Administrator
Posted 28 February 2021 - 06:20 PM
Excerpt:
Electric Trainset #1 to Pueblo
Electric trainset #1 is on its way to the Transportation Technology Center, a railroad testing and training facility in Pueblo, Colo. There it will be tested at and above the top speeds allowed on our corridor and undergo tests simulating operating conditions. Stay tuned for more updates from the Pueblo test track!
See more images of the high-performance electric trains at CalMod.org/gallery.
Administrator
Posted 28 February 2021 - 06:23 PM
Railway Age, 2/25/21
Caltrain EMU Under Way to TTCI
All photos courtesy of Caltrain.
Caltrain’s Stadler-built EMU (electric multiple-unit) No. 1 on Feb. 25 was reported as on its way to Transportation Technology Center, Inc. in Pueblo, Colo.
At TTCI, trainset No. 1 will undergo a comprehensive set of instrumented operational tests, . . .
Continue here with additional photos.
Board Leader
Posted 04 June 2021 - 04:26 PM
Railway Age, 6/4/21:
Caltrain: Electrification Delayed to ’24, Costs Rise 14%
Caltrain’s launch of electrified service will be delayed two years, until late 2024, due to “complications in the installation of signal systems, unforeseen conditions under Caltrain’s tracks, and the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which severely disrupted supply chains necessary to the project.”
Kevin Korell
OTOL Board Leader
Lakewood, NJ
Administrator
Posted 01 December 2021 - 02:44 PM
Railway Age, 12/1/21
USDOT Officials Ride New Caltrain EMU
Representatives from the U.S. Department of Transportation recently had a test ride of Caltrain’s Stadler-built KISS EMU (electric multiple-unit), which is now in the final stages of testing at Transportation Technology Center, Inc. in Pueblo, Colo.
SNIP
Trainset No. 1 arrived at TTCI earlier this year to undergo a comprehensive set of instrumented operational tests, at velocities exceeding maximum operating speed, on the AC-catenary-electrified RTT (Railroad Test Track), which is capable of supporting speeds up to 170 mph.
Stadler is building 19 seven-car trainsets for the Caltrain project. Assembly is taking place at its Salt Lake City, Utah, manufacturing plant.
Administrator
Posted 08 December 2021 - 08:27 AM
Caltrain news release
Cost of Caltrain Electrification Increases, Project on Track for 2024December 6, 2021
Caltrain has announced that the Electrification Project cost has increased to $2.44 billion. This will require an additional $462 million over the initial estimate for the project, $129 million over the estimate made by the Federal Transit Administration earlier this year. The project is still expected to be completed by 2024.
The cost increase is a result of negotiations and settlement with Balfour Beatty (BBII), the contractor tasked with the construction of the project and an overall detailed project budget update. The settlement resolves commercial issues and additional costs arising from the extension of the project to 2024. It also establishes a shared risk pool to manage future potential issues and provide new incentives for early completion of certain milestones, such as revenue service.
The detailed overall project budget update reflects COVID-19 related delays, utilities and real estate work among other items. Both the settlement and budget update were reviewed by outside experts with the goal of setting up the project to achieve cost and project schedule certainty.
Caltrain is working with its funding partners, as well as its federal and state legislative delegations to fill the funding gap. To date, Caltrain has received an additional $52.4M from the federal government; has access to $150M financing credit and $60M in Measure RR capital reserve towards the funding gap. Both the recently passed Federal Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act and upcoming State Transportation budget could be additional sources of funding.
Significant progress has been made on the project that began construction in 2017 and continued throughout the pandemic. The civil work is nearly complete, which will remove a large project risk. Over 3,000 foundations are needed for the project and many unforeseen site conditions were discovered when the foundations were drilled into the 150-year-old right of way.
Currently, 95% of the foundations are installed with only 59 remaining. While the traction power facilities approach their completion dates, with all ten to be completed early in 2022, the entire overhead catenary system should be installed by summer 2022. The next phase of project construction will be on signal and system integration work. An electric locomotive will be testing the new catenary system in 2022 and the first cars of the new electric fleet will arrive in spring 2022.
The electrification of the Caltrain system will deliver major benefits to the communities that it serves. Electrification will reduce Caltrain’s greenhouse gas emissions and eliminate the particulate matter caused by the aging diesel engines. Electrified service will lay the foundation to meet the goal of tripling capacity by 2040, the equivalent of carrying 5.5 lanes to U.S. Highway 101. Service will become both more frequent and more comfortable, as state-of-the-art electric trains replace Caltrain’s current aging fleet. The project has also created thousands of jobs locally and throughout the country, both to electrify the corridor and to assemble the new trains, which include components from across the country. Finally, the infrastructure that is being installed will be compatible with future high-speed rail on the corridor.
“This is an inflection point in the project. The civil work is nearly complete and Caltrain and its partners will be focused on completing the signal, system integration and testing. The Bay Area deserves a modern rail service and that is what we intend to deliver,” said Caltrain Acting Executive Director Michelle Bouchard. “With this agreement in place, that includes a mix of incentives and rewards for meeting the 2024 date, we are better positioned to complete this critical project.”
“The electrification of Caltrain is of great importance not only to the region, but also the state and country. The project will help address climate change by replacing our aging diesel fleet with high-performance electric trains and creates jobs from California to Utah to Pennsylvania,” said Caltrain Board Chair Dev Davis. “While it hasn’t gone as smoothly as we had hoped, we are confident that we are on track towards electrified service in 2024 that will transform how people commute throughout the Bay Area.”
“The execution of this agreement is a testament of Balfour Beatty’s committed partnership with Caltrain and our promise in providing a realistic, cost-effective, quality and timely solution that we can all mutually deliver upon,” said Leon Blondin, Chief Executive Officer of Balfour Beatty US. “We will continue to work safely and sustainably to electrify and upgrade the service, capacity and reliability of the transit system on behalf of commuters in San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.”
###
Administrator
Posted 08 December 2021 - 09:48 AM
Progressive Railroading, 12/7/21
Caltrain electrification project costs increase to $2.4 billion
Caltrain yesterday announced its electrification project will require an additional $462 million over the initial estimate, bringing the total cost to $2.44 billion.
The cost increase is a result of negotiations and settlement with contractor Balfour Beatty, which resolved commercial issues and additional costs related to the extended 2024 completion deadline, Caltrain officials said in a press release.
The settlement also established a shared risk pool to manage future potential problems and provide incentives for early completion of certain milestones, such as revenue service.
Board Leader
Posted 11 December 2021 - 09:43 AM
Metro Magazine, 12/7/21:
Cost of Caltrain Electrification Increases, Project on Track for 2024
Caltrain has announced that the Electrification Project cost has increased to $2.44 billion. The cost will require an additional $462 million over the initial estimate for the project, $129 million over the estimate made by the Federal Transit Administration earlier this year.
Kevin Korell
OTOL Board Leader
Lakewood, NJ
Administrator
Posted 24 January 2022 - 03:01 PM
Progressive Railroading, January 2022
Caltrain faces sticker shock to electrify lines
Caltrain last month announced its electrification project will cost an additional $462 million over the initial estimate, bringing the total price tag to $2.44 billion.
The electric line will run 52 miles from San Francisco’s 4th and King Station to San Jose’s Tamien Station on dual-alignment track.
The cost increase is a result of negotiations and a $347 million contract amendment with contractor Balfour Beatty US that resolved commercial issues and additional costs related to the extended 2024 completion deadline, Caltrain officials said in a press release. The contract was approved Dec. 6, 2021.
The settlement also established a shared risk pool to manage future potential problems and provide incentives for early completion of certain milestones, such as revenue service. The project began in 2017 and is on track to be completed in September 2024.
Administrator
Posted 01 February 2022 - 01:54 PM
Progressive Railroading, 2/1/22
Final foundation set for Caltrain electrification project
Balfour Beatty has laid 3,092 foundations for the project, the last of which was at the San Francisco station at 4th and King streets. Photo – Caltrain/Balfour BeattyCaltrain and contractor Balfour Beatty last week marked the laying of the final foundation for the Caltrain electrification project, which will electrify the commuter-rail corridor between San Francisco and San Jose, California.
Balfour Beatty has laid 3,092 foundations for the project, the last of which was at the San Francisco station at 4th and King streets, the northernmost station on the corridor. The milestone marks the end of a “highly complex” phase of the project’s construction due to unknown underground conditions related to the corridor’s 150-year-old right-of-way, Caltrain and Balfour Beatty officials said in a joint press release. Utilities were rerouted to pave an easier path for future groundwork.
Administrator
Posted 16 February 2022 - 03:33 PM
Progressive Railroading, February 2022
Caltrain’s Bouchard emphasizes electrification, recast service
Despite only being at the helm of Caltrain since October 2021, Acting Executive Director Michelle Bouchard has jumped right into leading the charge to electrify the Peninsula Corridor running through southern California’s San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.
While the project has been codified since the 1990s in the interest of better performance and environmental sustainability, the electrification effort has taken big steps in recent months since Bouchard assumed the new role. Bouchard was previously Caltrain’s chief officer of rail.
The construction period was extended for another two years to 2024 while project costs jumped to $2.44 billion from $1.98 billion. More time and more money were needed to guarantee the project would be completed in time, Bouchard says.
0 members, 0 guests, 0 anonymous users
