CALIFORNIA’s San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission (SJRRC) has awarded Siemens a contract to supply four Siemens SC-44 Charger locomotives for Altamont Corridor Express (ACE) commuter services.

NORTH Carolina’s Research Triangle Regional Public Transportation Authority (GoTriangle) has chosen a joint venture of Gannett Fleming and WSP as construction management consultant for the Durham-Orange LRT project.

THE board of bus and rail operator First Group has unanimously rejected a cash offer from US equity firm Apollo Management to buy the company, saying the offer “fundamentally undervalues the company and is opportunistic in nature.”

THE United States Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has awarded California’s Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit (Smart) a $US 22.5m grant to help fund the extension of its Santa Rosa - San Rafael commuter rail line to Larkspur ferry terminal.

TRAMS have returned to the streets of El Paso, Texas, after an a 44-year absence with the start of dynamic testing on the $US 97m El Paso Streetcar line.

CALIFORNIA’s Orange County Transportation Authority (Octa) has selected Siemens as preferred bidder for a contract to supply eight S70 low-floor LRVs for the OC Streetcar project, construction of which is expected to begin later this year.

MARYLAND Transit Administration (MTA) has agreed a five-year extension of its operations and maintenance services contract with Bombardier for the Maryland Area Regional Commuter (Marc) network’s Brunswick and Camden lines.

THE first of five Liberty LRVs for Milwaukee’s The Hop Streetcar arrived in the city on March 26 after completing its road journey from Brookville Equipment Corporation’s plant in Pennsylvania.

Florida East Coast Railway has become the first North American railway to adopt liquefied natural gas (LNG) as the fuel for its entire mainline locomotive fleet. William Vantuono outlines the reasons for the switch.

CHARLOTTE Area Transit System (Cats) opened an extension to its 15km Lynx Blue Line light rail line on March 16.