RT&S September 2014

september 2014 | www.rtands.com

Indiana Rail Road’s

maintenance strategy PLUS AREMA’s Smak reflects on year Full AREMA Conference program and also AREMA News p. 42

Contents

RAILWAY TRACK AND STRUCTURES

September 2014

News

5

Features

26

Industry Today 5 Supplier News 14 People

Indiana Rail Road proves its regional might INRD leadership’s dedication to heathly infrastructure has helped the railroad grow.

Columns

47

32

Smak takes a look back As Joe Smak prepares to hand the reins of the association to the next president, he reflects on the past year and what the future may hold.

Special section

47

AREMA Conference & Exposition Schedule 47 2014 Full Schedule 50 Functional Group Sessions

32 Departments 18 TTCI R&D 42 Arema News 58 Calendar 59 Products 61 Advertisers Index

A tie project on INRD track. Photo courtesy of INRD. Story on page 26.

2

On Track Trespassing is a fool’s bet

16

61 Sales Representatives 62 Classified Advertising 63 Professional Directory

NRC Chairman’s Column Safety focus – the final stretch of 2014

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Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 1

On Track

W

RAILWAY TRACK AND STRUCTURES

Trespassing is a fool’s bet

hile getting my daily nonrail news fix one morning, a video still on the Chicago Tribune’s website caught my eye. It was three teenage boys, looking up from their perch on top of a rail car, smiling and giving the photographer the thumbs up sign, all of which could be seen behind catenary wires. The teaser tag line that accompanied the video: Russian train surfers, extreme sport or social problem?

While I felt the answer was obvious, I watched the news clip anyway.

The boys spoke with bravado, oblivious to their fallibility, about riding on top of trains and hiding from police in between cars. While one boy was being interviewed, the camera caught a very small child in the background of a shot walking in the middle of the tracks with what looked to be an adult woman.

At the minute-long video’s conclusion, my original answer to the extreme sport versus social problem question had not changed.

While I am not familiar with Russian law on the subject of trespassing, I do know that trespassing is crime here in the United States and we too have an issue concerning trespassers on railroad property. This year, two high-profile incidents made waves among the mainstream media. The first, in February, involved the death of a film crewmember while movie filming was taking place on a trestle without the railroad’s consent. The film crew expected two trains in a certain time period, but when a third arrived, tragedy struck. The second came this summer when Indiana Rail Road (INRD) released a video of two women trespassing on a bridge. When the train came, they chose to lay down in the middle of the tracks rather than jump from the bridge, miraculously escaping with their lives after the train passed over them. As Tom Hoback, INRD president and chief executive officer, describes on page 26, the decision to release the video was done in order to draw atten2 Railway Track & Structures

tion to the dangers of trespassing for both the public and the authorities.

The railroad environment can be unforgiving. Bad decisions, lapses in awareness and complacency can result in loss of life. The real question is how do we prevent this from happening?

Per usual, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. The most prevalent solution is signage that informs whomever may be close enough to read it that they are entering private property. Signs are good; they’re affordable; easy to install, but they are also easiest to ignore.

There is also fencing, but depending on the area, it’s not the economicallyfeasible solution.

In my opinion, where railroads will get the most out of their prevention efforts, is in a form of public/private partnerships: One where railroads and municipalities work in concert to identify problem areas and educate. There are many strong programs, Operation Lifesaver, to name one, that undertake exhaustive efforts to warn about the dangers of the railroad environment and work to keep everyone safe.

I’m a firm believer that education can solve a lot of problems. One aspect is making sure the public recognizes railroad right-of-way as private property. Another is to not think of trespassing as a minor offense and pursue charges against offenders. Criminal trespass can carry fines, jail time and, if convicted, a record. Is using a shortcut across tracks worth loosing out on a potential job?

Finally, the most compelling argument, those trespassing consequences happen if the offender is lucky enough to be caught by the authorities. If a train catches them first, well, that’s a one-sided contest that only a fool would chance.

September 2014

Vol. 110, No. 9 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 Mischa Wanek-Libman/Editor, mischa@sbpub.com Jennifer Nunez/Assistant Editor, jnunez@sbpub.com CORPORATE OFFICES 55 Broad St 26th Fl. New York, N.Y. 10004 Telephone (212) 620-7200 Fax (212) 633-1165 Arthur J. McGinnis, Jr./ President and Chairman Jonathan Chalon/Publisher Mary Conyers/Production Director Wendy Williams/Creative Director Maureen Cooney/Circulation Director Michelle Zolkos/Conference Director RT&S Railway Track & Structures (Print ISSN 0033-9016, Digital ISSN 2160-2514), (USPS 860-560), (Canada Post Cust. #7204654), (Bluechip Int’l, Po Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2, Agreement # 41094515) is published monthly by Simmons-Boardman Publ. Corp, 55 Broad St 26th Fl., New York, N.Y. 10004. Printed in the U.S.A. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and Additional mailing offices. Pricing, Qualified individual in the railroad employees may request a free subscription. Non-qualified subscriptions printed or digital version: 1 year Railroad Employees (US/ Canada/Mexico) $16.00; all others $46.00; foreign $80.00; foreign, air mail $180.00. 2 years Railroad Employees US/Canada/Mexico $30.00; all others $85.00; foreign $140.00; foreign, air mail $340.00.

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All rights reserved. Contents may not be reproduced without permission. For reprint information contact: PARS International Corp., 102 W 38th St., 6th Floor, New York, N.Y. 10018 Phone (212) 221-9595 Fax (212) 221-9195. For Subscriptions & address changes, Please call (800) 895-4389, (402) 346-4740, Fax (402) 346-3670, e-mail rtands@halldata.com or write to: Railway Track & Structures, Simmons-Boardman Publ. Corp, PO Box 1172, Skokie, IL 60076-8172. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Railway Track & Structures, PO Box 1172, Skokie, IL 60076-8172.

Mischa Wanek-Libman, Editor www.rtands.com

INDUSTRY TODAY Supplier News

Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. was awarded a four-year Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity contract from the Port Authority of Allegheny County in Pennsylvania to provide professional engineering design services for light-rail transit systems.

Chicago Transit Authority awarded a $40.3-million contract to Kiewit Infrastructure Co., which will upgrade tracks along the Brown and Purple Line between Armitage and the Merchandise Mart.

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Officials in Oklahoma plan a new initiative aimed at upgrading the safety of rail crossings, while Santa Fe, N.M., officials assess crossing safety in light of increased activity around tracks.

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) and Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin will implement a $100-million plan to fast-track hundreds of projects to A new state initiative will improve more than 300 rail crossimprove more than 300 ings statewide and upgrade safety Oklahoma crossings. warning features on rail crossings. “The department has long recognized the great need for improving rail crossings on the state, county and local transportation system. With the influx of funding available from the sale of the Sooner Sub, we are excited to use this money to expedite the process of improving safety along rail systems across the state,� ODOT Executive Director Mike Patterson said.

Many of these crossings have only rail crossing signs or faint pavement markings and no flashing lights or cross arms to serve as additional warning for motorists of oncoming trains.

According to ODOT, of the more than 3,700 at-grade rail crossings in the state, many have some level of recognized deficiencies when it comes to rail crossing safety. Most of the crossings are on local roads but the department remains involved because of overall rail safety.

The improvements are being funded through combining proceeds from the recent sale of the Sooner Sub rail line in addition to dedicated rail safety funds from ODOT and other partners.

ODOT anticipates the rail crossings can be modernized and greatly improved by adding rail safety infrastructure, such as high-visibility signage, cross bucks, gates, hazard lighting and pavement markings. Rail funding will be leveraged with other available public and private monies to improve as many priority rail crossings as possible while also partnering with rail companies and local entities for the long-term maintenance of the improvements. continued on page 6

Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 5

Oklahoma Department of Transportation

R.J. Corman Railroad Group, LLC, has acquired Roadway Worker Training, Inc., based in St. Augustine, Fla.

Oklahoma; Santa Fe, N.M., taking closer look at grade-crossing safety

continued from page 5 “With this initiative, we believe Oklahoma should serve as a model for the rest of the country when it comes to proactively supporting safe rail crossings and the safe and efficient transport of products along rail corridors,” Oklahoma Secretary of Transportation Gary Ridley said.

Meanwhile in neighboring, New Mexico, Rio Metro Regional Transit District, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the New Mexico Department of Transportation, the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission and the city of Santa Fe are reviewing crossings along the regional passenger service Rail Runner route.

“The amount of pedestrian and bicycle activity in and around these crossings has increased in the past couple of years,” said Terry Doyle, director of Rio Metro Regional Transit District. “We want to make sure we are doing all we can in the way of making these crossings as safe as possible for those who use them.”

During the next two to three months, all agencies involved will be conducting a review of the crossings and gathering input from FRA safety experts to make sure that the highest appropriate level of safety is being provided at the crossings. Any improvements identified will then be implemented as necessary. In the meantime, trains will begin to operate at slower speeds through these crossings and there will also be flaggers regularly stationed at the crossings to provide warning of approaching trains to motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians.

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September 2014

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INDUSTRY TODAY Supplier News Koppers Inc. has completed its acquisition of the wood preservation and railroad services businesses of Osmose Holdings, Inc. Rocla Concrete Tie, Inc., has opened a 30,000-squarefoot manufacturing facility in San Jose Iturbide, Mexico.

Siemens Rail Automation plans to combine and expand its manufacturing and engineering operations in the Pittsburgh area to

8 Railway Track & Structures

FRA publishes final rule on PTC; exemptions expanded The Federal Railroad Administration published its final rule concerning Positive Train Control (PTC) systems in the Aug. 22, 2014, Federal Register. The rule, which takes effect Oct. 21, 2014, expands certain exemptions and comes 16 months before the full implementation deadline of Dec. 31, 2015.

The FRA final rule revises an existing regulatory exception to the requirement to install a PTC system for track segments carrying freight only that present a de minimis (minimal) safety risk. The final rule also adds a new exception for PTC-unequipped freight trains associated with certain freight yard operations to operate within PTC systems.

Additionally, the rule revises the existing regulations related to en route failures of a PTC system, adds new provisions related to other failures of a PTC system and amends the regulations on applications for approval of certain modifications of signal and train control systems.

September 2014

Finally, this final rule makes technical amendments to FRA’s other signal and train control regulations and FRA’s regulations governing highway-rail grade crossing warning systems.

The rule is a result of an April 2011 petition by the Association of American Railroads (AAR) requesting that FRA initiate a rulemaking to expand the de minimis exception and otherwise amend the rules concerning the limited operations exception, en route failures of trains operating within PTC systems and the discontinuance of signal systems once PTC systems are installed. AAR also requested that FRA develop a new exception that would allow unequipped trains associated with certain yard operations to operate within PTC systems.

The topic will be discussed further as Class 1 representatives will be participating in a C&S-specific panel discussion on Tuesday, Sept. 30, as part of the AREMA 2014 Annual Conference in Chicago, Ill.

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Massachusetts to purchase rail line The commonwealth of Massachusetts plans to purchase the Knowledge Corridor rail line between East Northfield and Springfield from Pan Am Southern, a joint venture of Pan Am and Norfolk Southern. The 49-mile segment of rail is currently undergoing a major restoration that will allow for more efficient passenger service, in response to increased demand and will allow the commonwealth to maintain and enhance freight service.

The Knowledge Corridor/Restore Vermonter Project will restore the original route of Amtrak’s Vermonter travelling between St. Albans, Vt., and Washington, D.C., from its current routing via Palmer and Amherst.

The work on the project includes upgrades to the 50mile Pan Am Southern Connecticut River Line running between Springfield and East Northfield. The ongoing restoration project will lead to the relocation of the Vermonter by the end of 2014, potentially reducing trip times by 25 minutes.

Starting in East Northfield, the restoration runs south to Springfield and includes the construction of three new station platforms in Greenfield, Northampton and Holyoke. Passenger service on this line ceased in the 1980s and was rerouted southeast to Palmer, where trains reverse direction and head west to Springfield.

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Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 9

INDUSTRY TODAY TSB points to systemic problems as cause of Lac-Mégantic accident; calls for additional safety steps The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) investigation into the July 2013 Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway (MMA) train derailment in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, concluded that a number of factors led to the accident.

The TSB is also now calling for additional physical defenses to prevent runaway trains and for more thorough audits of safety management systems‎to ensure railways are effectively managing safety.

“Accidents never come down to a single individual, a single action or a single factor. You have to look at the whole context,” said Wendy Tadros, Chair of the TSB. “In our investigation, we found 18 factors played a role in this accident.

The TSB report labeled MMA’s safety culture as weak and said the railroad did not have a functioning safety

10 Railway Track & Structures

management system to manage risks.

The report also said the TSB learned that Transport Canada did not audit MMA often and thoroughly enough to ensure it was effectively managing the risks in its operations. Additionally, TSB said it found problems with training, employee monitoring and maintenance practices at MMA; with industry rules for the securement of unattended trains and with the tank cars used to carry volatile petroleum crude oil.

“This investigation and its findings are complex, but our goal is simple: we must improve rail safety in Canada,” added Tadros. “That’s why, in addition to our three previous recommendations, we are issuing two new recommendations to ensure unattended trains will always be secured and Canada’s railways will have safety management systems that really work to manage safety.”

September 2014

Light-rail update: ION; Southwest LRT; DART The Region of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada, celebrated the start of ION Stage 1 Light Rail Transit (LRT) construction August 21 with an event at the future home of ION’s Operations, Maintenance and Storage Facility on Dutton Drive.

Stage 1 of the two-stage project is a 22-mile corridor that includes 11 miles of light rail from the Conestoga Mall transit terminal in Waterloo to the Fairview Park Mall transit terminal in Kitchener. Operations are scheduled to begin in 2017.

In Minnesota, the Minneapolis City Council, Hennepin County and the cities of Eden Prairie, Minnetonka, Hopkins and St. Louis Park all provided municipal consent of the Metropolitan Council’s planned Southwest LRT project. The project will operate from downtown Minneapolis to Eden Prairie and include 17 stations and 16 miles of double track.

The project went through a redesign this summer following an agreement between the Metropolitan Council and the city of Minneapolis.

The conclusion of the municipal consent process allows the Metropolitan Council to seek approval from the federal government to enter final engineering.

In addition, the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority confirmed its commitment to pay 10 percent of the capital costs for construction of the Southwest light-rail transit project.

In Texas, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) officially launched light-rail passenger service on August 18, connecting downtown Dallas to DFW Airport with the arrival of DART Orange Line trains into the DFW Airport Station.

The five-mile segment links DFW Airport to DART’s Belt Line Station, with continuing service to major regional destinations including IrvingLas Colinas, Dallas Market Center and downtown Dallas. With this opening, DFW Airport becomes the thirdbusiest American airport with a direct rail connection to the city center. www.rtands.com

INDUSTRY TODAY Supplier News specifically support Positive Train Control projects, including a project to upgrade train control systems on two lines for the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority.

Train Travel Holdings Inc. (TTHX) has signed an agreement with TBG Holdings for TTHX to acquire Railmark Holdings Incorporated.

Wabtec Corporation has acquired C2CE Pty Ltd., an Australian-based provider of railway signal design services.

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Pennsylvania allocates funds to 39 freight projects Pennsylvania approved the appropriation of funds from two Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT)-managed programs to 39 freight rail improvement projects that the commonwealth says will help sustain nearly 34,000 jobs.

“Transportation is a proven economic driver and these investments will help these companies maintain and create more jobs,’’ Gov. Tom Corbett said. “Ensuring that these facilities and assets are ready to meet consumer demands is vital to keeping our state competitive.”

The Pennsylvania State Transportation Commission voted to approve nearly $35.9-million for 13 projects through the Rail Transportation Assistance Program (RTAP) and 26 projects through the Rail Freight Assistance Program (RFAP).

Some RTAP projects include $1.9 million to rehabilitate the Allegheny Valley Railroad’s 36th Street bridge, increasing its weight capacity and reducing a curve on the bridge; $3.2 million to install 14.5-

September 2014

miles of continuous welded rail on Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway’s Pittsburgh Subdivision and $5 million to construct a new bridge across the Lehigh River and 1,200 feet of new connecting track for the Reading & Northern Railroad.

According to Andrew Muller, Jr., owner and chief executive officer of the Reading & Northern, this bridge will enable the railroad to provide improved service to dozens of its existing customers, as well as provide the fastest and most economical route into the Marcellus Shale territory in northeast Pennsylvania.

Some of the RFAP projects include $489,636 to replace a turnout, crossties, 8,960 feet of rail and make other track improvements on the Pittsburgh and Ohio Central Railroad; $700,000 to install 60,800 feet of continuous welded rail, as well as install 10,000 new crossties and four turnouts on the Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway and $697,417 to install 1,800 feet of track, a new switch, two conveyors and a track scale at Northeast Freight Transfer, Inc.

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PEOPLE Jerome Wallut has been appointed president of Alstom Transportation Inc. and senior vice-president of Alstom’s North American rail transportation business.

American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association selected Linda Bauer Darr as president, succeeding Richard Timmons, who is retiring at the end of 2014.

Larry L. Etherton, PE, retired director engineering, Norfolk Southern and former president of the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA), has assumed the role of interim executive director and chief executive officer of AREMA. Auto Truck Group p r o m o t e d M a tt McGowan to director, regional/municipal sales and Corey Stanley to director, national account fleet sales.

CSX named Ed Jenkins vice president market strategy e-business.

Encore Rail Systems, Inc., hired Greg Spilker as vice president sales.

Greenville & Western Railway Company, LLC, promoted Brandon Julian to manager compliance and training.

Harsco Corporation appointed David Everitt to non-executive chairman of the board of directors, succeeding Henry Knueppel, who will continue to serve on the board as an independent director.

HDR promoted Laurie Roden to president and chief operating officer of HDR Construction Control Corporation and Janet Gonzalez to transportation sustainability director.

Kansas City Southern named Erik Hansen vice president intermodal; Daniel Bozung assistant vice president mechanical operations and Shawn Vecellio assistant vice president production and standards for the engineering department.

Las Vegas Railway Express, Inc., elected Ronald Batory to its board of directors.

Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority selected Charles Stark as the new executive director of the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project, succeeding Pat Nowakowski, who resigned earlier this year to become president of the Long Island Rail Road in New York.

Obituary

Norm Barr, long-time salesman and office manager for Western-Cullen-Hayes at its Richmond, Ind., facility, passed away on August 19, 2014.

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September 2014

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NRC CHAIRMAN’S COLUMN Safety focus – the final stretch of 2014

The National Railroad Construction & Maintenance Association, Inc. 500 New Jersey Ave., N. W. Suite 400 Washington D. C. 20009 Tel: 202-715-2920 Fax: 202-318-0867 www.nrcma.org info@nrcma.org

16 Railway Track & Structures

With the final push to the railroad construction and maintenance summer work season coming quickly, a renewed focus and effort on safety is extremely important. While many of our member companies will have their backs against the wall to get larger than normal volumes of work completed in the time that remains, safety must remain paramount.

When employees start working longer days and more days out of each week, they can have a tendency to lose their focus. Adhering to safety best practices can sometimes become a little harder under this type of working condition. A fatigued employee can become an unsafe employee very quickly. It is extremely important that our managers, supervisors and project foremen be mindful and aware of this. Management must work a little harder to maintain a safe project site under such conditions, keeping their employees focused on being safe while maintaining production.

Equipment upkeep also plays a pivotal role in the safety of our projects. Machines that are being worked harder and for longer periods of time need to be maintained properly and kept in good, safe working condition.

Safety on the railroad remains priority number one and it is everyone’s responsibility to follow and adhere to the rules and regulations regarding safe practices. I would like to remind all of our member companies to stay focused and be safe while headed to the finish line this year.

The NRC is currently working on the next two safety training videos for distribution to our membership. These videos, numbers 17 and 18 in our ongoing series, both pertain to grade crossing replacement. Video 17 will address the preparation and planning that goes into performing the work and video 18 will focus on the actual work, the removal and installation of the new track, grade crossing and roadway approaches. These videos will address the detailed planning, safe practices and procedures for doing this type of gradecrossing work. I would like to thank John Zuspan, longtime railroader, longtime member of the NRC Board of Directors and currently, a consultant to the rail industry as president of Track Guy Consultants, for his role in making these videos a tremendous success. He has been continually supported through the production of all 18 videos by the NRC Safety Committee, especially Stanley Beaver of Balfour Beatty Rail and some of our member companies have even allowed filming to take place on their projects. A special thank you to Bob and Eric Hahn of Tracks Unlimited for September 2014

allowing the filming this year and thank you to everyone who has supported this process, it is greatly appreciated. These two new videos will be available for distribution to our member companies at our conference in January.

On the legislative front, Congress has again punted on its job of funding a robust long-term surface transportation bill for highway and transit investments and instead has resorted to accounting gimmicks to temporarily fund an inadequately sized bill through only May of 2015. The NRC will join other groups in continuing to push Congress to do the right thing, increase the size of this program and come up with a sustainable source of funds to pay for a long-term bill.

Regarding the details of such a bill, the NRC supports eligibility for passenger and freight rail investments from highway accounts to the extent that those accounts are funded by non-gas tax sources, new dedicated funding for intercity passenger rail, new dedicated funding for a TIGER-like multimodal grant program focused on freight, provisions to expedite project delivery and make sure rail projects have the same streamlining provisions as highway and transit projects, expanding the Section 130 grade-crossing program and providing funding to support the implementation of Positive Train Control.

The FY2015 transportation appropriations bill must still be dealt with. A version of the bill has passed the House and a separate version has passed the relevant Senate Committee and is awaiting action in the Senate. We support the higher funding levels provided by the Senate for crucial rail infrastructure programs including Amtrak capital and operating support accounts, Transportation Investment Generating Economy Recovery grants, Federal Transit Administration (FTA) formula funds and FTA New Starts/Small Starts Capital Investment Grants.

Finally, two upcoming events for your calendar: 1) The AREMA Conference, Sunday, September 28, through Wednesday, October 1, at the Hilton Chicago in Chicago, Ill. 2) The NRC 2015 Conference and NRC/ REMSA Exhibition, Wednesday, January 7, through Saturday, January 10, at the Westin Diplomat in Hollywood, Fla. Registration is open – book now.

For additional information regarding all upcoming NRC events, please visit www.nrcma.org.

Have a safe day.

by Bill Dorris, NRC Chairman www.rtands.com

TTCI R&D Track performance under heavy-axle-loads at the eastern and western mega sites TTCI presents an update of HAL revenue service testing program at the eastern and western mega sites.

T

ransportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI), under the Strategic Research Initiatives (SRI) Program of the Association of Ameri-

Figure 1: A newly installed thermite railhead repair weld at the eastern mega site.

by Jay Baillargeon, engineer and Dingqing Li, scientist, TTCI

can Railroads (AAR) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), continues to spearhead track and structure research at two heavy-axle-load (HAL) revenue service test sites; the western mega site is located near Ogallala, Neb., and the eastern mega site is located near Bluefield, W. Va. Both mega sites are on mainlines that see predominantly loaded 286,000-pound coal car traffic, contributing to an estimated annual tonnage of 220 to 250 million gross tons (mgt) at the western mega site and approximately 55 mgt at the eastern mega site.

This revenue service testing program is providing the industry with a better understanding of HAL effects and root causes of track-related problems associated with HAL operating conditions in revenue service. In addition, these mega sites have provided HAL revenue service conditions to implement new designs, new track materials and improved technologies and maintenance practices intended to improve operation safety and mitigate adverse effects of HAL on track degradation.

Rail performance

Although the scope of testing has since been expanded to include an evaluation of rail-life extension strategies, rail per18 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

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TTCI R&D Figure 2: Half-frame ties installed supporting an insulated joint at the western mega site.

head repair welds under HAL traffic. These railhead repair welds allow for defects in the railhead to be repaired without requiring the rail to be cut, which, in turn, preserves the rail neutral temperature. A portion of the railhead is ground out and head material is replaced with either a thermite weld or a flash-welded insert. In 2013, eight thermite railhead repair welds were installed in two 6.8-degree curves at the eastern mega site (Figure 1). To date, after 30 mgt, no issues have been observed using ultrasonic inspection. A version of this remediation treatment using EFB welds will also be installed in the eastern mega site in the near future. formance in the heavy-haul environment has been continuously monitored at the eastern and western mega sites since the fall of 2005. The eastern mega site maintains four test curves (6.8 to 10.5 degrees) and implements a combination of gauge-face lubrication and top-of-rail (TOR) friction control. The western mega site maintains two, two-degree curves with gauge-face lubrication. Three years into testing, one two-degree curve began using TOR friction control and the other curve began incorporating preventative grinding to address rolling contact fatigue (RCF) issues on the rails. This has allowed TTCI engineers to investigate the long-term effects of rail-life extension strategies on premium rail performance.

To date, test rails have accumulated more than two billion gross tons at the western mega site and more than 450 mgt at the eastern mega site. Even with notably high tonnage, premium rails at both test locations continue to show excellent wear performance and resistance to internal defects.1, 2 RCF has been the primary issue associated with these premium test rails.

To further investigate the long-term benefits of rail-life extension on premium rail, additional test curves have been installed at both mega sites. In fall 2013, two more twodegree curves were installed in the western mega site. Both curves are using gauge-face lubrication and one of these new curves has started using TOR friction control and will begin an optimized grinding regiment later in 2014. The other curve will be used as a control and will not use any additional rail-life extension strategy besides gauge-face lubrication.

In 2014, three new test curves (nine to 11 degrees of curvature) were installed at the eastern mega site, all of which are using both gauge-face lubrication and TOR friction control.

Two of the new curves are investigating the performance of raillife extension on premium rails with and without an optimized grinding schedule and the third curve is investigating the effects of rail-life extension on intermediate strength rail in highdegree curvatures. Interim results and updates from both tests will be provided to the industry as tonnage is accumulated.

Improved rail welding practices

Running surface degradation of electric flash-butt (EFB) welds is one issue TTCI is investigating at the western mega site. Results have shown the service life of rail in curves can be ultimately impacted by the performance of EFB welds if they are not properly maintained.3 TTCI engineers have determined the root causes of this problem and are investigating mitigation and remediation methods for implementation.4,5 TTCI has also been studying the performance of rail20 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

Half-frame tie performance

In 2011, in conjunction with testing currently underway at the Facility for Accelerated Service Testing (FAST) as part of the AAR’s SRI Program,6 44 concrete half-frame ties with under-tie pads (elastomeric bearing pads) were installed at the western mega site at three different locations, including support of a pair of insulated rail joints (IJs) at a control point (Figure 2) and bridge approaches at two separate locations at the western mega site.

Among the benefits of the half-frame ties are a larger bearing surface area (i.e., “footprint”) and under-tie pads which, in theory, should provide for a decrease in tie-ballast interface pressure and, in turn, a decrease in ballast degradation. After more than 650 mgt to date, all locations have maintained excellent track geometry and have required no maintenance aside from the regularly scheduled track surfacing operations in the area. Dynamic measurements were taken to quantify tie deflection, stress and vibration of the half-frame ties in the bridge approach and preliminary results from these measurements have shown lower dynamic responses over conventional concrete ties.

Frog system performance

In the spring 2013, four No. 20 frogs, built into four panels with new ties and ballast, were installed in the eastern mega site. To date, these frogs have accumulated more than 80 mgt and have required minimal maintenance (i.e., grinding of overflow off the point of one test frog).

Two of the newly-installed frogs are standard frogs (control) and the two other are premium test frogs. In this way, TTCI can quantify the benefits of advanced design elements against those of standard frogs. Table 1 summarizes the primary characteristics associated with each of these frogs. Figure 3 depicts the variations between the heel designs among the frogs being tested. Over the course of the life of these frogs, TTCI engineers will monitor their performance through visual inspection, cross-sectional profiles and dynamic measurements to evaluate each system’s performance in the HAL revenue service environment of the eastern United States.

Elastic fastener performance

Since their installation in fall 2010, TTCI has monitored the performance of three different rail fastening systems on an open-deck bridge in the eastern mega site. The multiple-span, 525-foot open-deck bridge lies within a six-degree curve and on a 0.66 percent grade. Timber ties on the bridge are spaced www.rtands.com

TTCI R&D Table 1: Characteristics of the No. 20 frogs currently being installed at the eastern mega site.

Figure 3: Frog heel designs tested: Rail-bound manganese (left), low impact (middle) and boltless (right).

Fiber-reinforced bridge ties

at 15 inches and those on the approach are spaced at 19.5 inches. This study is comparing the performance of these three rail fastening systems (listed in Figure 4), which involve a combination of elastics fasteners with screw or cut spikes on varying tie plate designs and their effects on mitigating potential problems, such as misalignment, gauge widening and loss of rail cant, as well as component-related issues, such as loss of toe loads, spike uplift, tie skewing and tie plate cutting.

Figure 4 shows the preliminary results obtained from the most recent application of a portable lateral track loading fixture, comparing the different systems currently in place on the bridge and approaches. On the bridge, the Pandrol 16-inch plates with e-clips and screw spikes show a higher resistance to gauge spreading than the Pandrol 18-inch Victor plates with e-clips and cut spikes, under a six-kip lateral load using this portable fixture. FRA’s GRMS test vehicle has also been used to gather gauge restraining capability results periodically to evaluate the long-term performance of these fastening systems.

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TTCI is currently testing an alternative to conventional solid-sawn timber bridge ties at the eastern mega site in order to further investigate their performance in the revenue service environment to complement similar testing currently underway at FAST as part of the AAR’s SRI Program.7 In December 2011, a set of 54 fiber-reinforced foamed urethane (FFU) bridge ties were installed on a 67-foot deck plate girder bridge with a 6.5-foot girder spacing.

The FFU ties are manufactured from a fiberglass material commonly used for tie production in Japan, providing a potentially low-lifecycle cost alternative to the conventional timber bridge ties. Before installation at the eastern mega site, a set of FFU ties were previously tested on another deck plate girder bridge with an eight-foot spacing at FAST, which continue to be monitored with more than 480 mgt and have not required any maintenance or replacement. For both installations, the ties were set on top of the protruding rivet heads and allowed to settle under the passing loads.

Since their installation at the eastern mega site, the FFU ties have accumulated more than 60 mgt of traffic (made up primarily of empty coal trains and mixed freight traffic contributing to approximately 26 mgt per year at this location).

Ties remain in excellent condition with no significant uplift in the screw spikes and plate cutting does not appear to be an issue at this point in time.

Insulated rail joints

Entering into its third year at the western mega site, the monitoring of the long-term performance of next-generation IJ designs continues with promising interim results. In 2011, 28 improved designs were installed, including supported-head and taper-cut IJs, as well as those using ceramic end posts, high-modulus bars and fiberglass or improved epoxy. At present, all IJs have accumulated more than 650 mgt on the high-tonnage coal route in western Nebraska. To date, four IJs have been removed from service, two of which were removed

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TTCI R&D before 500 mgt (due to rail-end chipping and epoxy failure) and the other two were removed shortly after reaching this mark (due to rail or bolt-related defects). TTCI will continue to monitor the performance of the next-generation IJs still in service at the western mega site and will update the industry on their progress in future publications.

Bridge approach remedies

TTCI recently completed a long-term study on two different remediation strategies for chronic bridge approach degradation on two ballast deck concrete tie bridges at the western mega site. The two locations selected have experienced excessive track geometry degradation, mud pumping and track component failures requiring significant maintenance work on a quarterly basis. A thorough investigation into the root causes of these problems revealed high track stiffness and low track damping for the track on the bridge, which adversely affected dynamic vehicle-track interaction when differential track settlement initiated at the bridge approaches.

Two different remedies were applied to the two bridges: (1) concrete ties with under-tie pads fitted to the bottom surface were installed on a single-span ballast deck concrete bridge in September 2007 and (2) a ballast mat was installed between the ballast layer and bridge deck on a three-span ballast deck steel bridge in June 2009. At both locations, measures were taken to ensure good drainage for the track on the bridge, as well as in the approach. Long-term performance of these remedies has been excellent; no major maintenance, with the exception of regularly-scheduled surfacing operations in the area, has been required to date for more than 1,000 mgt.

of railhead flaws under the HAL traffic in cold climate conditions. In addition, TTCI will soon install a longterm experiment investigating the benefits of longer tie plates in terms of crosstie service life. A modeling study was completed using the Railway Track Life Model (RTLMTM)9,which showed significant increase in crosstie service lie for 16-inch tie plates over 14-inch tie plates. Under the condi-

tions present at the northern mega site, the expected increase in the service life of the crosstie ranges between 15 and 21 percent. The installation of this experiment is expected to be completed later this year.

Acknowledgements

AAR and FRA jointly funded this research under the HAL revenue service program. TTCI also acknowledg-

Northern mega site

In 2013, a northern mega site was established on the Rivers Subdivision near Winnipeg, MB, Canada.8 It is sponsored by the AAR through the SRI Program and will complement the research being conducted at the other two mega sites by providing an opportunity to study the effects of cold climates on HAL operations. Approximately 70 mgt is accumulated at the northern mega site per year in the form of mixed freight, intermodal and unit trains.

Work has started to determine a suitable site to monitor growth rates www.rtands.com

Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 23

TTCI R&D Figure 4: Results of gauge spreading measurements for elastic fastening systems at the eastern mega site.

es Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern and Canadian National for hosting the mega sites and supporting TTCI’s research initiatives. TTCI would also like to thank many suppliers for their donations of testing track components (rails, welds, ties, fasteners, joint, frogs, tie/ballast and ballast/bridge-deck interface materials) and their participation in the testing programs.

References 1. Baillargeon, J., Gutscher, D. and Li, D. May 2014. “Premium Rail Performance and Rail Life Extension at the Mega Sites.” Technology Digest TD-14-005. Association of American Railroads, Transportation

24 Railway Track & Structures

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Technology Center, Inc., Pueblo, Colo.

2. Baillargeon, J., Gutscher, D. and Li, D. October 2013. “Premium rail performance and rail life extension under heavy-axle-load revenue service environments.” Railway Track & Structures. Vol. 109, No. 10, pp.15–18. Chicago, Ill. 3. Gutscher, D., Baillargeon, J. and Li, D. July 2014. “Effects of heavyaxle-loads on electric flash weld surface degradation.” Railway Track & Structures. Vol. 110, No. 7, pp. 11–13. Chicago, Ill. 4. Gutscher, D. October 2012. “Degradation and evaluation of improved welding methods.” Railway Track & Structures. Vol. 108, No. 10, pp.14–16. Chicago, Ill. 5. Gutscher, D., LoPresti, J. and Mullen, M. April 2014. “Field evaluation of improved rail welding methods.” Railway Track & Structures. Vol. 110, No. 4, pp. 14–17. Chicago, Ill. 6. Davis, D., LoPresti, J. and Akhtar, M. September 2011. “Preliminary Evaluation of Improved Strength Concrete Ties at FAST.” Technology Digest TD-11-034. Association of American Railroads, Transportation Technology Center, Inc., Pueblo, Colo.

7. Otter, D., and Joy, R. May 2013. “Alternative bridge ties for open deck steel bridges.” Railway Track & Structures. Vol. 109, No. 5, pp.

12–15. Chicago, Ill. 8. Davis, D., Jimenez, R., Meddah, A. and Peters, N. November 2013.

“Establishment of a Heavy Axle Load Northern Mega Site.” Technology Digest TD-13-030. Association of American Railroads, Transportation Technology Center, Inc., Pueblo, Colo.

www.rtands.com

A two-year project to replace INRD’s White River Bridge began in July.

Indiana rail road:

Regional with its eye on the big picture

Indiana Rail Road takes a serious approach to its capital investment strategy in order to plan for growth. by Mischa Wanek-Libman, editor

T

ime can change a lot on a railroad, for better or worse.

Years of neglect left a 109-mile section of track between Indianapolis and Sullivan, Ind., which would eventually become part of the Indiana Rail Road (INRD), in a state that had been described as “moribund.” However, nearly three decades and $180 million in infrastructure investments later, INRD has turned its original waning line into a thriving, 500mile route, which earned the honor of being named Regional Railroad of the Year by Railway Age in 2012.

INRD’s evolution from near abandonment to vital heavyhaul road took committed leadership and a belief that reinvesting in the company is good business sense.

“In the earliest days, INRD was a dilapidated branch line, downsized by Illinois Central Gulf (ICG). Just to handle existing business, we needed significant resources to renew ties and rail,” said Tom Hoback, INRD founder, president and CEO. “Twenty-five miles of the original mainline was embargoed in 1977 due to several critical defects, for which ICG was cited by the Federal Railroad Administration. ICG was having serious derailments and the railroad was out of service for 1.5 years. The ICG tried to abandon the line but the [Interstate Commerce Commission] denied the application.

“INRD purchased 109 miles (Indianapolis to Sullivan, Ind.) from ICG in 1986 and the first priority was to stabilize the infrastructure. Second was to upgrade and add capacity for new business, which started in earnest in the late 1980s and has continued to this day. INRD has invested more than 26 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

$180 million in track, bridges, locomotives, facilities and technologies that help us provide superior service.”

The investments

INRD has not shied away from asset investment over its course of existence and its most recent effort is a five-year, $65-million capital plan the railroad began in 2011 as part of its 25th anniversary. The plan focused on bridge renewal and replacements, as well as rail installation. But as railroads of all sizes can attest, when it comes to infrastructure investment, the job is never done.

“We’re still recovering from decades of neglect under Illinois Central and ICG ownership. There is a lot of fouled ballast; we undercut several thousand feet each year to renew ballast and increase drainage. After 28 years of this, we’re still not where we need to be,” said Hoback. “Other challenges are subgrade degradation due to the heavy-axleloading of unit coal and intermodal trains, which requires a robust and sustained undercutting program. We have a total of 189 bridges on the railroad, and timber bridges in particular require constant monitoring and inspection, and a well-designed replacement program.”

INRD in-house forces are being put to use for the maintenance work, but Hoback says the railroad relies on contractors for large capital construction projects, such as bridge renewal and repair, rail and tie installation and undercutting.

While the original five-year plan called for a $65-million investment, the railroad is spending closer to $80 million www.rtands.com

Regional m/w: INRD once all slated work has been complete. INRD already spent $43.6 million on the program and has an additional $36.8 million in work on deck in 2014 and 2015.

Work completed between 2011 and 2013 includes three bridge rebuilds; 24 miles of installed continuous welded rail (cwr); undercutting along 56,000 track feet and 91,600 crossties installed among other projects.

One highlight of work performed during the first part of the current five-year plan was a new $7.6-million locomotive maintenance facility at INRD’s Hiawatha Yard. The facility, which replaced a building from the steam locomotive era, includes a large parts warehouse and overhead cranes that allow INRD’s mechanical force to perform work ranging from routine maintenance to heavy overhauls on up to four of the railroad’s 4,300-horsepower heavyhaul locomotives at one time.

Work in 2014 has focused on the Indianapolis Subdivision with a cut and slide project along 5.5 miles; 20,000 track feet of undercutting; 41,000 crossties, rebuilt 10 crossings and installed 4.5 miles of cwr. These projects have allowed INRD to increase speeds to 30 mph in Indianapolis and 40 mph further south.

In 2014, an additional 21,000 crossties will be installed; including 5,000 on the Midland Sub and 2,500 at Hiawatha Yard. INRD will also perform work on a trio of bridges including a renewal of a 53-foot bridge at milepost 153.3, renewal of the Tulip Viaduct and stabilization of the south wall and begin the replacement of the White River Bridge.

www.rtands.com

A crossing rehab project.

Work to replace the more than a century old White River Bridge began in July. The existing bridge piers will remain but undergo major rehabilitation work, while the existing structure will be replaced with a steel plate girder bridge.

Once work is complete in October 2015, the span will be capable of carrying heavier loads at faster speeds.

The two-year, $14-million project is being partially funded by an $8-million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant that was awarded to the Indiana Department of Transportation in 2013.

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September 2014 27

Installation of ribbon rail.

Safety initiatives

While INRD has made newsworthy strides in the realm of capital investment, it gained national attention this summer when it released a video taken from a locomotive front-facing surveillance camera of a nearly fatal incident involving two female trespassers walking on a bridge.

“After careful consideration, we decided to use an unfortunate experience as a tool to not only educate the public on the dangers of trespassing, but to remind law enforcement along our route of the need for violators to be cited,” said Hoback.

The two women involved in the incident, who narrowly escaped with their lives, are charged with trespassing and could face jail time.

“We routinely weave in grade-crossing safety to our communications with the public and public agencies; we’ve worked with law enforcement for years to create greater awareness for grade-crossing safety and we’re active with Operation Lifesaver,” said Hoback. “We also have an ongoing and diligent program to close public and private crossings. At the end of the day, we want the public to be safe and think wisely and we absolutely want to show our employees that INRD is working to protect them and INRD’s assets.”

The railroad has also developed an active and extensive internal safety program for its employees.

“We conduct annual training programs for our bridge and track workers, on welded rail maintenance training, environmental and FRA track inspection training, plus, we send our employees to off-site bridge inspection training,” said Hoback. “Other key ways we’ve developed a culture of safety and wellness are through daily job briefings, a stretching program, quarterly departmental safety meetings, employee safety audit teams, management monthly efficiency testing, a comprehensive employee wellness program and an annual upgrade of MOW hand tools.”

An eye to the future

“This company has always looked ahead, not only with an eye on investing for future growth, but identifying technologies that make us safer and more efficient. We take ideas from our own people and fill needs that we recognize out there. One example of this is a joint venture with L.B. 28 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

www.rtands.com

Regional m/w: INRD Bridge testing taking place.

Foster on top-of-rail friction modifiers and top-of-rail oil applications on our Indianapolis Subdivision, which could help tremendously with extending rail and wheel life.”

Another technology INRD is looking into is upcycling of used railroad ties. The railroad awarded a grant to the Coalition for Sustainable Rail, which is initiating research on conversion of used ties into an advanced biofuel.

Using a biomass processing technique known as tor-

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refaction, researchers will seek to convert the structure of used ties, primarily made from hardwood species, into a clean, renewable, homogenous and densifiable biofuel. The final result is anticipated to be a pelletized biofuel that can be used in power plants.

“INRD was looking for ways to extend the life of coal electric utilities, where some had to either retrofit with technology to reduce emissions or close plants. We felt it was a way to keep the plants open by blending coal with a carbon-neutral fuel that would reduce carbon emissions,” said Hoback.

Supplier partnerships and research initiatives aside, Hoback also recognizes the significance legislation, such as the shortline tax credit, has on the railroad’s future.

“The difference 45G makes for us is approximately $1 million per year of added infrastructure investment, which in practical terms means an additional seven to eight percent of track infrastructure renewal – specifically rail, tie and bridge renewal – which we would have to otherwise give up. It would put us behind the curve on maintenance,” said Hoback.

That is not a place he wants to see INRD, he continued, “We’re still making up for years of deferred maintenance before INRD was founded and our challenge, or goal, is to create a railroad capable of handling 286K cars at 40 mph.

We’re also challenged to continue adding capacity for anticipated growth, while we also have some significant bridge renewals ahead of us.”

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outline of INRD’s five-year capital plan

2011: $17.7 million

• Bridge rebuilds: 3 • CWR: 21 miles • Centralized Traffic Control circuits: 13 miles • Crossties: 34,000 • Rail grinding: 166 miles • Roadbed undercutting: 18,000 track feet • Road crossing renewals: 40 • Switch heaters: Glenn interlocking, Cummings siding

2012: $12.3 million

• Joint elimination: 80 welds • CWR: 3 miles • Undercutting: 18,000 track feet • Crossties: 47,234 • Bridges: Shuffle Creek Viaduct, reinforced the tower legs; bridge at milepost (MP) 55.9, reinforced steel for 286k cars at 30 mph; Tulip Viaduct, new bearings; MP 108.4, renewed timber stringers; Wabash River stabilized pier; MP 135.9, replaced timber with steel stringers and concrete caps • New switches: 2

2013: $13.6 million

• Cut and Slide rail project: 22 miles • Undercutting: 20,000 track feet • Crossties: 10,400 • Facilities: Indianapolis Intermodal Terminal, Odon Transload Terminal, Hiawatha Yard Maintenance Facility, Bear Run Mine Double Loop

2014: $19.5 million

• Cut and Slide: 5.5 miles • Undercutting: 20,000 track feet • Crossties: 62,500 • CWR: 4.5 miles • Bridge Renewal and Stabilization: 3 bridges • Additional work to reconstruct unstable fills; yard rehabilitation and rail relay at the Terre Haute Hulman Street Yard; reconstruct 39 public/ private crossings; continuation of grade-crossing signal upgrades to LED lights and new gradecrossing warning signal systems at crossings that are presently passive and installation of a new hot journal/dragging detector

2015: $17.3 million

• Yard improvements, major rail relay on Chicago Sub, finish replacement of White River Bridge on Chicago Sub near Elnora, Ind.

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Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 31

AREMA’s outgoing president, Joe Smak, reviews his past year as the head of the association.

Smak speaking at the 2013 Railway Tie Association Conference.

Smak takes count of pas

J

AREMA pre

oe Smak, president of AREMA for the 2013-2014 term, set out a specific set of goals when he took office last year and by maintaining working relationships with other industry associations and working with railroading students, he and the AREMA staff met those goals. Within the following pages, Smak reflects upon his past year as president and shares his hopes for the future of the organization.

RT&S: How did your day job prepare you for your role as AREMA president?

Smak: Anyone who has ever applied for a job on the railroad or read a railroad job description has seen the words in small print on the bottom of the page, “other duties as assigned.”

After more than 34 years on the railroad, I was prepared for anything 32 Railway Track & Structures

that might get thrown my way (almost).

Sometimes, I think that I have seen every possible scenario in this industry, but there is always a situation that comes out of the woodwork and surprises me. As I think about some of these situations, I find myself thinking that you just can’t make this stuff up.

But as an engineer, I have been trained to assess the situation, consider all the possible solutions and evaluate any residual outcomes.

While I may not be the best public speaker, the many years of presentations and opportunities to speak in front of groups of employees has helped me overcome a little stage fright. I no longer fear speaking in public, as confidence comes with the knowledge of the subject matter. And in this new world of political correctness, I have to be careful in what I say, because it is important how and what I say.

September 2014

RT&S: What are your thoughts on the past year as president of AREMA? Smak: This was a fantastic year and I was able to meet with old friends and colleagues, make new industr y acquaintances and see more of our railroad network around North America. I encountered some unexpected challenges, but in the end, I think that AREMA will be a stronger organization. It was a pleasure to work with the AREMA staff, along with all the railroaders, consultants, colleges and universities, manufactures and suppliers that make up our great organization.

Our Functional Group Board of Directors and the committee leadership are the core of AREMA and it was great to help them in their important tasks. I would like to give special thanks to the AREMA Board of Governors for their www.rtands.com

by Jennifer Nunez, assistant editor

R a i l r o a d s , I n t e r n at i o n a l H e av y Haul Association, American Public Transportation Association (APTA) and others. The other goal was to work with the AREMA Student Chapters to promote railway engineering in our colleges and universities. I was able to speak to several chapters and I am working on getting some other schools to join the organization. I had planned on visiting with more schools, but the year flew by quickly and I was not able to visit as many chapters as I had planned. I am not going to stop after my term is over, as I feel it is important to encourage our young students to consider railroad careers.

ast year as

RT&S: What did you accomplish dur ing your ter m in office?

W h a t a r e yo u m o s t p r o u d o f having accomplished?

resident help and support throughout the year. I also thank my wife Pam and my family for being there for me when I needed them the most.

RT&S: Have you reached all the goals you set? Was there anything you wanted to do that you did not get around to or could not do?

S m ak : I s e t t wo goals f or my presidency and I believe that I reached them. One was to promote better relationships between AREMA and the other industry organizations. I think I maintained and strengthened our rapport with Railway EngineeringMaintenance Suppliers Association, Railway Supply Institute, Railway Systems Suppliers, Inc., National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association, Railway Tie Association, Association of American www.rtands.com

Smak: My presidency gave me the opportunity to speak at several industry events and I think that I was able to strengthen AREMA’s relationship with the other industry organizations. I was part of a new initiative with APTA with the help of Wheel Rail Interface; hopefully this project will continue into the future.

My position at AREMA also gave me the opportunity to work with several institutions of higher learning, many of which have railroad engineering programs. It was a joy to talk to the students, listen to their pertinent questions and give some guidance on how to start their careers in the railroad industry. These students want to be in our industry and we need to help them get their start in their careers. For me, it is a way to “pay it forward” for those who helped me when I started my journey.

Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 33

AREMA President wrap up

Smak boarding an Amtrak locomotive.

34 Railway Track & Structures

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AREMA president wrap up Left, AREMA President Smak addressing an audience at Penn State. Speaking at the Wheel Rail Interface Conference.

36 Railway Track & Structures

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arema president wrap up

RT&S: Where do you see the organization going from here? Five years from now? Ten years from now?

Smak: Recently, we have had a leadership change at AREMA. I want to thank Larry Etherton for stepping up as interim executive officer and chief executive officer, as he will provide continuity and guidance as we go forward. We are in the process of a talent search for a permanent executive officer and CEO and when we find the best candidate, we will work with him/her to develop a business plan to take AREMA to the next plateau. We have much work ahead of us, as we will renew and revise AREMA structure, policy and procedures. Currently, we are business as usual, with the plans for the 2014 Annual Conference moving forward, full speed ahead. We are in good hands, with the AREMA staff fully dedicated to the task ahead.

As for five years from now, I see AREMA playing an important role in the industry, as a whole, changes to its demographics. There will be a large percentage of the railroad workforce reaching retirement age and AREMA will be poised to help with this transition.

38 Railway Track & Structures

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AREMA president wrap up

Smak with his wife and grandchildren.

The organization, true to its mission statement, will be there with “the development and advancement of both technical and practical knowledge and recommended practices pertaining to the design, construction and maintenance of railway infrastructure.� AREMA will help teach and mentor the young engineers as they replace the many years of experienced leaders that will leave the industry.

Ten years from now, these young engineers will be fully engaged in the railroad industry. I see their involvement in AREMA continuing, har nessing new technology, processes and procedures as our industry progresses into the future. Our organization will need to strengthen and grow to handle the needs of this new decade.

RT&S: What do you see in the future for AREMA? What do you think AREMA needs to do in the future to succeed?

Smak: I see a bright future for AREMA, continuing on the path that our forefathers forged before us. AREMA and its predecessor organizations have been here for more than 100 years and I see AREMA here to stay for the next one hundred years. We need to continue our involvement with the young men and women engineers, guiding them from student chapters to committee membership to leadership in our great organization. AREMA will continue as the leading organization in railroad engineering and I am honored and humbled to have been just a small part of the future of AREMA. 40 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

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AREMA NEWS Professional Development If you need additional continuing education credits, plan to attend one of AREMA’s eight upcoming seminars being held in conjunction with the AREMA 2014 Annual Conference & Exposition in Chicago, IL September 28 – October 1. Book now, seminars sell out quickly.

Introduction to practical railway engineering September 26-28

Message from the President

Introductions

Randy Bowman AREMA President 2014-2015

rail bulk terminal design September 27 environmental permitting issues in railroad construction projects September 28 PtC 101 introduction to positive train control (PTC) October 1 Track alignment design October 1-3

Please visit www.arema.org to register and to find out more information about these seminars or contact Desirée Knight at dknight@arema.org.

42 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

Greetings. Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Randy Bowman and I am honored to serve as president of the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA) for 20142015. I will be installed in office during this year’s annual conference in Chicago, Ill. With a Bachelor of Science in Materials Engineering from North Carolina State University, I began my railroad career in 1985 with Norfolk Southern as a metallurgical engineer in our research and tests laboratory in Alexandria, Va. I worked there and in Roanoke, Va., for more than 18 years before moving to the Engineering Department in Atlanta, Ga., almost 11 years ago. My current position is engineer of track and materials. I am active in both AREMA Committee 5 – Track and AREMA Committee 4 – Rail, where I served as sub-committee chair, secretary, vice-chair and chair. I then served as a director and vice president of the Track Functional Group on the Functional Group Board of Directors. For the past year, I have served as senior vice president and am preparing to move into the role of president.

As I prepare to follow a slate of many great presidents of this association, I want to thank my two most recent predecessors, Joe Smak and Jim Carter, for their friendship and outstanding leadership these past two years. Both of them have helped prepare me to take on this role while working hard to make AREMA the premier railway engineering association in the world and I hope to continue to add to that during my tenure. Both of them have been instrumental in increasing the number of student chapters in our colleges and universities and fostering additional railroad engineering programs. My goal is to continue in those efforts because our young engineers are the future of this industry and AREMA is an excellent pathway to expose them to and guide them into a career in railroading. I also have a goal to increase funding for the scholarships given through the AREMA Educational Foundation because they help attract the most talented young students to our industry. I would like to see every AREMA committee sponsor at least one scholarship each year in addition to the numerous individual and corporate sponsored scholarships.

The AREMA Annual Conference and Exposition in Chicago, Ill., this year will begin with the exposition opening at noon on Sunday, September 28, with 225 companies exhibiting. The conference will open Monday morning with a presentation from each of our six functional groups, followed by 56 presentations in our Technical Sessions on Tuesday. The Annual Chairs’ Luncheon featured speaker will be “Railroader of the Year,” President and Chief Executive Officer of Amtrak, Joseph H. Boardman. The Closing Session on Wednesday will feature one final presentation from each functional group, a railway industry update from transportation industry analyst expert Anthony B. Hatch, along with the installation of the 2014-2015 AREMA officers. www.rtands.com

2014 - 2015 Upcoming Committee Meetings Sept. 16-17 Oct. 5-6 Oct. 14-16 Oct. 15 Oct. 22-23 Nov. 10-12

Committee 15 - Steel Structures Committee 34 - Scales Committee 30 - Ties Committee 28 - Clearances Committee 4 - Rail Committee 37 - Signal Systems

New Orleans, LA Tucson, AZ Orlando, FL Orlando, FL Kansas City, MO Overland Park, KS

Nov. 12-13 Committee 36 - Highway-Rail Grade Crossing

Warning Systems Overland Park, KS Jan. 6-7 Committee 10 - Structures, Maintenance & Foundations Hollywood, FL Committee 9 - Seismic Design for Railway Structures Jan. 29 San Diego, CA Jan. 29-30 Committee 8 - Concrete Structures

& Foundations Panama, Central America

Committee meetings being held in conjunction with AREMA 2014 Annual Conference & Exposition can be found at www.arema.org.

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

FYI… Avoid the lines of on-site registration and pre-register online today at www.arema. org for the AREMA 2014 Annual Conference & Exposition September 28 – October 1, 2014, in Chicago, IL. There will be shuttle transportation offered for all AREMA 2014 Annual Conference & Exposition attendees who are staying at the Palmer House Hilton and the Renaissance Chicago Downtown Hotel.

Download the official AREMA 2014 mobile app to see the shuttle schedule.

AREMA’s Official Facebook Page Become a fan of the official AREMA Facebook Page and stay up-to-date on the most recent AREMA information.

Other functions that provide opportunities for networking are "Meet the Next Generation" and "Early Careers Event." If you bring your spouses, Joe’s wife, Pam, has a wonderful program planned for them.

I want to thank all the Functional Group vice presidents and directors for their hard work in selecting the presentations for our Technical Sessions. Thanks to all the officers and committee members for volunteering their time, hard work and expertise to make this association what it is. Thanks to the entire staff at AREMA headquarters. Their work year round supporting the committees, publications, seminars, annual conference, etc., largely goes unrecognized.

They all do a tremendous job for the association and the industry. I want to thank all my friends and colleagues at Norfolk Southern who have supported and encouraged my involvement in AREMA over the years. Most importantly, I want to thank my wife, Michelle, who has always been my biggest supporter.

Without her love, support and encouragement, I would not be where I am today.

I’m looking forward to the next 12 months as the president of AREMA. These are exciting times to be in our industry. I ask for your continued support and I am always open to suggestions that will make improvements in what we do and the way in which we get it done.

Be safe and make a positive difference.

The Official AREMA LinkedIn Group Join the official AREMA LinkedIn Group by visiting www.linkedin.com and searching groups for “American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association.”

Put your career on the right track w i t h AREMA ’ s R a i l w a y C a r e e r s Network. Services are FREE and include confidential resume posting, job search and e-mail notification when jobs match your criteria. Please see the ad on Cover 3 for details on September specials for discounts on career postings.

Not an AREMA Member?

Join today at www.arema.org www.rtands.com

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September 2014 43

AREMA NEWS

Getting to know Randy Bowman We are pleased to feature AREMA's 2014-2015 president, Randy Bowman, as the September spotlight.

AREMA: Why did you decide to choose a career in railway engineering?

BOWMAN: I'd have to say my path into railway engineering is probably different than most. When I was in high school, several of my teachers suggested that I go into engineering because my strengths were in math and science. It was in my first year of college that I chose to major in materials engineering. I was more interested in how things were affected by the make-up and properties of a material than actually building things. I especially liked doing lab work and figuring out how things worked, why they failed and how to improve them. I never really thought about working in the railroad industry. However, after graduation, the opportunity presented itself to work in the Research and Tests Laboratory at Norfolk Southern. As you’ve probably heard many times, “railroading gets in your blood.” It definitely got into mine. I spent more than 18 years in the Research and Test Laboratory before moving to the Engineering Department almost 11 years ago. I’ve had a rewarding career thus far and look forward to continuing it.

It’s a great time to be in the railroad industry.

AREMA: Outside of your job and the hard work you put into AREMA, what are your hobbies?

BOWMAN: I have been married to my lovely wife and best friend, Michelle, for 28 years. We have been blessed with three children; Hunter, Whitney and Hannah. Hunter just earned his bachelor’s degree in accounting and is working in property management. Whitney just earned her master’s degree in applied behavioral analysis. She now has a one-year internship working with autistic children, after which she wants to pursue her Ph.D. Hannah is starting her third year of college, pursuing a degree in business management. Between spending time with my family, doing home improvement or gardening (honey-do) projects, volunteering at my church and going on mission trips, I don’t really have a lot of time for hobbies. I do enjoy taking Michelle on occasional weekend motorcycle rides through the North Georgia and Alabama Mountains. It’s a great way to unwind. One of our favorite things to do when we ride is to find local barbeque restaurants along our way and try them out. We find that the little hole-in-the-wall places usually have the best barbeque. During the summers of my high school and college years, my parents, my brother and I used to take weekend rides through the mountains of North Carolina. I have great memories of those times. That’s one of the reasons I enjoy riding. My son, Hunter, started riding motorcycles two years ago and we got to take a father/ son trip this spring. We rode 2,000 miles, visited family, ate barbeque and listened to blues on Beale Street, ate Cajun food in the French Quarter, had beignets at Café du Monde, listened to jazz on Bourbon Street and cruised Panama City Beach. That was a trip we’ll always remember.

AREMA: If you could share one interesting fact about yourself with the readers of RT&S, what would it be?

44 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

Randy Bowman AREMA President 2014-2015 Engineer Track & Materials, Norfolk Southern Corporation

BOWMAN: I am an active member of The Gideons International and served as president of our local camp from 2008 to 2014. The Gideons International is an association of Christian business and professional men and their wives dedicated to telling people about Jesus through sharing personally and by providing Bibles and New Testaments.

While we are known worldwide for our work with hotels, we predominantly share scriptures in schools and colleges, prisons and jails, hospitals and medical offices. To date, Gideons have placed or distributed more than 1.9 billion Scriptures in more than 190 countries around the world.

AREMA: What advice would you give to someone who is trying to pursue a career in the railway industry?

BOWMAN: If someone is considering a career in railway engineering, my advice is to ask yourself what you want out of your career. If you like a challenge, if you don’t want the same thing day in and day out, if you like interacting with people who enjoy what they do and have a passion for doing it, then this is a great place to be. Get involved in AREMA. Whether as a college student in one of our 17 student chapters or as a young engineer just starting in the industry, there’s no better organization to get involved in that will afford you the opportunity to network and to learn from seasoned veterans.

The interaction with railroaders, suppliers and consultants is the heart of this organization. We’re all working together to provide North America and the world with recommendations for best practices in railway engineering. Being a part of that, in my opinion, makes for a successful and rewarding career; one you can take pride in. www.rtands.com

AREMA Publications Reflections on a Half Century of Railway Engineering and Some Related Subjects©

Railway Memoirs by William G. Byers, PE

2014 Portfolio of Trackwork Plans©

NOW AVAILABLE

2014 Manual for Railway Engineering© There have been numerous updates to more than 5,000 pages of the Manual for Railway Engineering. The chapters are grouped into four general categories, each in a separate volume: • Track • Structures • Infrastructure & Passenger • Systems Management. The Manual is an annual publication, released every April. It is available in four-volume loose-leaf format, CD-ROM, revision set (loose-leaf only) and individual chapters (hard copy and downloadable formats).

Downloadable Chapters Available Online.

2014 Communications & Signals Manual of Recommended Practices© The Communications & Signals Manual is a manual of recommended practices written by AREMA technical committees in the interest of establishing uniformity, promoting safety or efficiency and economy. The Communications & Signals Manual of Recommended Practices is an annual publication.

Downloadable Sections Available Online.

New edition coming October 2014

To order any of the AREMA publications, please visit www.arema.org or contact Beth Caruso at +1.301.459.3200, ext. 701, or bcaruso@arema.org.

www.rtands.com

The Portfolio of Trackwork Plans consists of plans and specifications that relate to the design, details, materials and workmanship for switches, frogs, turnouts and crossovers, crossings, rails and other special trackwork. This is a companion volume to the Manual for Railway Engineering.

AREMA Bridge Inspection Handbook© The AREMA Bridge Inspection Handbook provides a comprehensive source of information and criteria for bridge inspections for engineers engaged in the assessment of railway bridges. This handbook is published as a guide to establishing policies and practices relative to bridge inspection. It covers such topics as confined spaces, site conditions, loads & forces, nomenclature, bridge decks, timber, concrete & steel bridges, movable bridges, tunnel and culvert inspections, and emergency & post-earthquake inspections.

Also included are many color photographed examples in several chapters, as well as a glossary in the back of the book.

Practical Guide to Railway Engineering© This guide provides a comprehensive overview and understanding of the railway system. Whether you are new to the rail industry or a long-time contributor wanting to learn more, this bound book and CD-ROM offer in-depth coverage of railway fundamentals and serve as an excellent reference. (Also available in a CD-ROM version only.)

Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 45

46 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

www.rtands.com

AREMA 2014 Annual Conference & Exposition Schedule Friday, September 26 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Registration: Seminars Only 12:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Introduction to Practical Railway Engineering Seminar (Day 1) PDR 2 (3rd Floor) Saturday, September 27 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Registration: Conference, Exposition and Seminars 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Introduction to Practical Railway Engineering Seminar (Day 2) PDR 2 (3rd Floor) 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Rail Bulk Terminal Design Seminar PDR 1 (3rd Floor) Committee Meetings 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Committee 27 Committee 24 Team 41 Committee 5

Sunday, September 28 7:30 a.m. - 8:00 a.m.

Registration: Seminars Only 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Introduction to Practical Railway Engineering (Day 3) PDR 2 (3rd Floor) 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Environmental Permitting Issues

in Railroad Construction Projects Williford B (3rd Floor) 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Registration: Conference, Exposition and Seminars 9:15 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Student Activity Room Waldorf (3rd Floor) Sponsored by Nordco 10:00 am - 11:00 am LinkedIn Networking Hour Astoria (3rd Floor) Noon Exposition Opening Ceremony Outside Salon A Entrance Noon - 2:00 p.m.

Exposition Opening Reception

Salon A, Salon C and Salon D (Lower Level)

Sponsored by JCF Bridge & Concrete, Inc. Noon - 5:00 pm Exposition

Salon A, Salon C and Salon D

(Lower Level) Committee Meetings 8:00 a.m. - Noon 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

10:00 a.m. - Noon Noon - 5:00 p.m.

1:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

1:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Committee 5 Committee 24 Committee 10 Team 40 Committee 14 Committee 17 Committee 12 Committee 33 Committee 6 Committee 16 Committee 11 Committees 11 & 17 Joint

Monday, September 29 6:45 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Registration: Conference, Exposition and Seminars www.rtands.com

Continental Breakfast 6:45 a.m. - 7:30 a.m.

Grand Ballroom (2nd Floor)

Sponsored by Loram and

N.E. Bridge Contractors, Inc. 7:45 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Opening General Session International Ballroom (2nd Floor) 7:45 a.m. - 7:50 a.m.

Presentation of Colors Chicago Police Department Honor Guard 7:50 a.m. - 7:55 a.m.

Safety Briefing Joseph A. Smak, AREMA President Amtrak 7:55 a.m. - 8:05 a.m.

President’s Address Joseph A. Smak, AREMA President Amtrak 8:05 a.m. - 8:10 a.m.

REMSA Greeting John W. Fox, REMSA President NARSTCO 8:10 a.m. - 8:15 a.m.

RSSI Greeting John J. Paljug, RSSI President Siemens Rail Automation 8:15 a.m. - 8:25 a.m.

AREMA Welcome Larry L. Etherton, PE, Interim Executive Director/CEO Keynote Address 8:25 a.m. - 8:55 a.m.

Joseph C. Szabo, Administrator Federal Railroad Administration 8:55 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

Honorary Member Recognition Robert A.P. Sweeney, PhD, P.Eng. 9:00 am - 9:15 am Presentation of 2014 Dr. William

W. Hay Award for Excellence Michael W. Franke, AREMA Treasurer Chair, Hay Award Committee Amtrak 9:15 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.

AREMA Scholarship Winners Announcement 9:30 a.m. - 9:40 a.m.

Member-Get-A-Member Campaign Winners Coffee Break 9:40 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.

Grand Ballroom (2nd Floor)

Sponsored by Alfred Benesch &

Company, Ames Construction, Inc.,

Design Nine, GREX, J.L. Patterson

& Associates, Inc and Patrick Engineering.

10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

Engineering Services Presentation

Development and Use of FRA Autonomous Track Geometry Measurement System Technology Soheil Saadat, PhD, PMP, ENSCO, Inc. 10:30 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

Communications & Signals Presentation

Understanding the Complexity of Implementing PTC Communications Technology Clark Palmer, Meteorcomm LLC 11:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

Track Presentation

Field Evaluation of Improved Track

Components Under Heavy Axle Loads Joseph A. LoPresti, Transportation Technology Center, Inc. 11:30 am - 12:00 pm Structures Presentation CSX Transportation J&L Tunnel Modification Project James H. Swadley, PE,

Michael Baker Jr., Inc. Joseph Gula, Mascaro Construction Company Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 47

AREMA 2014 Annual Conference & Exposition Schedule

Michael W. Hoey, PE, CSX Transportation 12:00 p.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Passenger & Transit Presentation

Railroad Infrastructure: Planning for Sea Level Rise

Marian L. Rule, PE, TranSystems Corporation

Shirley Y. Qian, Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority 12:30 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Maintenance Presentation

Transition From Bridge End to Bridge

and Bridge to Bridge End

Darrell D. Cantrell, Cantrell Rail

Services, Inc. and Tom L. Bourgonje, Canadian National Railway 1:00 p.m.

End of General Session Exposition Reception 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Salon A, Salon C and Salon D

(Lower Level) Sponsored by Stella Jones Corporation 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Exposition

Salon A, Salon C and Salon D

(Lower Level) 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Meet The Next Generation

Sponsored by AECOM, AMEC

Environment & Infrastructure, Amtrak, ARCADIS, ARUP,

Axion, BNSF, Canadian National,

CSX, Hanson Professional Services Inc., HDR Engineering Inc.,

Jacobs Associates, Kiewit Infrastructure Co., Nordco, Norfolk

Southern, Parsons Brinckerhoff, Stantec, TranSystems and URS 4:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Early Careers Event

Sponsored by ARUP, HDR Engineering Inc., Jacobs and Nordco

Tuesday, September 30 7:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Registration: Conference, Exposition and Seminars 7:00 a.m. - 7:45 a.m.

Continental Breakfast Grand Ballroom (2nd Floor) Sponsored by Loram and N.E. Bridge Contractors, Inc. 7:55 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Functional Group Technical Sessions 9:00 a.m. - Noon Exposition

Salon A, Salon C and Salon D

(Lower Level) Coffee Break 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

Exposition

Salon A, Salon C and Salon D (Lower Level)

Sponsored by Alfred Benesch &

Company, Ames Construction, Inc.,

Design Nine, GREX, J.L. Patterson &

Associates, Inc and Patrick Engineering AREMA Annual Chairs’ Luncheon 12:15 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.

International Ballroom (2nd Floor)

(Ticketed Event - Separate Fee Required. Please visit the

Registration Desk to purchase a ticket.)

Featured Speaker: Joseph H. Boardman, President and CEO, Amtrak 48 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

2:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Exposition

Salon A, Salon C and Salon D (Lower Level) Committee Meeting 3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Committee 18

Wednesday, October 1 6:45 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

Registration: Conference and Seminars 6:45 a.m. - 7:30 a.m.

Continental Breakfast Grand Ballroom (2nd Floor) Sponsored by Loram and N.E. Bridge Contractors, Inc. 7:45 am Closing General Session International Ballroom (2nd Floor) 7:45 am - 7:50 am Safety Briefing Randy L. Bowman

AREMA Senior Vice President and

Program Committee Chair, Norfolk Southern Corporation 7:50 a.m. - 8:15 a.m.

Installation of 2014-2015 AREMA Officers 8:15 a.m. - 8:45 a.m Railway Industry Update Anthony B. Hatch, Transportation Industry Analyst, ABH Consulting 8:45 a.m - 9:15 a.m.

Structures Presentation

Alaska Railroad Corporation -

Planning, Design & Construction of the Tanana River Bridge Mathew A. Fletcher, PE, SE, Hanson Professional Services Inc.

Simeon Brubaker, PE, HDR Engineering, Inc.

Brian Lindamood, PE, Alaska Railroad Corporation 9:15 a.m. - 9:45 a.m. Track Presentation

BNSF/Laurel Street Grade Separation:

Drainage Challenges and Solutions

Joseph Sawtelle, TranSystems Corporation 9:45 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.

Communications & Signals Presentation

Central Control Facility Design and

Modern Data Center Practices

Obrad Aleksic, Hatch Mott MacDonald 10:15 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.

Coffee Break Continental Foyer (Lobby Level) Sponsored by Alfred Benesch &

Company, Ames Construction, Inc.,

Design Nine, GREX, J.L. Patterson &

Associates, Inc and Patrick Engineering 10:45 am - 11:15 am Engineering Services Presentation CREATE Update William C. Thompson, PE, Association of American Railroads 11:15 a.m - 11:45 a.m Maintenance Presentation

Automated Crosstie Inspection Using Internal Imaging Techniques Jeb E. Belcher and Gregory T.

Grissom, PE, Georgetown Rail Equipment Company 11:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.

Passenger & Transit Presentation

Cost Savings Through Innovation Eagle P3 Project, Regional www.rtands.com

AREMA 2014 Annual Conference & Exposition Schedule

Transportation District, Denver, CO

Rikkito K. Lor, PE, Regional Transportation District

Scott Henning, PE, Jacobs Engineering 12:15 p.m.

Adjournment of the AREMA 2014 Annual Conference & Exposition 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Track Alignment Design (Day 1) Buckingham (Lobby Level) 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

PTC 101 - Introduction to Positive Train Control Lake Erie (8th Floor) Committee Meetings 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Committee 38 Committee 39

Thursday, October 2 Track Alignment Design 8:00 a.m - 5:00 p.m.

(Day 2) Buckingham (Lobby Level) Committee Meetings 8:00 a.m. - Noon 8:00 a.m. - Noon

Committee 38 Committee 39

Friday, October 3 8:00 a.m. - Noon Track Alignment Design (Day 3) Buckingham (Lobby Level)

www.rtands.com

Spouse Program

Suite Location: Joliet (3rd Floor)

Sunday, September 28, 2014 Noon - 4:00 p.m.

Spouse Hospitality Suite 1:45 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.

Welcome Reception (Spouse Hospitality Suite) 2:00 p.m. - 2:45 p.m.

Hilton Chicago Historical Tour (meet in Hospitality Suite) Monday, September 29, 2014 7:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.

Spouse Hospitality Suite 10:00 a.m. - Noon Spouse Brunch with Master Sommelier Rachel Speckan Waldorf (3rd Floor) Noon - 5:00 p.m.

Spouse Hospitality Suite Tuesday, September 30, 2014 7:00 a.m. - Noon Spouse Hospitality Suite 10:15 a.m. Assemble in Hospitality Suite for Trolley Tour 10:45 a.m. - 2:15 p.m.

Trolley Tour of Chicago with Lunch

at John Hancock Center - The

Signature Room at the 95th (Separate Fee Required) Wednesday, October 1, 2014 7:00 a.m. - Noon

Spouse Hospitality Suite

Spouse Program sponsored by N.E. Bridge Contractors Inc.

This Spouse Program is for registered spouses only

Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 49

Tuesday Functional Group Sessions Communications & Signals - 9/30

Marquette (3rd Floor) Session Sponsored by The Okonite Company 7:55 a.m.

Safety Briefing and Group Comments James G. LeVere Condition Based Monitoring for Power 8:00 a.m.

Switch Machines Gregory Fogarty, RailComm LLC Fuel Cell Technology for Backup and 8:30 a.m.

Supplemental Power Applications Marlin Matthews, CSX Transportation 9:00 a.m.

Industry Leaders’ Panel

Moderated by Mischa Wanek-Libman, Simmons-Boardman Industry Leaders’ Panel 9:30 a.m.

(Continued)

Moderated by Mischa Wanek-Libman, Simmons-Boardman 10:00 a.m.

Coffee Break Exposition Hall (Lower Level) Sponsored by Alfred Benesch & Company, Ames Construction, Inc., Design Nine,

GREX, J.L. Patterson & Associates, Inc and Patrick Engineering Computer-Aided Analysis of Non-Coded 10:30 a.m.

Alternating-Current Track Circuits Using a Finite-Element Transmission-Line Model Stuart Landau, PE, MIRSE, CH2M HILL

50 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

Session Chair: James G. LeVere AREMA Functional Group Vice President BNSF Railway 11:00 a.m.

Train Detection in Non-Track Circuited Areas of Railroad Crossings Utilizing Overhead Microwave Radar

Thomas N. Hilleary, Island Radar Company, LLC

Jerry W. Specht, EIT, BNSF Railway Bridging the European and 11:30 a.m.

North American Rail Safety Assurance Gaps Laurent Boileau,

Alstom Signaling, Inc. 12:15 p.m.

AREMA Annual Chairs' Luncheon

(Ticketed Event - Separate Fee Required) Featured Speaker:

Joseph H. Boardman,

President and CEO, Amtrak 2:00 p.m.

Benefits of Using Modern Axle

Counters in CBTC and Light Rail Projects Gerhard Grundnig, Frauscher Sensortechnik GmbH 2:30 p.m.

An Information Exchange Platform

for Routine and Emergency Events of Railways

Hualing (Harry) Teng

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

www.rtands.com

Tuesday Functional Group Sessions Engineering Services - 9/30

Boulevard A-C (2nd Floor) Session Sponsored by voestalpine Nortrak Inc. 7:55 a.m.

Safety Briefing and Group Comments Glenn T. Hay, PE 8:00 a.m.

Rail Temperature Prediction Model as a Tool to Issue Advance Heat Slow Orders

Radim Bruzek, ENSCO, Inc. Transportation Kinder Morgan Edmonton 8:30 a.m.

Rail Terminal - Design and Construction

Within 19 Months of a 4.6 Mile Long Spiral

Loop for Crude Oil Loading of Unit Trains with Service Connections to CN and CP

Paul Li, AECOM Canada Ltd.

Leslie Gould, Rangeland Engineering Ltd. 9:00 a.m.

Union Pacific Railroad Santa Teresa Terminal Project

Michael J. Zucker, PE, and Gregory R. Clark,

Union Pacific Railroad

David A. Olson, PE,Wilson & Company, Inc. Engineers & Architects 9:30 a.m.

Harrison Hub Fractionation Facility

Russell A. Henestofel and Brian Rossi, EI EMH&T, Inc. Coffee Break - Exposition Hall (Lower Level) 10:00 a.m.

Sponsored by Alfred Benesch & Company, Ames Construction, Inc., Design Nine, GREX, J.L.

Patterson & Associates, Inc and Patrick Engineering

Canadian Pacific Network Capacity 10:30 a.m.

www.rtands.com

Session Chair: Glenn T. Hay, PE AREMA Functional Group Vice President Design Nine, Inc.

Ryan P. Raske, PE, AECOM Development of Former Oakland Army Base 11:00 a.m.

Michael Leue, PE, Parsons and Barry A. Mac Donnell, PE, Port of Oakland

11:30 a.m.

A Linear Programming Model for Optimization of the Railway

Blocking Problem Roberto Gallardo-Bobadilla University of Alberta 12:15 p.m.

AREMA Annual Chairs' Luncheon

(Ticketed Event - Separate Fee Required)

Featured Speaker: Joseph H. Boardman, President and CEO, Amtrak CSX Worcester Intermodal 2:00 p.m.

Terminal Expansion

David J. Irving, PE, TranSystems Corporation

Ken Grula, CSX Intermodal Terminals, Inc. The Role of Rail in the National 2:30 p.m.

Freight Policy

Kevin K. Keller, PG, CGWP, HDR Engineering, Inc.

Anne Canby, OneRail Coalition 3:00 p.m.

FRA Overview to On-Track Safety

for Certain Roadway Work Groups and Adjacent Tracks Regulation

Joseph E. Riley, PE and Kenneth E. Rusk Federal Railroad Administration

Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 51

Tuesday Functional Group Sessions Maintenance - 9/30

Waldorf (3rd Floor) Session Sponsored by Rail Construction Equipment Co. 7:55 a.m.

Safety Briefing and Group Comments

Donald R. Briggs 8:00 a.m.

A Comprehensive and Integrated Approach to MOW Planning: Leveraging

the Power of Linear Asset Management Tools, Track Inspector Assessments

and Automated Track Inspection Data

Darvin L. Kelly and Andrew B. Off, PE, PMP,

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority

Kevin P. Moore,The Net Consulting Group Inc. 8:30 a.m.

Replacing Drainage Systems Under Rail Beds With the Pipe Ramming Method

Alan Goodman, HammerHead Trenchless Equipment 9:00 a.m.

Right-of-Way Vegetation Management with

Selective Spray Control

David M. Bradley, PhD, Perceptive Robotics LLC 9:30 a.m. Effects of Track Parameters and Maintenance on Joint Bars

David D. Davis, PE, and Jay Baillargeon,

Transportation Technology Center, Inc. 10:00 a.m.

Coffee Break Exposition Hall (Lower Level)

Sponsored by Alfred Benesch & Company, Ames

Construction, Inc., Design Nine, GREX, J.L.

52 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

Session Chair: Donald R. Briggs AREMA Functional Group Vice President Kansas City Southern Railway

Patterson & Associates, Inc and Patrick Engineering 10:30 a.m.

Coatings to Control Solar Heat

Gain on Rails

George W. Ritter, PhD, EWI 11:00 a.m.

Field Investigations of Track Conditions Associated with Joint Bar Failure

Radim Bruzek, ENSCO, Inc. 11:30 a.m.

Weld Repair of Manganese Frogs for Enhanced Safety in Shared Service

Marc A. Purslow, EWI 12:15 p.m.

AREMA Annual Chairs' Luncheon

(Ticketed Event - Separate Fee Required)

Featured Speaker: Joseph H. Boardman, President and CEO, Amtrak 2:00 p.m.

Implementation of Bridge Management Plan for IAIS

Michael J. O’Connor, PE,

Alfred Benesch & Company

Thomas R. Klemm, PE, Iowa Interstate Railroad, Ltd. 2:30 p.m.

Development of Exercise Gage Method to Improve Repeatability of the Track Strength Measurements

Narayana Sundaram, ENSCO, Inc. and Huhh B.

Thompson, Federal Railroad Administration

www.rtands.com

Tuesday Functional Group Sessions Passenger & Transit - 9/30

Continental A (Lobby Level) Session Sponsored by Parsons Brinckerhoff 7:55 a.m.

Safety Briefing and Group Comments

Arthur E. Misiaszek, PE 8:00 a.m.

Chicago - St. Louis High Speed Rail Program Update

Philip G. Pasterak, PE, Parsons Brinckerhoff 8:30 a.m.

Safety and Security Management Plan

(SSMP) and Rail Transit Project Development

Gary A. Gordon, PE,WSO-CSSD, Kal Krishnan

Consulting Services, Inc. 9:00 a.m.

Systems Integration on a Light Rail Project: A Tale of Two Agencies

Jennifer Ryan, PE, Hatch Mott MacDonald and

Craig Delalla, PE, Sound Transit 9:30 a.m.

Automated High Level Platform Retractable Edge Feasibility to Accommodate Wide Load Passenger

Freight Manual on High Speed Passenger Rail Lines

Edward La Guardia, PE, Michael Baker Jr., Inc.

Toby Fauver, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation 10:00 a.m.

Coffee Break - Exposition Hall (Lower Level)

Sponsored by Alfred Benesch & Company, Ames

Construction, Inc., Design Nine, GREX, J.L.

Patterson & Associates, Inc and Patrick Engineering 10:30 a.m.

System-Wide Rail Corrugation Study for

www.rtands.com

Session Chair: Arthur E. Misiaszek, PE AREMA Functional Group Vice President Amtrak

the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)

Shawn M. Duenas and Steven Wolf, ATS Consulting 11:00 a.m.

MBTA’s Fitchburg Line Commuter Rail

Line: Implementing Innovation Transitioning from Planning through

Construction to Deliver a Design to Budget Project

Phillip D. Brake, PE, HNTB Corporation

Paul Hadley, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority 11:30 a.m.

Don’t Spill Your Coffee: The Importance of

Spiral Design for Passenger Comfort

Thomas W.Williams, PE,Wight & Company 12:15 p.m.

AREMA Annual Chairs' Luncheon

(Ticketed Event - Separate Fee Required)

Featured Speaker: Joseph H. Boardman, President and CEO, Amtrak 2:00 p.m.

The Santa Margarita River Bridge Replacement Project: Overcoming

Construction and Planning Challenges in Rebuilding Railway Infrastructure

Thomas C. Cornillie, Thomas Cornillie Independent

Scholar; Michael J. Albanese, Amtrak 2:30 p.m.

Aerodynamic Effects of High Speed Trains

on Passengers, Track Workers and other People

Steven L. Clark, PE and Paul J. Derkowski, PE, Arup

Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 53

Tuesday Functional Group Sessions

Structures - 9/30

Continental B (Lobby Level) Session Sponsored by TranSystems 7:55 a.m.

Safety Briefing and Group Comments

Howard C. Swanson, PE 8:00 a.m.

Retaining Wall Design for the Railroad

Infrastructure: What Makes their Design &

Construction Unique? A Selection Approach

Bryan Duevel, PE and Richard M. Smith, PE, Jacobs Associates 8:30 a.m.

CSX Hoffman’s Span Replacement over the Mohawk River

Ted Kettlewell, OCCI, Inc.; Ross M.White, PE, CSX Transportation 9:00 a.m.

CSX’s Novel Approach to Accelerated RR

Bridge Replacement & Rehabilitation - New

Year, New Bridge

Duncan Paterson, PE, PhD and JonathanWiner, PE

HDR Engineering, Inc.; Fyiad Constantine, PE, CSX Transportation Steel Decks for Rail Bridges 9:30 a.m.

Duncan Paterson, PE, PhD and Steve P. Lorek, PE

HDR Engineering, Inc. Coffee Break - Exposition Hall (Lower Level) 10:00 a.m.

Sponsored by Alfred Benesch & Company, Ames Construction, Inc., Design Nine, GREX, J.L. Patterson

& Associates, Inc and Patrick Engineering

10:30 a.m.

East Alburgh Swing Span Automation:

Modernizing a 100-Year-Old Movable Bridge

Kenneth A. Pidgeon, PE, ECI Rail Constructors, Inc. 11:00 a.m.

“Where is the Rock?” - Substructure

Remediation During Construction of

Norfolk Southern Bridge MI-130.35 over the

54 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

Session Chair: Howard C. Swanson, PE AREMA Functional Group Vice President Norfolk Southern Corporation

Shenango River in Shenango, PA

RuthV. Brown, PE, Norfolk Southern Corporation

Joseph A. Abruzzo, PE, SE, Bowman, Barrett &

Associates Inc. and WladyslawW. Rymsza, PE, Alfred

Benesch & Company 11:30 a.m.

Innovative Avalanche and Drainage Mitigation,

BNSF Snowshed No. 7, Essex, Montana

Carol A. Ravano, PE andWilliam C.B. Gates, PhD, PE Jacobs Associates 12:15 p.m.

AREMA Annual Chairs' Luncheon

(Ticketed Event - Separate Fee Required) Featured Speaker: Joseph H. Boardman, President and CEO, Amtrak 2:00 p.m.

Replacement of the East River Bridge

Charles G. Graning and Jonathan Hocker, PE

Norfolk Southern Corporation Bridge within a Bridge - Rehabilitation of CN 2:30 p.m.

Bridge 182.0 over Mississippi River, Dubuque, IA

Buck Ouyang, PE, Modjeski and Masters, Inc.; Mark A. Paull, Canadian National Railway Company;

Richard D. Floyd, PE, Osmose Railroad Services, Inc.

A Tale of Two Floods - Reconstruction and 3:00 p.m.

Improvements to the CRANDIC Iowa

River Crossing

Chad C. Lambi, PE, Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway; Adam McCune, PE, HDR Engineering, Inc.

Development of Crash Wall Design Loads 3:30 p.m. from Theoretical Train Impact

Gaylene Layden, PEng, AECOM Canada

www.rtands.com

Tuesday Functional Group Sessions

Track - 9/30

Continental C (Lobby Level) Session Sponsored by RailWorks Corporation 7:55 a.m.

Safety Briefing and Group Comments

David A. Becker, PE 8:00 a.m.

Innovation in Tie Treatments Using One-Step

Primary Preservatives Plus Borates

Tim Carey, Arch Wood Protection, Inc. 8:30 a.m.

Considerations in Choosing a Top-of-Rail (TOR) Material

Kevin Conn and Brad Kerchof, Norfolk Southern

Corporation and Kelvin Chiddick,Whitmore Rail 9:00 a.m.

Measured and Predicted Rail Performance

Adjacent to Deep Utility/Structure Excavations

Anand Govindasamy, PhD, PE, Geocomp Corporation 9:30 a.m.

Applied Heat by Geothermal Innovation -

Enhancing Rail Operation and Safety

Robert Wong and David E. Staplin, PE, Amtrak Coffee Break 10:00 a.m.

Exposition Hall (Lower Level)

Sponsored by Alfred Benesch & Company, Ames

Construction, Inc., Design Nine, GREX, J.L. Patterson

& Associates, Inc and Patrick Engineering Wheel Matching Technology (WMT) for Fixed 10:30 a.m.

Frogs and Crossovers

Harry Skoblenick, PEng, ES2, Bombardier Transportation, Inc. 11:00 a.m.

Ultrasonic Tomography for Rail Flaw Imaging

Francesco Lanza di Scalea, PhD, University of California, San Diego

11:30 a.m.

Stabilization of Marginal Soil in New and Existing Right-Of-Way

Charles M.Wilk, ALLU Group Inc.

www.rtands.com

Session Chair: David A. Becker, PE AREMA Functional Group Vice President Norfolk Southern Corporation

12:15 p.m.

AREMA Annual Chairs' Luncheon

(Ticketed Event - Separate Fee Required)

Featured Speaker: Joseph H. Boardman, President and CEO, Amtrak 2:00 p.m.

Development and Application of Portable Railroad Turnout

Eric J. Gehringer, Union Pacific Railroad 2:30 p.m.

Investigation of the Effects of Lateral Load

Distribution on Concrete Crosstie Track

Brent Williams, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Professional Development Hours By attending the AREMA Annual Conference and seminars, you are entitled to earn Continuing Education Units (CEUs) and Professional Development Hours (PDHs). PDHs for New York and Florida are available through AREMA’s special relationship with the Florida Board of Professional Engineers and the New York Professional Engineers Program.

AREMA is also an approved provider for the state of Indiana. Individuals needing PDHs for other states may self declare using AREMA’s form.

In addition to PDHs, CEUs are available through a special agreement negotiated with the University of North Florida. Committee meetings are also approved for PDHs through the Florida Board of Professional Engineers. AREMA is also an approved provider of the Registered Continuing Education Program. Please note that your individual state board has the final authority on approving all PDHs for activities attended.

The CEU and PDH form will be available at the conference and can be picked up at the AREMA registration desk or online at www.arema.org after the conference. Please visit www.arema.org for more information.

Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 55

CALENDAR SEPTEMBER 28-Oct. 1. AREMA 2014 Annual Conference & Exposition.

Hilton Chicago. Chicago, Ill. Contact: Lindsay Hamilton.

Phone: 301-459-3200, ext. E-mail: lhamilton@arema.org.

Website: www.arema.org.

OCTOBER 12-15. APTA Annual Meeting & Expo. Hilton Americas & George R. Brown Convention Center. Houston,Texas. Phone: 202-4964839. E-mail: aatkins@apta.com. Website: www.apta.com.

21-24. Track Safety Standards Part 213 Classes 105 Workshop. Council Bluffs, Iowa. Website: http://www. railwayeducationalbureau.com/TrkInspWrkShp.html.

NOVEMBER 5-6. Highway-Rail Grade Crossing Safety. Hilton Garden Inn - Chicago O’Hare. Des Plaines, Ill. Contact: Dave Peterson.

Phone: 800-462-0876. Fax: 800-442-4214. E-mail: peterson@ epd.engr.wisc.edu. Website: www.epd.engr.wisc.edu/webP649.

12-17. International Railway Safety Conference 2014. Maritim Hotel Berlin. Berlin, Germany. Phone: +49 30 29764448. E-mail: info@irsc2014.org. Website: www.irsc2014.org.

9-11. ASLRRA Central Pacific Region Meeting.

Worthington Renaissance Hotel. Fort Worth, Texas. Contact: Jenny Bourque. Phone: 202-628-4500. E-mail: jbourque@ aslrra.org. Website: www.aslrra.org.

14-17. 96th Annual Railway Tie Association Symposium and Technical Conference. Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Orlando, Fla. Phone: 770-460-5553. E-mail: ties@rta.org.

Website: www.rta.org.

10-14. Railroad Track Inspection & Safety Standards.

University of Tennessee - Knoxville. Chattanooga, Tenn.

Contact: Diana Webb. Phone: 865-974-5255. Fax: 865-9743889. Website: www.http://www.ctr.utk.edu/ttap.

20-22. Fundamentals of Urban Rail Transit Systems: Engineering, Construction, and Maintenance. David Evans And Associates, Inc. Portland, Ore. Contact: Dave Peterson.

Phone: 800-462-0876. E-mail: peterson@epd.engr.wisc. edu. Website: www.epd.engr.wisc.edu/webP737.

18-20. Fundamentals of Railway Bridge Engineering and Management. Crowne Plaza Hotel Jacksonville Airport.

Jacksonville, Fla. Contact: Dave Peterson. Phone: 800-4620876. Fax: 800-442-4214. E-mail: peterson@epd.engr.wisc. edu. Website: www.epd.engr.wisc.edu/webN887.

58 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

www.rtands.com

PRODUCTS Wood splitter

Fecon, Inc., introduced its excavator-mounted Log Jaw™ Wood Splitter to its forestry attachment product line. The Log Jaw is a hydraulic-powered wood splitting attachment that is also made for skid steers and loaders. The Log Jaw is made to rip apart long, large diameter logs and stumps into manageable pieces for chippers and wood grinders. The Log Jaw is Fecon’s solution for handling oversized and difficult to process logs and stumps that would otherwise require expensive disposal fees. The Log Jaw attachment, weighing approximately 995 pounds mounted on an excavator has a 40-inch jaw opening (tip to tip) and has a 360-degree rotation, allowing the operator to handle wood from any angle. Made for eight to 16 ton excavators, the mount can be built to the client’s specifications. Phone: 513-696-4430.

www.rtands.com

Dual tamper

Supertrak, an authorized dealer of Kinshofer, introduced a high-frequency dual tamper system to the market. The RST Double Ballast Tamper was designed for quick and effective tamping solutions. Supertrak says that with the RST Double Ballast Tamper, productively creating a stable tie bed is fast and efficient. The machine is suitable for road and rail excavators from 12 tons/26,400 pounds to 25 tons/55,000 pounds operating weight. The arms and tamping force on the RST Double Ballast Tamper are adjustable. The low-noise ballast tampers destabilize the ballast while the built-in vibrating units are running. When single tamping is required, such as in compact areas, Supertrak says one tamper can be disconnected quickly allowing work to continue efficiently.

Phone: 800-446-9858.

Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 59

Ad Index Company

Phone #

Fax#

e-mail address

Alcoa Fastening Systems/Huck 800-388-4825 254-751-5259 stu.millard@alcoa.com Aldon Company, Inc. 847-623-8800 847-623-6139 e-rail@aldonco.com Amsted RPS 913-345-4807

913-345-4818

jstout@amstedrps.com AREMA Marketing Department

301-459-3200 301-459-8077 marketing@arema.org Atlantic Track & Turnout Co. 973-748-5885 973-784-4520 stacyw@atlantictrack.com Auto Truck Group 816-412-2131 816-412-2191 eschoenfeld@autotruck.com Balfour Beatty Infrastructure, Inc.

888-250-5746

904-378-7298

info@bbri.com Brandt Road Rail Corporation

306-791-7533

306-525-1077

nmarcotte@brandt.com J.F. Brennan Co., Inc.

800-658-9027 ext.236 608-785-2090 markbinsfeld@jfbrennan.com Custom Truck & Equipment 816-241-4888 ext.2916 816-241-3710

bboehm@cte-equipment.com Danella Rental Systems

610-828-6200

610-828-2260

pbarents@danella.com Encore Rail Systems, Inc. 866-712-7622

303-922-6178

www.encorers.com L.B. Foster Co.

412-928-3506

412-928-3512

glippard@lbfosterco.com GENSCO America, Inc. 416-465-7521

416-465-4489 info@genscoequip.com Georgetown Rail Equipment Company 512-869-1542 ext.228

512-863-0405

karen@georgetownrail.com

Harsco Rail 803-822-7551 803-822-7521 mteeter@harsco.com Herzog Railroad Services, Inc.

816-233-9002

816-233-7757

tfrancis@hrsi.com HiRAIL Corporation 800-274-7245

319-455-2914

info@hirail.com Holland Co.

708-672-2300 ext. 382 708-672-0119 gpodgorski@hollandco.com

Hougen Manufacturing, Inc. 866-245-3745 800-309-3299 info@trak-star.com 334-387-5669 ext.208

334-387-4554 knox@knoxkershaw.com Knox Kershaw, Inc. Landoll Corporation 800-428-5655 888-293-6779 jim.ladner@landoll.com Lewis Bolt & Nut Co. 800-328-3480 952-449-9607 dbarry@lewisbolt.com Loram Maintenance of Way, Inc. 763-478-6014

763-478-2221

sales@loram.com Neel Company, The

703-913-7858 703-913-7859 btemple@neelco.com 866-662-7799

NMC Railway Systems 402-891-7745 info@nmcrail.com

Nordco Inc. 414-766-2180 414-766-2379 info@nordco.com OldCastle Precast

888-965-3227 303-794-4297 jim.baker@oldcastle.com Omega Industries, Inc.

360-694-3221

360-694-3882

omegaxings@aol.com OMNI Products, Inc 815-344-3100

815-344-5086 bcigrang@omnirail.com 800-356-5952

Osmose Railroad Services, Inc. 608-221-0618 dostby@osmose.com Pandrol USA, LP

1-800-221-CLIP

856-467-2994

PortaCo, Inc. 218-236-0223 218-233-5281 info@portaco.com

Progress Rail Services Corp.

800-476-8769 256-593-1249 info@progressrail.com

custserv@racinerailroad.com Racine Railroad Products 262-637-9681 262-637-9069

Rail Construction Equipment Co. 866-472-4510 630-355-7173 dennishanke@rcequip.com RAILCET 866-724-5238

217-522-6588

grif1020@yahoo.com Rails Company 973-763-4320 973-763-2585 rails@railsco.com

bbrundige@sb-reb.com Railway Educational Bureau, The 402-346-4300 402-346-1783 RailWorks Corporation 866-905-7245

952-469-1926 jrhansen@railworks.com

262-473-2441 262-473-4384 mktg@schenckprocess.com Schenck Process Sealeze Unit of Jason, Inc.

804-275-1675 ext.235 smaclaughlin@sealeze.com Sieb Sales & Engineering, Inc. 219-924-3616 219-924-3617 sales@siebsales.com Sperry Rail Service 203-791-4507 robert.dimatteo@sperryrail.com Stella-Jones Corporation 800-272-8437

412-894-2846

kdulski@stella-jones.com Unitrac Railroad Materials, Inc.

412-298-0915

865-693-9162

ppietrandrea@unitracrail.com V&H Inc., Trucks 715-486-8800

714-387-0657

a.thoreson@vhtruck.com voestalpine Nortrak Inc.

307-778-8700

307-778-8777

gord.weatherly@voestalpine.com Western-Cullen-Hayes, Inc. 773-254-9600 773-254-1110 cp@wch.com Whitmore Manufacturing Company 972-771-1000 972-772-4561 sales@whitmores.com

Willamette Valley Company 541-484-9621 541-284-2096 03alishab@wilvaco.com

Page #

11 51 12 Cover 3 15 13 27 14 22 6 52 Cover 4 4 10 7 36 33 31 21 54 55 23 40 39 8 34 59 41 24 9 25 3 53 29 5 28 38 6 60, 64 17 50 9 14 Cover 2 35 49 30 19 38 58 37

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.

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

Advertising Sales Jonathan Chalon, Publisher, jchalon@sbpub.com; Emily Guill, eguill@sbpub.com; Mark Connolly, mconnolly@sbpub.com; Heather Disabato, hdisabato@sbpub.com; Steven Barnes, sales@railjournal. co.uk; Louise Cooper, lc@railjournal.co.uk; Julie Richardson, jr@railjournal.co.uk; Dr. Fabio Potesta, info@mediapointsrl.it; Katsuhiro Ishii, amkatsu@dream.com; Jeanine Acquart, jaquart@sbpub.com www.rtands.com

Railway Track & Structures

September 2014 61

Professional Directory

Products and services

REESE WHAT CAN WE DO FOR YOU? • Track construction and maintenance • On-track ditching and rotary dump service • On-track tree trimming and brushcutting • Storm and flood cleanup and debris removal • Tie distribution and removal

K. W. Reese, Inc.

Box 298 • Mercersburg, PA 17236

(717) 328-5211 • fax (717) 328-9541 • www.kwreese.com

#9 115RE & 136RE AREMA Turnouts available for immediate delivery.

2 Santa Fe Drive – Denver Colorado 80223 – 720-355-0664 www.Specialtrackwork.com

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Get the inside scoop on and off the track

MARKETPLACE SALES Contact: Jeanine Acquart Ph: 212/620-7211 Fax: 212/633-1165 Email: jacquart@sbpub.com

Rail Brief: The Weekly RT&S E-mail Newsletter Subscribe at: www.rtands.com/RailBrief 54 Railway Track & Structures

September 2014

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Railway Track & Structures

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