Prototype News

Through its Responder Incident Training (RIT) program, CSX in 2025 completed 75 training sessions and equipped 5,645 first responders with the skills and knowledge needed to handle railroad-related emergencies, the Class I railroad recently reported, sharing a specially produced video (see above).

The RIT program “provides first responders, emergency managers, and public safety officials with hands-on experience and critical insights into rail incident response,” according to CSX. Training is said to focus on rail equipment familiarization, hazardous materials awareness, and coordinated emergency response, which fosters “stronger preparedness and collaboration at the local level.”

The railroad in 2025 it introduced a training locomotive, described as “a dedicated asset that provides first responders with realistic, hands-on learning opportunities.” The unit is said to help users better understand “locomotive systems and the challenges of incident response.”

“Safety is at the core of everything we do at CSX,” CSX Director of Hazardous Materials Joe Taylor said. “Through the RIT program, we’re proud to share our expertise and work alongside first responders to ensure they are well-prepared to protect their communities, our employees, and our network in the event of a rail emergency.”

In a related development, CSX TRANSFLO and the Beauharnois Fire Department recently held an emergency response drill in Quebec (see social media post below).

CSX TRANSFLO & the Beauharnois Fire Department teamed up for an emergency response drill in #Quebec. The exercise focused on enhancing #safety procedures & collaboration with local #FirstResponders, underscoring our commitment to protecting our employees, customers, &… pic.twitter.com/0oomK1YIQ4

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“Despite a year of unusual market dynamics,” BNSF’s agriculture business—from field crops to fertilizer to renewable fuels—wrapped up 2025 “with some notable achievements,” the railroad recently reported in the Rail Talk section of its website.

Corn volumes reached an “all-time annual record” and were the most since 2018, according to BNSF. “All-time annual volume records” were also broken for oil seeds/meals and ethanol.

However, “[n]o one could have predicted the trade situation that unfolded in 2025, especially with soybeans,” noted the railroad, which transports them annually from the heart of America to Pacific Northwest (PNW) export facilities. “For five consecutive months, no soybeans were exported from the U.S. to China, the world’s largest market. That hasn’t happened in at least three decades.”

While 2025 “was another great year for soybean production,” BNSF Assistant Vice President of Ag Products Marketing Matt White said, “without demand for soybean exports out of the PNW, the market needed to pivot on where soybeans needed to be shipped.”

Soybean export demand moved to the Gulf, according to the railroad, which shifted “a significant number” of shuttle trains south to the Gulf ports in September and October.

“Shout out to our operations team for handling these additional trains,” said Angela Caddell, BNSF Group Vice President of the Agricultural and Energy Business Unit. “This is way beyond what they would typically move, but they stepped up and handled the challenge extremely well.”

According to BNSF, PNW export demand resumed in late fall, and the railroad posted the highest number of PNW export deliveries in November and December since 2020.

BNSF also reported that more than a dozen new facilities opened along its lines in 2025. Among them:

• In Hager City, Wis., “[a] former rail-loading frac sand site was transformed into a rail-loading grain terminal, offering producers year-round access to our extensive network,” the railroad reported. “Operations began last spring, enabling ALCIVIA, a member-owned agricultural and energy co-op, to move grain even during winter months when other terminals are closed.”
• “In July, Central Valley Ag opened a new facility [in Courtland, Kans.] that includes a 3.5-million-gallon fertilizer plant and a grain shuttle with direct access to our rail network,” BNSF said.
• USD Clean Fuels in San Bernardino, Calif., in January 2025 opened a facility that handles renewable diesel, biodiesel and E85.

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CPKC recently reported via social media that it is actively testing B20 biofuels in its locomotive operations. Ten AC4400s, powered in part by “plant-based fuel,” are running in the coal loop near Golden, B.C., it said.

“Since launching our pilot in 2023, these locomotives have completed over 2,750 fueling events and have used more than 25.5 million liters of B20,” according to CPKC.

The railroad, in early 2025, published a climate mileposts report (download below) that highlighted the British Columbia pilot, saying that it had successfully conducted “more than 1,100 fueling events” in 2024. “This initiative,” it said, “in cooperation with the broader rail industry, aims to validate the operational impacts of using advanced renewable biofuel blends.”

The report also noted that CPKC is “[m]aking significant strides with our pioneering Hydrogen Locomotive Program, which has swiftly progressed from initial movement trials to recording more than 6,000 miles in freight service testing by the end of 2024”; and is “[d]oubling the size of our hydrogen test fleet in early 2025 to include three additional locomotives and an added tender car; then adding further to this test fleet with four more locomotives planned for later in 2025.” (For more on the hydrogen program, read: CPKC Hydrogen Locomotive Program Creating Innovative GHG-Reduction Solutions.)

In January 2026, CPKC announced that having completed the purchase of 100 Wabtec Evolution Series ET44AC Tier 4 locomotives, it expects to take delivery of an additional 70 this year. The Class I also said it expects to take delivery in second-half 2026 of 30 new Progress Rail EMD® SD70ACe-T4 Tier 4 locomotives; they are part of an order for 65.

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The post Class I Briefs: CSX, BNSF, CPKC appeared first on Railway Age.

Marcus “Marc” J. Molinaro, confirmed last summer as the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) 16th Administrator, is stepping down Feb. 20.

He reported his decision on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter:

After a record-breaking year working with @realDonaldTrump & @SecDuffy, my last day with the administration will be Friday, February 20th. I’m coming home to be closer to my family and get back into the fight. New York is being run into the ground. Stay tuned!

Molinaro, who previously served as U.S. Representative for New York’s 19th congressional district (2023-25), was nominated by POTUS 47 in February 2025 for the top FTA job. The U.S. Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee advanced his nomination in April for full Senate consideration. Molinaro succeeded Nuria Fernandez, who retired Feb. 24, 2024.

A member of the Republican Party, Molinaro was first elected to public office at the age of 18 in 1994, serving on the Village of Tivoli, N.Y., Board of Trustees. In 1995, he became the youngest mayor in the United States. He was re-elected as Tivoli Mayor five times. Simultaneously, he served four terms in the Dutchess County Legislature. From 2006 to 2011, Molinaro represented the 103rd District in the New York State Assembly, where he served as Assistant Minority Leader Pro Tempore. In 2011, he was elected Dutchess County Executive, a position he held for three terms. In 2023, he stepped down from this role following his election to Congress. Molinaro is a graduate of Dutchess Community College.

Now, after less than a year, he will leave the POTUS 47 Administration “to run for a backbench seat among the Republican minority in the New York State Assembly, according to four people directly familiar with his plans,” The New York Times reported Feb. 13. “The potential move from a position that oversees a staff of more than 600 to an office with about six aides is highly unusual in the world of politics, where ambition typically leads in only one direction, up.

“Prominent leaders on the right in New York said on Friday [Feb. 13] that they were baffled by the decision, which was first reported by Politico, particularly given the fact that Mr. Molinaro, 50, had graduated from the Assembly to higher office 15 years ago.”

According to the Times, Molinaro “did not directly comment on his political future, but late Friday [Feb. 13] he posted on X to say he would leave the [POTUS 47] administration next week to ‘get back into the fight.’”

The newspaper said that “[p]eople familiar with Mr. Molinaro’s thinking said that his reasons for leaving the [POTUS 47] administration were mostly personal. After a lifetime in elected office, he missed having his own constituency. They also said the commute from his home in the Hudson Valley to Washington had been difficult for his family. … They stressed that Mr. Molinaro, who had been a relative moderate during his one term in Congress, was not leaving because of disagreements with [POTUS 47] or his administration.”

The Times noted that the “people in question were not authorized to speak publicly about Mr. Molinaro’s plans because he remained a federal employee, subject to Hatch Act restrictions on partisan political activity.”

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The Huckleberry Railroad in Michigan is the recipient of a $1.3 million grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation that will cover the restoration of a Denver & Rio Grande Western narrow gauge 2-8-2 locomotive that last ran in 2019. 

Rio Grande 464 is a K-27 type locomotive built by Baldwin in 1903. It is one of only two K-27 locomotives in existence, the other being 463 at the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic. The engine was retired in the 1960s and sold to Knott’s Berry Farm in California. Unfortunately, the engine was too large for the park railroad, and it was sold to the Huckleberry Railroad. The railroad is owned and operated by the local parks department. Huckleberry presently has another steam engine in service, 4-6-0 152. The restoration of that locomotive was also supported by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. 

—Justin Franz 

The post Rio Grande 2-8-2 to be Rebuilt in Michigan appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.

Construction is now under way along the entire Ontario Line, which when complete will be a 9.7-mile (15.6-kilometer), 15-station stand-alone subway, the Ontario government reported Feb. 18. Ground has been officially broken for the 1.8 miles (3 kilometers) of elevated guideway and four stations (Don Valley, Flemingdon Park, Thorncliffe Park, and Cosburn) in Toronto’s east end (see map, top). This section will carry Ontario Line trains up to 15 yards (14 meters) above street level, starting at the west end of Overlea Boulevard in Thorncliffe Park and running north to Don Valley Station at Don Mills Road and Eglinton Avenue East. The Cosburn Station will connect riders across the city to Toronto’s Pape Village neighborhood for the first time.

The Ontario Line is being delivered through several procurement contracts:

1. Rolling Stock, Systems, Operations and Maintenance (RSSOM)
2. Southern Civil, Stations and Tunnel
3. Pape Tunnel and Underground Stations
4. Elevated Guideway and Stations

Ground was broken in October 2024 on two bridges over the Don Valley and in July 2024 on the Pape Station. (For more project details, download report below.)

The Ontario Line will offer connections to more than 40 other transit services, such as TTC’s Line 1 and Line 2, three GO Transit rail lines, and the Eglinton Crosstown LRT. It will support almost 390,000 daily boardings and reduce travel times from Thorncliffe Park to downtown Toronto from 40 minutes today to 25 minutes, according to the government, and during peak periods like the morning rush hour, it will reduce crowding by up to 15% on the busiest stretch of TTC’s Line 1 between Bloor-Yonge and Wellesley.

“Advancing construction of the Ontario Line’s elevated guideway and four new stations means we are another step closer to enhancing connection and productivity in our nation’s largest city,” said Julie Dabrusin, Minister of the Environment, Climate Change and Nature and Member of Parliament for Toronto-Danforth, on behalf of Gregor Robertson, Minister of Housing and Infrastructure and Minister responsible for Pacific Economic Development Canada.

“With partners selected to deliver on all the project’s contracts and work under way across all parts of the Ontario Line, we are making significant progress in bringing more transit options to commuters,” Metrolinx President and CEO Phil Verster said. “From end to end, the Ontario Line will cut transit journey times by more than half, going from 70 minutes to less than 30 minutes.”

“The Honolulu City Council voted Wednesday [Feb. 18] to move forward with studies examining potential future expansions of the city’s rail system, including a route that could eventually reach the University of Hawaii at Manoa,” Hawaii News Now reported. “Council members approved Bill 60 on an 8–1 vote, directing the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation to begin preliminary engineering and feasibility work on possible extensions of Skyline.”

According to the media outlet, the studies will explore stops west of the current alignment (see map below) and a “branch from Kakaako to UH Manoa, as well as other destinations including Waikiki.” It noted that neither construction funding nor a timeline was approved.

HART told Nexstar Media Group’s KHON 2 that “as part of the planning process, private partnerships to help build future extensions will likely be explored.”

Skyline’s first segment opened in June 2023. It included nine stations and 10.75 miles of guideway. Segment 2 opened in October 2025. Segment 3 is expected to wrap up in 2030.

The Foothill Gold Line Construction Authority (Construction Authority) on Feb. 18 released a report prepared by Kleinhenz Economics, detailing the economic benefits that are expected to result from the upcoming construction and operation of the 2.3-mile Claremont extension of the Metro A Line. (See report above; see map with extension between Pomona and Claremont below). The report quantifies the economic impact within Los Angeles County from the initial capital investment to build the light rail extension, including jobs created, economic output, labor income, and tax revenues at the county, state, and federal levels, as well as the ongoing economic benefits to the county once revenue service begins.

“As highlighted in the report, during the seven-year design and construction phase alone (2026 to 2032), the project will generate more than $1.13 billion in economic output, support more than 4,700 jobs and produce more than $481 million in labor income,” the Construction Authority said. “Workers will see an average annual income of $101,000. Furthermore, construction activity is estimated to generate more than $154 million in tax revenues, including more than $20 million in revenues for Los Angeles County. In short, for every $1 million spent during the next seven years of final design and construction, the project will generate $1.6 million in total economic output for the region.”

Once revenue service begins, the ongoing operations will continue to generate return on investment for the county, according to the Construction Authority. “The report found that for every $1 million spent operating the extension, the project will generate $7.6 million in total economic output for Los Angeles County, driven by effects across the supply chain and from household spending,” it said.

“Under an 8-minute headway scenario during the first three years of operations (2032 to 2034) alone, the project is estimated to generate nearly $460 million in economic output, support nearly 1,200 annual jobs and produce more than $490 million in labor income,” the Construction Authority continued. “The average annual wage for supported jobs is estimated at $137,000, which, like the average annual wage during construction, is significantly higher than the county’s median earnings. More than $123 million in total tax revenues will be generated in the first three years of operations, with Los Angeles County receiving approximately $22 million of that total. A 5-minute headway scenario studied in the report saw an even greater return on investment across the same measurements.”

Construction Authority CEO Habib F. Balian commented: “The study confirms what we have always seen throughout the various extensions of the Metro A Line from Los Angeles through the San Gabriel Valley—that the return on investment from the project is significant. The long-term economic effect of the Claremont Extension will go far beyond what is included in this report; it will change where families decide to set down roots, where businesses locate and invest and how and where jobs are created.”

The Construction Authority noted that the report does not capture Metro A Line riders spending around the stations, the project serving as a catalyst for transit-oriented development near the rail line, the economic activity generated by residents and businesses at these new developments, and the environmental and public health benefits from reduced traffic congestion and vehicle emissions.

Separately, Parsons Transportation Group last month landed a design and engineering services contract for the Claremont Extension.

Service on the Metro A Line’s Glendora-to-Pomona extension began last fall.

In January 2026, SEPTA’s system-wide ridership—including regional rail, buses, trolleys, subways and high-speed line—was up 1% or 8,627 unlinked trips from January 2025, the transit agency reported Feb. 18. 

Average daily ridership was 714,475 unlinked passenger trips across all modes, it said. This was up 3% from December 2025, which saw average daily ridership of 693,261 unlinked passenger trips across all modes; November and October saw 756,672 and 779,701 unlinked passenger trips across all modes, respectively.

According to SEPTA, January’s ridership gains were driven by bus. Bus ridership increased by 4% or 13,378 unlinked trips per weekday compared to this time last year, it noted. Saturday and Sunday ridership declined in January due to winter weather including accumulating snowfall during the weekend of Jan. 17-18 and Jan. 24-25.

Metro ridership declined by approximately 1% or 2,010 trips per day relative to this time last year, according to SEPTA. This is primarily driven by a decline in trolley ridership because of service interruptions on both the T and D. Trolley ridership is down 16% or 8,825 trips per weekday relative to this time last year, it noted, but ridership on the B and L is up by 4% or 6,815 average weekday trips.

Regional Rail ridership declined by 4% or 2,840 trips per day relative to this time last year due to the Silverliner IV car shortage, the winter storm, and extreme cold temperatures, according to SEPTA.

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The post Transit Briefs: Metrolinx, HART, LACMTA, SEPTA appeared first on Railway Age.

The new 125,000-square-foot headquarters, which spans across 5.5 floors and will be the base for 1,100 Hitachi Rail employees and 100 paid interns, hosts the company’s Global Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC) Competence Center, which, Hitachi Rail says, “provides the engineering and technical expertise around the world.” This new announcement builds on a C$100 million commitment to develop SelTrac G9, “the next generation of cutting-edge rail signaling technology” from this new office.

According to Hitachi Rail, the new CBTC technology will integrate AI and 5G “to deliver smarter, more efficient, and more sustainable subway systems.” For transit operators around the world, SelTrac G9, the company says, “will translate to lower operating costs, improved reliability, increased capacity and better journeys for passengers.” For example, its resignaling of four London Underground lines led to a 33% increase in peak passenger capacity.

As a LEED Silver and BOMA-certified building, the choice for the new headquarters, the company says, “reflects Hitachi Rail’s commitment to operating in environmentally friendly sites, in addition to providing sustainable rail solutions.” The company says it is also prioritizing employee well-being by offering a gym, daycare and EV charging stations.

The new office, which is located in Consilium Place in Toronto’s Scarborough district and scheduled to open officially in summer 2026, “boosts Toronto’s position as a hub for tech jobs and reinforces Canada’s status as a growing leader in rail technology,” the company noted. “The investment underlines Hitachi Rail’s long-term commitment to Ontario and its position as the only Canadian domestic signaling provider.”

“This C$30m investment reinforces our commitment to Ontario and builds on our rail technology leadership in Canada,” said Hitachi Rail Canada Chief Operating Officer Arnaud Besse. “Our new state-of-the-art office will attract the next generation of new tech talent to Hitachi Rail. It will also be the hub for the next generation signaling technology that will increase capacity, improve reliability and reduce costs for transit systems around the world.”

Hitachi Rail’s signaling business, centered in Toronto for almost 50 years, has brought billions of dollars into the Canadian economy by exporting its Seltrac CBTC systems to more than 100 metros in 40 cities globally, the company noted.

The company is also supporting the next generation of rail expertise through partnerships with post-secondary institutions. In 2025, Hitachi Rail signed an MoU with Ontario Tech University, to the development and direction of a first-of-its-kind Railway Engineering Specialization.

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