian Pacific First quarter revenues for Canadian Pacific grew by 6 percent while earnings grew 3 percent. Train speed improved 2 percent and train weights and lengths were down a touch. Traffic speed is up 8 percent, and Keith Creel said at the first quarter earnings meeting that Canadian Pacific continues to set weekly unloading records.

At press time Canadian Pacific had 650 new high-capacity grain hoppers in service, and another 1,900 will be ready by the end of 2019.

CP’s energy chemical plastics portfolio experienced revenue growth of 18 percent in the first quarter of 2019, and in April CP and Inter Pipeline announced the execution of a long-term exclusive service agreement for the shipment of plastics from Inter Pipeline’s new Heartland Petrochemical Complex that is being built adjacent to Canadian Pacific in Alberta, Heartland.

Canadian Northern In June Canadian Northern reaffirmed its 2019 financial outlook and issued its financial perspective for the next three years.

Canadian Northern still aims to deliver 2019 adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) growth in the low double-digit range this year vs. 2018’s adjusted diluted EPS of $5.50 (Canadian), and now assumes mid single-digit volume growth in 2019 in terms of revenue ton miles.

In May CN announced it was increasing its operations in western Canada with two additional major export supply chain projects coming online as well as a record month of April for the movement of Canadian grain.

Both of the new projects are focused on maximizing the use of rail into the Port of Prince Rupert in British Columbia.

CN total tonnage of grain moved out of western Canada in the month of April set an all-time record of 2.72 million metric tons.

CSX CSX Corporation logged $834 million in net earnings for first quarter 2019, and its operating ratio set a first quarter record of 59.5 percent. Revenue for the first quarter increased 5 percent over the prior year to $3.01 billion. rtands.com

Photo Credit: BNSF

The Midwest flooding has disrupted schedules for BNSF maintenance activities.

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Midyear Report

Consolidated Report of Railroad Fuel Cost, Consumption and Fuel Surcharge Revenue (Dollars And Gallons In Thousands)

Quarter Ended March 31 2019

Total Fuel Cost ($)

Total Gallons of Fuel Consumed

Total Increase or Decrease in Cost of Fuel ($)

Total Revenue from Fuel Surcharges ($)

Revenue from Fuel Surcharges on Regulated Traffic ($)

QUARTER ENDED MARCH 31 2019 Burlington Northern Santa Fe

723,766

361,235

(180,322)

324,227

93

CSX Transportation

228,083

111,516

(18,875)

155,171

431

CN/Grand Trunk

74,535

36,682

(24,434)

35,081

2,453

Kansas City Southern

34,470

17,441

(4,567)

22,448

5,024

Norfolk Southern

254,119

127,623

(25,665)

154,053

640

Soo Line

32,760

16,318

(8,927)

17,851

7,252

530,924

258,185

(108,606)

397,476

37,060

Union Pacific

Source: Individual Class I railroad submissions to the Board

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Midyear Report

Class I Freight Railroads - Selected Earnings Data (000 Omitted)

Quarter Ended March 31 2019

Railway Operating Revenues

Net Railway Operating Income (1)

Net Income

RevenueTon-Miles Of Freight

QUARTER ENDED MARCH 31 2019 Total All Class 1 Freight Railroads

18,389,016

4,289,160

4,710,628

396,991,107

Burlington Northern - Santa Fe

5,660,473

1,230,248

1,595,436

157,687,019

CSX Transportation

2,933,220

706,794

804,670

50,436,745

CN/Grand Trunk Corporation

844,698

149,534

41,751

15,741,816

Kansas City Southern

362,627

42,337

20,599

8,664,117

2,839,774

610,590

658,856

49,275,797

364,014

70,919

55,578

8,535,613

5,384,210

1,478,738

1,533,738

106,650,000

Norfolk Southern Soo Line Union Pacific

SOURCES OF DATA: Railway Operating Revenues, Net Railway Operating Income, and Net Income are from the “Quarterly Report of Revenues, Expenses, and Income - Railroads” (Form RE&I).

Revenue Ton Miles of Freight are from the “Quarterly Condensed Balance Sheet - Railroads (Form CBS).

These reports have not been verified by the Surface Transportation Board.

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July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 17

FRA not interested in enforcing two-person crews

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In mid-June the Federal Railroad Administration decided to withdrawal a rule that would require two-member crews, and the White House banned states from requiring such a standard.

In pulling the rule, the FRA said “no regulation of train crew staffing is necessary or appropriate for railroad operations to be conducted safely.”

The two-person requirement was first proposed by then-FRA Administrator Joseph Szabo in 2013 following one of the worst train accidents in recent memory. Fortynine people were killed when an unattended 74-car freight train loaded with crude oil crashed into the Canadian town of Lac-Megantic. The explosion leveled the town. Later in 2013 two trains collided in Casselton, N.D., causing 476,000 gallons of crude oil to go up in smoke.

Officials believe technology, like positive train control, is making trains safer and will eliminate human error when it is fully implemented at the end of 2020.

The American Shor t Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) agreed with the move to pull the requirement.

“We thought it was a good decision and the right decision based on data and the facts,” ASLRRA President Chuck Baker told Railway Track & Structures. “Lots of short lines have lots of different set ups and they do it safely, and for the short lines that are unionized they think that crew sizes belong in collective bargaining.”

In response to the FRA dropping the rule, the state of Ohio was attempting to up the stakes.

House Bill 186 would make a two-person crew a requirement in Ohio and also lays out fines for those railroad companies who do not follow the law. The penalties range from up to $1,000 for a first violation to as much as $10,000 for a third violation within three years of the first.

“There already is a mandate, nationwide, for twoperson crews on every Class 1 railroad owing to labor agreements in force,” noted Railway Age Capitol Hill Contributing Editor Frank Wilner. “Thus, the Ohio legislation is academic and will remain so until there is a labor agreement permitting one-person crews, or if the Class 1 railroads, after a breakdown in the next round of labor talks, choose to impose one-person crews unilaterally and spark a work stoppage.”

The measure also will require railroads to illuminate rail yards as outlined by the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America and to construct walkways next to tracks wherever employees perform switching activities. Trains would not be able to block grade crossings for emergency vehicles. If a train delays an emergency vehicle the railroad company could be fined up to $5,000.

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Rail Maintenance

SPIKED! Broken spikes continue to cause problems on the rails, and the focus is on the fastening systems

t least 10 mainline derailments have been caused by wide gauge due to broken cut spikes or screw spikes since 2000 (Figure 1). Several recent derailments have brought attention to the problem of broken spikes.

Notable derailments include major oil train derailments in 2014 and 2016 and an Amtrak derailment in 2009.

Spikes typically break 1.5 in. beneath the top of the tie but continue to sit within it once broken, often making visual inspection impossible. Derailment reports show that broken spikes can be present in track that has previously met relevant standards.

Many spike failures occur in premium elastic fastening systems. Premium fastening systems use a clip to clamp the rail to 20 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

the tie plate, and spikes or screws are used to hold the tie plate to the timber crosstie. These premium systems are popular because they offer increased resistance to rail rollover, improved gauge-widening resistance, and typically do not require rail anchors to control longitudinal rail forces.

The University of Illinois (UIUC) researchers completed the first phase of an investigation into timber crosstie spike fastener failures on North American railroads in 2018. This investigation, funded by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), and supported by multiple Class 1 railroads, included a review of derailment reports and literature, an industry survey, and an extensive program of field visits to determine the extent of spike failures in track and to characterize the track conditions where

these failures occur. In addition, UIUC has developed a validated finite element model (FEM) to better understand the spike failure modes and the underlying causes.

The investigation discovered that spike failures are prevalent in the industry and pose a significant risk to railroad operations.

Gathering Data UIUC designed an industry survey to learn more about the magnitude of spike failure problems. The survey contained questions about the magnitude of the failures, where and when spike breakage occurs, and how railroads are currently locating and mitigating spike failures. Twenty-four responses were received from employees at nine railroads/agencies: Amtrak, BNSF Railway (BNSF), Canadian National Railway (CN), rtands.com

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Figure 1. Premium elastic fastener with five broken spikes and broken lag screws in McKay fastening system.

CSX, Kansas City Southern Railway, Norfolk Southern Corporation (NS), Southern California Regional Rail Authority (SCRRA), Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI), and Union Pacific Railway (UP). Respondents were primarily track standards engineers or maintenanceof-way field managers.

Field visits were used to complement and further investigate the survey results.

Researchers visited many, geographically different locations on four Class 1 railroads (BNSF, CSX, NS, and UP). These field visits involved inspecting track with a history of spike failures and interviewing field maintenance personnel and track standards engineers about their experience with spike failures. UIUC collected information about the grade, curvature, traffic characteristics, track conditions, fastening system characteristics, climate, maintenance practices, etc., to help identify trends and conditions that lead to failures.

Premium Problems A literature review found evidence of broken spikes as early as 1915, though the problem has become more pronounced with the recent adoption of premium fastening systems. Testing conducted at the Transportation Technology Center (TTC) between 1978-1979 found broken spikes to be a problem in premium fastening systems. Subsequent tests at the TTC have found similar problems with broken lag screws and spikes. Dick et al. (2007) studied spike stresses in screw spikes and found that stresses may be unevenly distributed among spikes in a plate. Gao et al. (2018) used a NUCARS® model and finite element analysis to investigate the effects of rail uplift and 22 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

spike contact position on spike stress.

The literature review, derailment reports, and field visits reveal that spike failures occur in a variety of fastening systems, regardless of spike type (cut, screw, hair-pin, etc.), geometry, steel properties, or manufacturer. Spikes have broken in multiple, different fastening systems on multiple railroads. This suggests that spike failure is a mechanism problem due to a certain stress condition, and not a material problem or a matter of manufacturing defects.

Eight of the nine railroads responding to the survey had experienced broken spike problems in some form.

When asked if the problem was a relatively small, moderate, or large problem compared to other track-related challenges, opinions were divided equally among the severity levels.

Respondents expressed concern over the challenges of inspecting for broken spikes (walking curves, tapping every spike) and the rapid gage deterioration that can occur in broken spike clusters. One respondent said, “On several heavy tonnage, steep grade territories, broken spikes are the problem that represents the greatest risk to the safety of train operations.”

Field interviews shed light on the amount of time maintenance-of-way crews spend on locating and fixing broken spikes (Figure 4).

Railroads rely on manual methods performed by experienced personnel to locate broken spikes before they lead to defective conditions. At present, there is no reliable, automated inspection method for identifying broken spikes. This could change in the future given the FRA’s current call for proposals for improved broken spike rtands.com

Rail Maintenance

inspection methods.

Researchers found locations with single broken spikes and other locations with clusters of broken spikes, including consecutive ties with multiple broken spikes. The most severe site had 121 broken spikes in length of 150 ties along the high rail.

Researchers developed a set of mechanistic hypotheses about the causes of spike breakage based on the results of the literature review, survey, and field visit data. As shown in Figure 5, in a traditional fastening system with cut spikes and anchors, spike stresses tend to increase with greater curvature (lateral forces), and in extreme cases this may cause spike breakage. It is theorized that premium fastening systems further increase spike stress because they do not use rail anchors to transfer longitudinal load into the ties. The longitudinal force is carried by the fasteners. Finally, premium fasteners are thought to be stiffer in both the lateral and longitudinal directions, further increasing spike stress by reducing the number of ties over which loads are distributed.

A validated FEM was developed and used to investigate the effect of load direction and magnitude as well as timber type on spike stress. It was found that longitudinal load has a more detrimental effect on spike stress than lateral load given the timber grain is weaker when resisting longitudinal loads (perpendicular to grain) than lateral loads (parallel to grain). To exceed the fatigue strength of the cut spike, a longitudinal load approximately 30 percent lower than a lateral load would be applied. Additionally, loading direction significantly effects the depth to maximum stress; longitudinal loads create deeper failures. Further, timber species significantly affected the magnitude and depth of maximum stress. It is believed that the timber mechanical properties driving this are compressive, tensile, shear, and rolling shear strengths.

Therefore, when using premium fastening systems, specifications should recommend as high of strengths as locally sourced timber can provide.

Figure 5. Hypothetical graph showing relation of spike stress to curvature, grade, and fastener type.

Still Working As part of Phase 2 of this project, RailTEC is currently conducting laboratory experimentation to examine fatigue performance

of spikes and load transfer in various fastening systems with success in recreating failures in the lab. Additionally, field experimentation is planned to quantify the load

TRACK STARS OF RAIL SUPPLY

A Broken Risk The results of this investigation provide evidence that broken spike conditions are present in North American railroad track and pose a risk to rail safety. Additional research is needed to determine the root cause(s) of spike failures and to develop solutions that will prevent future failures. rtands.com

July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 23

Rail Maintenance

of improving fastener designs and/or installation and maintenance practices to prevent spike failures these efforts will serve the industry by reducing derailment risk and reducing track maintenance and repair costs.

Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) for sponsoring this research, as well as NS, UP, BNSF, CSX, Pandrol, CN, Vossloh North America, and Lewis Nut and Bolt for their industry partnership.

Figure 6. Preliminary qualitative FEM stress results with varying load cases.

environment and fastener response when subjected to revenue service traffic. And finally, the finite element modelling is being

continued to further quantify the effects of crosstie, spike, and fastening system properties and geometry on failure. With the goal

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References Dick, M. G., McConnell, D. S., & Iwand, H. C. (2007). Experimental Measurement and Finite Element Analysis of Screw Spike Fatigue Loads. 2007 ASME/IEEE Joint Rail Conference & Internal Combustion Engine Spring Technical Conference. Pueblo, Colo.

Gao, Y., McHenry, M., & Kerchof, B. (2018).

Investigation of Broken Cut Spikes on Elastic Fastener Tie Plates Using an Intergrated Simulation Method. Proceedings of the 2018 Joint Rail Conference. Pittsburgh, Pa.

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Fastening Systems

2019

FASTENING SYSTEMS REPORT

Fastening systems continue to improve while product lines expand

Progress Rail Progress Rail, a Caterpillar company, offers innovative fastening solutions, such as GageLok screw spikes for fastening rail and plates to timber ties, ballast mats and under tie pads, embedded block systems and Loadmaster direct fixation fasteners.

Progress Rail also continues to provide customers the broadest range of traditional fastening products, such as rail anchors, e-clips, ME Series and Safelok concrete tie systems, MACRO Armor for rail seat abrasion protection and repair and system wide bonded direct fixation fasteners.

GageLok screw spikes are available in many variants, including direct replacements for cut spikes (in 11/16-in. diameter) and high-strength screw spikes (in 15/16-in. diameter). Railroads can realize significant maintenance savings with these, which have demonstrated longer life.

Tests show the GageLok 11/16 in. outperforms cut spikes in a simulated 3 million cyclic load curve test, completely negating any plate cut, while maintaining holding capacity. The GageLok 15/16-in. addresses 26 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

issues observed in resilient fastening plates through its increased minor diameter to prevent shear failure, unlike screws that have a higher tendency to release over time.

Additionally, Progress Rail provides ballast mats to protect concrete bridge decks, reduce ballast degradation, groundborn vibration and lessen impact loads on bridges to extend structure life. When ballast matting is not feasible, our nextgeneration Under Tie Pad (UTP) is available to provide resilience under the tie.

Composed of elastomer material, the UTP is available in either attrition or attenuation performance categories. Both categories have been proven to extend track and bridge deck life.

Progress Rail’s Embedded Block System (EBS) has been in service since the 1970s.

This product meets a variety of performance characteristics, including those from high attenuation and lighter loads to medium and high stiffness as required by customers with higher axle load traffic. The EBS is sealed, unlike other block systems.

The sealed property prevents performance degradation resulting from the intrusion of water and foreign materials that can corrupt unsealed products over time. Currently, Progress Rail has been contracted to supply EBS for projects in North America.

Additionally, Progress Rail offers the Loadmaster fastener to freight railroads

for use on slab, steel deck and timber deck bridges to reduce the track modulus of the bridge and more closely match the track on the approaches to prevent low bridge ends and reduce maintenance. Progress Rail’s Loadmaster DF has successfully endured the mixed traffic of the Northeast Corridor for 30 years. In that span of time, it has regularly supported 100-mph, 30-ton locomotives propelling passenger traffic along with the overnight 36- to 39-ton heavy haul traffic of Class 1 railroads. Its unique and rugged design allows it to cushion the forces of all axle loads, while preventing too much vertical and lateral rail head movement. In recent years, Progress Rail developed the Loadmaster so it could be secured to 8-in. wood ties. The performance of the Loadmaster DF and the Loadmaster Timber Tie fastening systems have demonstrated they can successfully reduce impact forces and maintenance by creating a track modulus match between ballasted track and structures, while providing a long service life.

Pandrol Available for use with Pandrol’s e-clip and Fastclip, the innovative Victor Plate system combines the durability of an AREMA tie plate with the benefits of Pandrol’s resilient fastenings. The Victor Plate is specifically designed to meet North America’s requirements of higher rtands.com

Photo Credit: Progress Rail

F

astening systems are a critical component in rail construction and maintenance. The following is the latest offerings in the marketplace compiled by the Railway Track & Structures staff.

RT&S staff report

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Fastening Systems

Vossloh’s growth in the market can be contributed to benefits built into the fastening system.

locomotive horsepower, dynamic breaking, more MGTs per year, larger rail sections and tie-strength variation.

Developed to accommodate high axle loads on wood ties, the Victor plate has the same footprint as a standard asymmetrical 18-in. AREMA tie plate and incorporates a cast swaged-in shoulder that utilizes a standard fastening system. The plate provides the maximum plate-bearing area, giving a 37 percent increase in bearing area over existing tie plates for resilient fastenings. This increased bearing reduces plate cutting and maintenance requirements, while providing excellent mitigation of rail rollover.

Pandrol also provides exclusive distribution of Sicut composite ties in North America, which are made from recycled

materials using technologies developed

by Rutgers, the state university of New Jersey and Polywood Inc. Sicut ties are non-corrosive and are impervious to moisture. The mechanical properties of the ties are achieved without the use of steel reinforcement bars, allowing Sicut’s ties to be recycled after use and eliminating water/ moisture ingress, undetected cracking, and potential steel rusting, which can all lead to tie malfunction. Composite ties offer a lightweight solution and require significantly less maintenance, providing a significant reduction in transportation, handling and overhead costs.

Vossloh Vossloh Fastening Systems has become the standard for many Class 1 railroads since

its introduction to the market in 2006.

Its growth in the market can be attributed to some of the benefits built into the fastening system, such as being completely captive, having no need for an insulator, and a large bearing surface that can support lateral loads in demanding curves. Also, the secondary stiffness provided by the angled guide plates and rail tilting protection delivered by the tension clamp add an extra layer of safety to an already safe fastening system.

These benefits are now being realized in the transit market as well. Designers and contractors are experiencing reductions in required time and labor during installation, thereby realizing significant cost savings which is the driving factor in the change from traditional elastic fasteners. Recent notable projects for the Vossloh Fastening System include the Baltimore Purple Line, REM (Montreal) and All Aboard Florida to name a few.

When de-stressing continuously welded rail, the tension clamps are simply loosened (allowing the rail to run) and re-tightened, with no need for handling of components or swinging heavy tools. Installing the tension clamp multiple times does not result in a loss of toe load, so clamping force is maintained over the full life of the fastening system. Transit lines’ unique insulation requirements also lend themselves well to the Vossloh fastening system; the assembly is always fully insulated by the use of nylon in the anchorage, eliminating the need for toe insulators and their typically oftrequired replacement.

U.S. manufacturing has been in full production for a number of years now, allowing Vossloh to service all Buy American requirements of customers, and modern production methods have provided Vossloh with exceptional on-time

How does up to 40 ties a minute sound?

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28 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

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How many ties can a Fastclip clip ‘cause a Fastclip can clip fast?

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Fastening Systems

J. Lanfranco Fasteners produces metal locknuts for mission-critical bolting.

delivery. Working with our industry partners to ensure that all components arrive at the jobsite preassembled on to the tie makes the installation process faster and minimizes material shortages.

voestalpine Nortrak voestalpine Nortrak (Nortrak) is a leading provider of integrated railway systems from the top of rail to the bottom of tie, including special trackwork, switch machines,

rail, concrete and composite ties and resilient fastening systems. Nortrak has nine locations throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico to serve Class 1 freight railroads, passenger railroads, transit agencies, ports and short lines.

Nortrak has been a supplier of American-made concrete ties and rail-fastening components to freight and passenger customers for more than 10 years. During the past year, Nortrak has expanded its portfolio of fastening system products including new rail pads, insulators and cast shoulders for concrete tie applications and new cast tie plate designs for wood and composite ties, all manufactured in Decatur, Ill. Nortrak has also launched a new partnership with Getzner USA to provide a broad range of products aimed at reducing wheel impacts and vibration including under tie pads, rail pads and plate pad systems used in freight and transit applications.

“Nortrak has spent the past year focusing on building strategic partnerships

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crossings and as demonstrated a durability and reliability that is needed within the industry.

MillerIngenuity.com/ReLok 30 MI_ReLok_HalfPageHoriz.indd Railway Track & Structures 1// July 2019

6/27/19rtands.com 10:57 PM

Fastening Systems

and leveraging our internal technical and manufacturing capabilities to provide an expanded array of fastening system solutions to our customers,” said John Stout, vice president of Rail Fastening.

Nortrak has more than 900 employees focused on designing, manufacturing and delivering the highest quality track and turnout components in the industry. The company aims to be the supplier of choice for all customer segments. In order to meet shorter lead times Nortrak has made significant investments in new manufacturing technology at the company’s Decatur manganese and ductile iron foundry and at other special trackwork locations. These investments ensure a steady flow of castings through precision machining and trackwork assembly for projects throughout North America.

The SafeGuard fastening system was designed to reduce the risk of injury to installation employees by eliminating the need to swing a hammer at a clip in the extremely confined space adjacent to the guard rail. The system is based on a simple

fastener that can be lifted onto a seat with a pry bar, while still providing a toe-load equivalent to existing clip-based designs.

J. Lanfranco J. Lanfranco Fasteners manufactures metal locknuts for mission-critical bolting. Since 1974 the company has served railway markets across the world.

The J. Lanfranco dual-sotted, all-metal locknuts offer a true single piece design without inserts of any kind and work with any standard bolt and impact tool.

The locking action is completely independent of bolt tension and will not damage bolt threads. They are easy to use for crews across the widest variety of bolting conditions.

The Lanfranco THU nuts meet the dimensional and mechanical requirements of AST A563 & A194, making them an ideal choice for high vibration as well as structural bolting areas with ASTM A325 bolts.

Another advantage of the THU locknuts aside from performance is that they thread on by hand freely up to 90% of the nut height making for extremely fast installations.

L.B. Foster Company According to Jason Bowlin, general manager, L.B. Foster Transit Products, “L.B. Foster is a proven industry leader in developing and commercializing fastener technology for the North American transit industry, drawing on over 35 years of fastener development expertise to advance specialized product solutions to the market to meet specific customer needs. During this time, we have successfully delivered more than 4 million fasteners.”

He continued, “For example, we recently received approval from a key West Coast transit for our state-of-the-art high-resilient fastener. Additionally, L.B. Foster is nearing completion of the approval process for a new direct fixation fastener for New York City Transit.

“This new fastener was designed and developed in coordination between our Pittsburgh R&D and Atlanta Engineering teams. Utilizing finite element analysis and our depth of industry know-how, we were able to shrink the development timeline to less than 6 months.”

GET THE INSIDE SCOOP ON & OFF THE TRACK

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July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 31 3/1/19 4:05 PM

Special Trackwork

2019

SPECIAL TRACKWORK REPORT

Rail industry now demanding reliability and extended service life RT&S staff report

L.B. Foster Company L.B. Foster supplies a broad range of highly differentiated products to its special trackwork customers across North America because of its focus on adding value through innovation and utilizing unique technology. According to Sid Shue, director of Rail at L.B. Foster Company, “We maintain this commitment to innovation by introducing new designs and high-performance components, allowing us to manufacture an extensive line of insulated rail joints (IJs), including our bonded and polyurethane insulated joints.

For example, our ENDURA-JOINT® IJ has become the industry standard by incorporating improved materials and discrete design elements. It combines a new ceramic end post, which is utilized as a key structural element, a high-strength insulated tie plate, our reformulated proprietary TEMPRANGE® III adhesive and a new high modulus insulated joint bar with improved geometry and material properties.”

32 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

Shue commented on two product introductions. “One of our recent product introductions is our GEN2 IJ plate. This is a forged steel, polyurethane-coated highperformance plate, which supports the IJ, allowing railroads to then center the IJ on a railroad tie. By so doing, railroads see enhanced life and reduced maintenance of their IJs and track structure. For special trackwork applications it is available in both a canted and non-canted version.

And our latest addition to the ENDURAJOINT product family is a 48-in., 8-hole IJ joint configuration. This longer joint increases bond strength due to its larger contact area.”

From a wholly owned subsidiary in Germany, the company introduced the EKOS™ roller switching system in North America. Per Shue, “The EKOS system is a recent addition to our line of products sold to North American freight and passenger rail systems and is increasingly becoming accepted by our customers for its unique advantages. This system enables lubrication-free sliding of the switch blades during switch movements, eliminating the need to lubricate switch plates, while simultaneously reducing switch operating forces.”

A second generation Curv Bloc™ rail fastener is another product for special trackwork applications supplied by L.B. Foster.

Said Shue, “To prevent low rail rollover in curves experiencing varying track speeds, heavy loads and intermodal traffic our Curv Bloc rail fastener is a low-cost, field-proven solution. This rail fastener is able to withstand high lateral loads while preserving the floating rail system and minimizes gaugewidening forces as well as track dislocation due to sand and ice buildup between the rail and tie plate.”

Shue concluded, “As North American rail traffic continues to grow, reducing access for track maintenance, the products that railroads use must be more reliable and provide an extended service life. Increasingly, Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is being embraced by the railroads. Taking into consideration both the initial cost as well as longer-term life cycle costs, TCO is critical as we work closely with the railroads to develop new products and services to meet their requirements.”

Progress Rail Progress Rail delivers a full infrastructure product line to Class 1s, transits, regional and short line railroads, as well as serving contractors and the industrial market.

Progress Rail now offers redesigned hollow steel bearers, or HSBs, to easily modify switch orientation from a turnout to the mainline, or vice versa. rtands.com

Photo Credit: Vossloh

S

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Many customers also have witnessed the benefits of using a boltless, adjustable brace – such as the Clamptite rail brace – to continually hold the stock rail in the rail seat from installation through the tamping cycles. This feature saves time and money should a stock rail become disengaged from the switch plates.

Progress Rail’s Clamptite brace is a standard on five of the seven Class 1 railroads.

Additionally, rail thermal forces and high tonnage directional traffic can affect track alignment and component life where gradecrossing diamonds are required.

Progress Rail has developed an improved sliding rail or expansion joint, which eliminates rail movement in the crossing. This has proven effective in helping prevent alignment deviations and component failures.

Progress Rail has led the development of full flange bearing crossing design for the past 10 years, and continues to evaluate component life, while working to reduce joints and impacts in special trackwork.

When Progress Rail’s Vertical Lift Switch and Lift Frog are used in combination, the turnout becomes invisible to

traffic running on the mainline – creating continuous service, with virtually no maintenance required.

Progress Rail’s first vertical lift switch was installed five years ago for Class 1 100 MGT freight and passenger service with speeds up to 79 mph. Designed primarily for switches with limited divergent movement, the vertical lift switch and lift frog eliminate traditional vertical interface with the wheel and switch point. Both innovative track technologies have been designed for set out tracks, low volume or seasonal sidings and heavy haul applications, such as grain elevator usage.

Transit applications include emergency crossovers. Progress Rail’s Lift Frog meets AAR’s plate “C” equipment diagram for above rail clearance. Requirements include a shimmed high guard rail on the turnout side and frog gauge plates. Shimming allows the axle to remain parallel when negotiating the turnout. This is most beneficial for rigid axle work equipment. No mainline guard rail is necessary. Progress Rail’s Lift Frog is available in No. 9, 10 and 11 frog sizes for 5 ½- or 6-in. rail bases.

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Bridge Safety Standards FRA Part 237 establishes Federal safety requirements for railroad bridges. This rule requires track owners to implement bridge management programs, which include annual inspections of railroad bridges, and to audit the programs. Part 237 also requires track owners to know the safe load capacity of bridges and to conduct special inspections if the weather or other conditions warrant such inspections. Updated April 3, 2017.

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Vossloh Last year, Vossloh North America partnered for a special project with the Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI) in Pueblo, Colo., to test the advanced lift frog prototype.

The newly elevated lift frog manufactured by the Cleveland Track division provides the required wheel ramping by using external vertical bends in the wing and heel rail of the frog. As a result, it offers a safe operation of the train at the turnout point at a higher speed as per the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) guidelines.

Since the ramping is external to the frog body, the outside rail on the diverging route

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Designed to replace traditional double switch point derails, Progress Rail also offers its Vertical Derail product. When in the open position, the derail serves as straight rail and the switch point does not come into contact with the wheels. By eliminating the traditional vertical interface between the wheel and switch point, the Vertical Derail reduces maintenance and component replacement.

This reprint includes the FRA's Railroad Workplace Safety Standards addressing roadway workers and their work environments. These laws cover such things as: personal protective equipment, fall protection, and scaffolding for bridgeworkers; and training issues. Also includes safety standards for on-track roadway vehicles. Updated April 3, 2017.

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route is elevated as well as the frog to generate parallel ramps and maintain a level wheelset, which is of the essence for trucks with rigid frames.

Another advantage to the customer is the extended life span of the frog. Only one casting needed, the straight mainline running rail is unbroken and 1:40 canted to allow for ease of installation and providing a smooth, continuous wheel contact path throughout the mainline side. voestalpine Nortrak voestalpine Nortrak has added to its product line of high-performance BlueRoll switch point rollers. This year, Nortrak has introduced the Extreme Duty BlueRoll to meet the most demanding service conditions. The new model consists of dual hardened steel rollers with sealed needle bearings. All three models are Buy America compliant, and since they share the same envelope size they all utilize the same housing.

Many railroads install new turnouts as pre-assembled turnout panels. During cutover, complete panels are lifted, carried and set into place.

Despite substantial productivity advantages, this installation method is dependent upon the rail braces maintaining secure clamping of the stock rails while facing forces five times normal service loads.

Braces that are not designed to withstand these installation forces risk allowing the stock rail to roll out of the seat and the corresponding ties to disengage from the stock rails. Even if brace failure happens once out of a handful of installations, the consequences can be severe.

Nortrak has developed the ClickTite™ brace to overcome this issue. The ClickTite brace uses a tapered wedge to apply the primary clamping force, and does not require the clamping force of an e-clip to secure the rail. When the tapered wedge is driven underneath the lip of the brace, it causes the brace to pivot toward the rail and apply a downward force onto the rail base. Extensive testing has shown that this design results in about 50 percent more resistance to rail roll-out, which places it beyond the maximum moment that can be exerted on a rail brace during panel installation.

The Heavy Point Switch™ (HPS™) is a stock rail-switch point pair designed to strengthen and substantially extend the life of switch points in Class 1 turnouts. Nortrak’s patented Kinematic Gauge Optimization process has been used to thicken the switch point at the most vulnerable area near the tip. The HPS can replace existing switch point-stock rail sets as a “direct drop in” without modifications, regardless of the turnout geometry or manufacturer.

Welded Spring Manganese (WSM®) frogs improve performance by using wear-resistant manganese steel to replace an assembly of rail, blocks and bolts that can wear and work loose.

Nortrak’s Spring Wing Controller replaces conventional retarders previously used on spring frogs.

Nortrak introduced the moveable point frog (MPF) to the North American freight market over 25 years ago. The next generation of moveable point frog is the MPF-TW. This latest innovation uses thick web (TW) rail and was developed specifically for operating environments with axle loads greater than 40 tons.

Welded Boltless Manganese (WBM®) frogs are designed specifically for Class 1 heavy haul service. The design utilizes explosive depth hardened manganese steel and eliminates all rail joints, which reduces maintenance and leaves the frog unaffected by CWR thermal stresses. rtands.com

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Professional Development

Message From The President members of the NCUTCD. The Committees comprising this Functional Group are: • Committee 34 – Scales • Committee 36 – Highway-Rail Grade Crossing Warning Systems • Committee 37 – Signal Systems • Committee 38 – Information, Defect Detection & Energy Systems • Committee 39 – Positive Train Control

AREMA is focused on your education and helping yo u a d va n ce i n th e ra ilwa y i n d u s tr y. AR EM A’s i n-p e r s o n seminars provide Professional Development Hours (PDH) to serve your educational needs.

Introduction to Practical Railway Engineering Seminar Date: Aug. 12-14 Lo c a t i o n: To ro n to, O n ta r i o, Canada PDH: 20 Th re e Sem in ars will be h e ld in conjunction with the AREMA 201 9 A n n u a l C o n f e re n c e i n conjunction with Railway Interchange in Minneapolis, Minn: Introduction to Practical Railway Engineering Seminar Date: Sept. 20-22 PDH: 15.5 Track Alignment Design Seminar Date: Sept. 25-27 PDH: 14.5 FRA: 213 – Track Safety Standards Seminar Date: Sept. 25-27 PDH: 15.75 For more information on our educational programs and to register, please visit www.arema.org.

Not an AREMA Member?

Join today at www.arema.org Follow Arema on Social Media:

36 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

James K. Kessler, P.E. AREMA President

O

2018-2019

ver the last three months, I have used this President’s column to review the activities of our Functional Groups and highlight their accomplishments. So far we have presented the Passenger & Transit, Engineering Services, and Track Functional Groups. This month, I would like to continue this discussion with AREMA’s Communications & Signals (C&S) Functional Group led by Vice President Robin Aanenson and supported by Directors Jerry Specht and Tommy Phillips.

The C&S Functional Group focuses on the safety and efficiency of railroad communication, signal and scale systems. It is comprised of over 350 members who are railroaders, engineers, equipment manufacturers, consultants and regulators who provide key insight for the development and revision of the five-volume set of the C&S Manual of Recommended Practice and of the AAR Scale Handbook. The C&S Manual provides recommended design criteria, developmental criteria, function guidelines, operating guidelines, applications, instructions and procedures for the C&S systems applied on railroads. The C&S Manual is published annually with each individual Manual Part scheduled for review at least every five years or earlier.

AREMA, as a contributing sponsor to the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (NCUTCD), is represented at NCUTCD by a member and associate member who report jointly to the C&S Functional Group and the AREMA Executive Director/CEO. In addition, several other AREMA C&S members also are

Committee 34 – Scales, chaired by David Gogolin, is responsible for the development and publication of recommended procedures and information for the design, installation, testing and maintenance of track scales and other scales used in connection with operation of a railway. Committee 34 is comprised of experts in the railroad scale industry having two subcommittees.

Subcommittee A provides recommendations for further investigation and research.

Subcommittee B provides recommendations for updates, changes and modifications using an affirmation program with the Association of American Railroads (AAR) to maintain the AAR Scale Handbook. Rules and specifications contained in the AAR Scale Handbook apply primarily to weighing systems designed and installed to support railroad locomotives and cars and to weigh the railcars. The Handbook specifies equipment, procedures and tolerances for testing track scales intended for static or motion weighing of cars. This committee also provides recommendations to the National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) under the direction of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

Committee 36 – Highway-Rail Grade Crossing Warning Systems, chaired by John Sharkey, P.E., develops concepts and provides information and recommended practices for the design, installation, operation and maintenance of highway-railroad grade-crossing warning equipment and systems. Subcommittee 1 - Warning Systems Controls, is responsible for: warning system control circuits, evaluating industry practices on the interconnection of grade-crossing warning systems with nearby highway traffic signals; development of new recommended practices for new grade-crossing warning system technology; and review of grade-crossing control product changes and safety improvements rtands.com

to ensure recommended practices are current. Subcommittee 2 - Warning System Installation and Maintenance, is responsible for: the installation and maintenance of warning systems and for monitoring FRA Activation Failure data to determine if changes in recommended practices are warranted to reduce malfunctions. Subcommittee 3 - Warning System Equipment, is responsible for warning devices hardware and components; and developing or revising Manual Parts based on recent Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) guidelines and proposed Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) revisions.

Committee 37 – Signal Systems, chaired

by E. Keith Holt, is responsible for continual review of current and new technology addressing the design, installation, testing and maintenance of signal equipment and systems and develop recommended

“industry practices” with the overall goal of improving the safety and reliability of train operations. Subcommittee A - Recommendations for Further Investigation and Research, discusses and develops topics that need to be addressed in the C&S Manual and assigns them to Committees 36, 37, 38 or 39 keeping a focus on future advancements of signal systems such as moving block signaling for one. Subcommittee 1 – Signal Systems, is responsible for: system signal-testing instructions; construction and maintenance of signal equipment; track circuit; systems management guidelines; definitions of terms; and C&S Style Manual Compliance. Subcommittee 2 – Signal Equipment, is responsible for developing and maintaining recommended practices for manufacturing of signal hardware; relays, switch machines; optical systems; and other electromechanical signaling

devices. Subcommittee 3 – Signal Control & Application, is responsible for developing and maintaining recommended practices for manufacturing of vital railroad signal electronics, communication-based signaling and the application of vital control circuitry used in wayside signal systems.

Next month we will conclude our discussion of the C&S Functional Group with a review of Committees 38 and 39. As always, the leadership of each AREMA Committee are always looking for new members to actively participate in committee work.

More details and instructions on how to join a committee can be found on the AREMA website www.arema.org.

Wishing everyone a safe summer and looking forward to seeing you in Minneapolis in September for the AREMA 2019 Annual Conference in conjunction with Railway Interchange.

Upcoming Committee Meetings Sept. 10 - 11 Committee 15 - Steel Structures Columbus, Ohio *Committee Meetings happening at the AREMA 2019 Annual Conference in conjunction with Railway Interchange in Minneapolis, Minn.

Committee 17 - High-Speed Rail Systems * Committees 11 & 17 Joint Meeting * Committee 18 - Light Density & Short Line Railways * Committee 24 - Education & Training *

Sept. 21 Committee 27 - Maintenance of Way Work Equipment *

Committee 33 - Electric Energy Utilization *

Sept. 21-22 Committee 24 - Education & Training *

Committee 41 - Track Maintenance *

Sept. 22 Committee 5 - Track *

Committee 40 - Engineering Safety *

Sept. 23 Committee 13 - Environmental *

Committee 6 - Building & Support Facilities *

Sept. 25-26 Committee 8 - Concrete Structures and Foundations *

Committee 10 - Structures, Maintenance & Construction *

Committee 38 - Information, Defect Detection & Energy Systems *

Committee 11 - Commuter & Intercity Rail Systems *

Committee 39 - Positive Train Control *

Committee 12 - Rail Transit * Committee 14 - Yards & Terminals * Committee 16 - Economics of Railway Engineering & Operations *

Oct. 14-15 Committee 30 - Ties Tucson, Ariz.

Oct. 15-16 Committee 36 - Highway-Rail Grade Crossing Warning Systems Pittsburgh, Pa. Oct. 16-17 Committee 37 - Signal Systems Pittsburgh, Pa.

2020 Jan. 1 Committee 10 - Structures, Maintenance & Construction Albuquerque, N.M. Jan. 23-24 Committee 8 - Concrete Structures and Foundations New Orleans, La. June 1 Committee 10 - Structures, Maintenance & Construction New York, N.Y. Sept. 13 Committee 10 - Structures, Maintenance & Construction Dallas, Texas

If you’d like to learn more about the AREMA Technical Committees and would like to get involved, please contact Alayne Bell at abell@arema.org. For a complete list of all committee meetings, visit https://www.arema.org/events.aspx.

Negotiated airline discount information for AREMA Committee meetings can be found online at: http://www.arema.org/ meetings/airlines.aspx.

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July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 37

Announcement of AREMA Board of Governors 2019 Election The Governance Nominating Committee, chaired by Past President Dwight W. Clark has completed its task and the following nominees have been officially elected: • Mr. Ricky Johnson – Board of Governor • Mr. Eric Gehringer – Board of Governor • Mr. Edward Boyle, Jr. – Board of Governor • Mr. Randy Bowman – Treasurer Each will assume their Board of Governors position at the AREMA 2019 Annual Conference, which is being held in Minneapolis, Minn., Sept. 22-25, 2019, except for Mr. Boyle whose term started in May. Elected as: Governor (2019-2022) Name: Ricky E. Johnson Title: Vice President Engineering Organization/Company: CSX Transportation Ricky Johnson is the Vice President of Engineering, with responsibilities including oversight of CSX’s track infrastructure.

Johnson has served in this position since 2015, prior to which he was the Chief Engineer, Maintenance of Way. He has held multiple positions of increasing responsibility during his tenure at CSX, which extends more than 15 years including: roadmaster, assistant division engineer of track, division engineer, and assistant chief of system production. Johnson’s leadership and background in technology systems were crucial to CSX’s development and implementation of Positive Train Control and other technologies that support the company’s safety, service and productivity goals. Johnson joined CSX with railroad experience having worked at the Alabama Gulf Coast Railroad and BNSF Railway.

Johnson, a military veteran, has a bachelor’s degree from Excelsior College and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Maryland. He also completed CSX’s Executive Education Program at Harvard Business School.

38 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

Elected as: Governor (2019-2021) Name: Eric J. Gehringer Title: Vice President Engineering Organization/Company: Union Pacific Railroad Eric Gehringer was assigned as Vice President Engineering on March 12, 2018. He is responsible for maintaining and hardening the company’s infrastructure, leading the design, construction and maintenance of track, structures and signal systems, ensuring safe and efficient movement of trains.

He served as the Assistant Vice President of Track Programs since Sept. 9, 2016, where he was responsible for renewal of the company’s track infrastructure. He has held various positions in the Operating Department’s Engineering Department. Eric started in 2006 as a management trainee with Union Pacific following his time at Northwest Airlines and Daimler Chrysler.

Eric graduated with his B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from Saint Louis University and his MBA from the University of Nebraska.

Elected as: Governor (2019-2020) Name: Edward F. Boyle, Jr. Title: Vice President Engineering Organization/Company: Norfolk Southern Corporation Edward “Ed” Boyle Jr. became Vice President Engineering to replace Phil Merilli upon Merilli’s retirement from the company on May 1, 2019. Boyle reports to Chief Operating Officer Michael “Mike” Wheeler.

Boyle is responsible for the design, construction, inspection, and maintenance of railroad infrastructure, including track, bridges, and vehicle fleet. Boyle joined Norfolk Southern Corporation in 1994 as an Engineering Management Trainee. He

has held positions of increasing responsibility in both the engineering and transportation departments. Since October 2015, he had served in the Engineering Department as Assistant Vice President Maintenance of Way and Structures. He has a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Pennsylvania State University and is currently involved in the North American Chief Engineers (NACE) and Railway Technology Working Committee (RTWC).

Elected as: Treasurer (2019-2022) Name: Randy L. Bowman Title: Engineer Track and Materials Organization/Company: Norfolk Southern Corporation Randy Bowman is Engineer Track and Materials with Norfolk Southern Corporation.

Bowman has worked for Norfolk Southern for over 33 years and has been active in AREMA and its predecessor organizations for over 28 years. He has served as Secretary, Vice Chair and Chair of AREMA Committee 4 and as Subcommittee Chair on Committee 5, as well as the Chair of the Membership Committee. He has served on the Functional Group Board of Directors as Director – Track as well as Functional Group Vice President — Track. Bowman then served as Senior Vice President, President and Past President of AREMA on the Board of Governors. He is a past member of the American Society for Metals and has also served as a member of the Transportation Research Board. He graduated from North Carolina State University with a BS in Materials Engineering.

Not an AREMA Member?

Join today at www.arema.org Follow Arema on Social Media:

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2019 Manual for Railway Engineering

The Manual for Railway Engineering is the recommended practices for the engineering, designing and constructing of railways (except communications and signals), allied services and facilities. This reference material consists of more than 5,000 pages of principles, data, specifications, plans and economics in order to build safe and economical operations.

There are over 40 new, revised, and reaffirmed Parts in the 2019 edition developed by AREMA technical committees. It is published as a guide to the railway industry in establishing their individual policies and practices. Chapters are grouped into four categories: Track, Structures, Infrastructure and Passenger, and Systems Management. The Manual is available in print or thumb drive format. Individual Chapters are available in downloadable, PDF format.

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Ad Index

COMPANY

PHONE #

FAX #

E-MAIL ADDRESS

AREMA Marketing Department

301-459-3200

301-459-8077

marketing@arema.org

Cover 3

Diversified Metal Fabricators, Inc.

404-875-1512

404-875-4835

sales@dmfatlanta.com

10

Harsco Rail

803 822-9160

803 822-8107

railinfo@harsco.com

15

Holland Lp

708-672-2300

708-672-0119

rgehl@hollandco.com

18

Hougen Manufacturing

866-245-3745

800-309-3299

info@trak-star.com

17

L.B. Foster Co.

412-928-3506

412-928-3512

glippard@lbfosterco.com

31

Loram Maintenance of Way, Inc.

763-478-6014

763-478-2221

sales@loram.com

Cover 2

Miller Ingenuity

877-843-0767

sales@milleringenuity.com

30

NAMRC

612-401-6336

mijohnson@herzog.com

22

Next Gen Train Control

212-620-7208

conferences @sbpub.com

21

NRM

816-708-9088

tfrancis@nevadarail.com

35

North American Rail Products Inc

604-946-7272

8886921150

cerhart@narailproducts.com

23

Pandrol USA, L.P

800-221-CLIP

856-467-2994

Plasser American Corp

757-543-3526

757-494-7186

plasseramerican@plausa.com

Cover 4

Progress Rail, A Caterpillar Company

256-505-6402

2565056051

info@progressrail.com

33

Railcet

217-331-5522

217-522-6588

tryan@midwestlaborers.org

16

Railway Education Bureau, The

402-346-4300

402-346-1783

bbrundige@sb-reb-com

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voestalpine Nortrak, Inc

307-778-8700

307-778-8777

gord.weatherly@voestalpine.com

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212-633-1165

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Vosslon NA Willamette Valley Company

541-484-9621

541-484-1987

alisha.barrowcliff@wilvaco.com

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Advertising Sales MAIN OFFICE Jonathan Chalon Publisher 55 Broad St., 26th Floor New York, NY 10004 (212) 620-7224 Fax: (212) 633-1863 jchalon@sbpub.com AL, KY, TN Jonathan Chalon 55 Broad St., 26th Floor New York, NY 10004 (212) 620-7224 Fax: (212) 633-1863 jchalon@sbpub.com

CT, DE, DC, FL, GA, ME, MD, MA, NH, NJ, NY, NC, OH, PA, RI, SC, VT, VA, WV, Canada – Quebec and East, Ontario Jerome Marullo 55 Broad St., 26th Floor New York, NY 10004 (212) 620-7260 Fax: (212) 633-1863 jmarullo@sbpub.com AR, AK, AZ, CA, CO, IA, ID, IL, In, KS, LA, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NE, NM, ND, NV, OK, OR, SD, TX, UT, WA, WI, WY, Canada – AB, BC, MB, SK Heather Disabato 20 South Clark Street, Suite 1910 Chicago, IL 60603 (312) 683-5026 Fax: (312) 683-0131 hdisabato@sbpub.com The Netherlands, Britain, France, Belgium, Portugal,

Italy, Italian-speaking Switzerland Dr. Fabio Potesta Media Point & Communications SRL Corte Lambruschini Corso Buenos Aires 8 V Piano, Genoa, Italy 16129 +39-10-570-4948 Fax: +39-10-553-0088 info@mediapointsrl.it

Switzerland, North Germany, Middle East, South America, Africa (not South), Far East (Excluding Korea / China/India), All Others, Tenders Louise Cooper International Area Sales Manager The Priory, Syresham Gardens Haywards Heath, RH16 3LB United Kingdom +44-1444-416368 Fax: +44-(0)-1444-458185 lc@railjournal.co.uk Scandinavia, Spain, Southern Germany, Austria, Korea, China, India, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Russia, Eastern Europe Baltic States, Recruitment Advertising Michael Boyle International Area Sales Manager Nils Michael Boyle Dorfstrasse 70, 6393 St. Ulrich, Austria. +011436767089872 mboyle@railjournal.com

Reader Referral Service This section has been created solely for the convenience of our readers to facilitate immediate contact with the RAILWAY TRACK & STRUCTURES advertisers in this issue.

Japan Katsuhiro Ishii Ace Media Service, Inc. 12-6 4-Chome, Nishiiko, Adachi-Ku Tokyo 121-0824 Japan +81-3-5691-3335 Fax: +81-3-5691-3336 amkatsu@dream.com CLASSIFIED, PROFESSIONAL & EMPLOYMENT Jeanine Acquart 55 Broad St., 26th Floor New York, NY 10004 (212) 620-7211 Fax: (212) 633-1325 jacquart@sbpub.com

The Advertisers Index is an editorial feature maintained for the convenience of readers. It is not part of the advertiser contract and RTS assumes no responsibility for the correctness.

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July 2019 // Railway Track & Structures 43

Last Stop

PMOC—and that spells help Cheryle Tyson, Susan Schruth, HNTB Corporation

T Cheryle Tyson

Susan Schruth

44 Railway Track & Structures // July 2019

ransit agencies that apply for Federal Transit Administration (FTA) discretionary grants to build projects face critical decisions at every stage of project development and execution. FTA’s complex evaluation criteria can create challenges that sap project momentum if grantees cannot keep pace with expectations.

Because most transit agencies’ capital programs cannot sustain in-house project managers, tapping outside expertise to navigate challenges is imperative. Additionally, FTA’s project management oversight contractors (PMOCs) bring invaluable project expertise and experience to project sponsors. PMOCs are selected every five years, and the FTA contracts demand extensive experience in transit capital construction.

FTA assigns grantees PMOCs to oversee project progress, including conforming with FTA requirements and industry standards. They are the FTA’s “eyes and ears” on a project, a role that can unsettle some first-time grantees, but one that keeps projects moving.

PMOCs can quickly see gaps in a grantee’s plan, organizational structure, errors in documentation, potential real estate issues, issues with third-party agreements, safety and security strategies and other potential shortcomings. They also are sources of great advice. PMOCs provide excellent insights for many project aspects. They are exceptional technical advisors and can assist with common, exasperating project questions: “Am I missing something? What will FTA think?”

Once construction grant documents are signed, PMOCs typically meet quarterly to ensure cost, schedule and scope remain on track.

“

However, this schedule does not preclude grantees from seeking out PMOCs more often to get their views on specific questions or to gain insights into best practices for specific project components.

There is no doubt that PMOCs’ reviews of required documents or inspection of construction progress will take time and need to be accounted for in developing a project schedule. And, of course, no grantee is eager to create more hold points while striving to meet milestones.

By making full use of the PMOCs and viewing them as constructive stakeholders in project success, grantees can greatly reduce the likelihood that they will have to go back and rework something that will not meet federal standards – or to miss some important step among hundreds, which may result in even further delays.

An additional resource available to grantees are the professionals from the FTA’s headquarters, regional and metropolitan offices. FTA regional offices are tasked to oversee the PMOCs on the project and are the first point of contact for the project from beginning to end. Among the staff at these offices are engineers, planners and transportation program specialists who will provide general advice and counsel to agencies on grant-related matters.

For agencies embarking on FTAfunded projects, the value of guidance from “been there, done that” professionals cannot be overstated, particularly if an agency does not regularly handle significant capital projects.

Tyson and Schruth are national transit/ rail consultants for HNTB Corporation.

Both previously led careers at FTA overseeing grants, program management and administration.

PMOCs can quickly see gaps in a grantee’s plan, organizational structure, errors in documentation, potential real estate issues, and other potential shortcomings.

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visit www.arema.org our for educational resources Held in conjunction with the AREMA 2019 Annual Conference. *Separate registration required.

AREMA Educational Programs To help your advancement, AREMA offers programs that will extend our ability to serve the educational needs of our railway engineering community with PDH accredited classroom setting seminars.

Three Seminars will be held in conjunction with the AREMA 2019 Annual Conference in Minneapolis, MN Introduction to Practical Railway Engineering September 20-22 PDH: 15.5 FRA 213: Track Safety Standards September 25-27 PDH: 15.75 Track Alignment Design September 25-27 PDH: 14.5

conference.arema.org

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