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May 2018

CONGRESSMEN CALL ON FEDS TO SUSPEND BRIGHTLINE BONDS

FIVE CONGRESSMEN CALLED ON FEDERAL TRANSPORTATION OFFICIALS TO SUSPEND THE $1.15 BILLION IN PRIVATE ACTIVITY BONDS FOR ALL ABOARD FLORIDA'S BRIGHTLINE PASSENGER RAIL, saying there are still a number of "yet-to-be answered questions" concerning Brightline's use of the bonds. These five include four Florida lawmakers and Rep. Mark Meadows, the chairman of the U.S. House of Representative's Subcommittee on Government Operations.

CONGRESSMAN MEADOWS ON AAF FEDERAL FUNDING: 'WE CANNOT SUPPORT ... BLANK-CHECK AUTHORITY'

CHAIRMAN OF THE HOUSE OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM SUBCOMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS MARK MEADOWS ASKED U.S. TRANSPORTATION SEC. ELAINE CHAO TO SUSPEND THE ALLOCATION OF ALL ABOARD FLORIDA'S PRIVATE ACTIVITY BONDS. This request was made in a letter that Meadows sent on May 16. This was following his subcommittee's April 19 hearing where he went in "with an open mind, but came away from it deeply troubled about (USDOT's) position."

LETTER SENT TO USDOT SEC CHAO FROM CONGRESSMAN MEADOWS WITH DESANTIS, GAETZ, MAST, AND POSEY

CONGRESSMEN MARK MEADOWS WITH RON DESANTIS, MATT GAETZ, BRIAN MAST, AND BILL POSEY SENT A LETTER TO U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY ELAINE CHAO. This letter follows the recent Operations Subcommittee hearing three weeks ago, which raised great concerns about the DOT's "interpretation" of Private Activity Bond allocation and the PABs that were allocated to All Aboard Florida's Brightline passenger rail.

CSX FREIGHT TRAIN DERAILS CAUSING 31 TRAIN CARS TO COME OFF TRACKS IN ALEXANDRIA

A CSX FREIGHT TRAIN DERAILED IN ALEXANDRIA SATURDAY MORNING, CAUSING 31 TRAIN CARS TO COME OFF THE TRACKS, lead investigating agency NTSB said.

The NTSB's initial findings suggest the train derailed in the Eisenhower corridor before striking a bridge. Luckily, no injuries were reported and the 31 cars that derailed did not contain hazardous materials.

Read more here.

Original Article was written by Kendra Mann of ABC7.

DISCARDED RAILROAD TIES IN SOUTH FLORIDA | WPBF 25 INVESTIGATES

PEOPLE IN PALM BEACH AND MARTIN COUNTY ARE OUTRAGED OVER PILES OF DISCARDED RAILROAD TRASH LITTERED ACROSS THEIR COMMUNITIES. This trash consists of old concrete railroad ties that were replaced in April of 2017.

Residents have sent messages to the Florida East Coast Railway executives, the Federal Railroad Administration. When they emailed the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC), they received a reply that the "old concrete and wooden ties will lie on our property until a contractor removes them."

CALIFORNIA'S MONEY-PIT OF A BULLET TRAIN PROJECT ISN'T HELPING BRIGHTLINE PROCEED IN FLORIDA

CONGRESSMEN AND FLORIDA LEGISLATORS SHOULD KEEP THEIR EYES ON THE CALIFORNIA'S DEEPLY TROUBLED HIGH-SPEED RAIL PROJECT. The U.S. government has initiated an audit of California's bullet train, which is behind schedule and way over budget.

This audit will be executed by Inspect General of the U.S. Department of Transportation Calvin L. Scovel, who examine the Federal Railroad Administration's oversight of nearly $3.5 billion in federal grant money that was awarded to California's high-speed rail project.

BRIGHTLINE AT RISK OF MISSING SAFETY DEADLINE, FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION SAYS

BRIGHTLINE AND FLORIDA EAST COAST ARE "AT RISK" OF NOT MEETING DEADLINES FOR INSTALLING SAFETY UPGRADES, the Federal Railroad Administration says. The safety upgrades, known as Positive Train Control (PTC), were planned to be implemented by the time Brightline began service in early 2018. The last report (which was the last quarter of 2017) indicated that only a fraction of the systems were installed.

FEC DEATH TOLL SHOULD TRIGGER RAIL SAFETY MEASURES | OPINION ARTICLE

SURELY OUR FLORIDA POLITICIANS WILL BE MORE CONCERNED ABOUT OUR SAFETY THAN THE OWNER OF THE FEC FREIGHT COMPANY, says Nicholas Schaus of Vero Beach. Schaus comments on the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) lack of transparency regarding the number of train collision fatalities have been reported since 2015 and applauds to Florida legislators Mayfield, Grall, and Magar for trying to pass their safety bills. 

BRIGHTLINE'S PRIVATE-ACTIVITY BONDS IN PERIL, BUT PHASE 2 CONSTRUCTION NEARING

BRIGHTLINE HAS UNTIL MAY 31 TO SELL THE $1.15 BILLION OF PRIVATE-ACTIVITY BONDS FOR PHASE 2 OF ITS PASSENGER RAILROAD BUT THERE IS NO EVIDENCE OF A SALE IN SIGHT. This deadline was set by the U.S. Department of Transporation when it approved the bonds December 22.

FREIGHT TRAIN DERAILS IN BULLITT COUNTY, SETTING AT LEAST 4 CAR CARRIERS ON FIRE

CLEANUP CONTINUES WEDNESDAY AFTER A CSX FREIGHT TRAIN DERAILED TUESDAY AFTERNOON IN BULLITT COUNTY. A spokesperson for Emergency Management stated 18 cars derailed, including two locomotives. Officials believe four to six car carriers were on fire. CSX officials said the train was head to Florida and was carrying vehicles.

Fortunately, no one was injured. The cause as to why the train derailed is still under investigation.

BRIGHTLINE WILL PLACE UNDUE HARDSHIP ON TREASURE COAST | GUEST COLUMN

THE MARTIN COUNTY REALTORS OF THE TREASURE COAST APPLAUDS THE RECENT LEGAL ACTIONS BY MARTIN COUNTY, says Martin County REALTORS president H.B. Warren. Since the earliest stages of All Aboard Florida's plans to provide passenger rail, the Martin County Realtors organization has carefully examined the project's implications to property values and select infrastructure and expressed their concerns regarding safety, delays, diminishing waterfront home values and negatively impacting Martin County's ad valorem budget.

BRIGHTLINE WILL PAY FOR SOME CROSSING MAINTENANCE - BUT NOT ON THE TREASURE COAST

BRIGHTLINE WILL PAY FOR SOME CROSSING MAINTENANCE BUT NOT ON THE TREASURE COAST. In an attempt to strong-arm local governments, Brightline stated it will pay for pricey crossing maintenance for some communities that have not opposed its project - this could cost Martin and Indian River counties up to $20 million by 2030, according to court documents.

FLORIDA MAN STRUCK, KILLED BY TRAIN WHILE WEARING EARPHONES

VALRICO, FL - DUSTIN R. PIERCE WAS STUCK AND KILLED SATURDAY BY A CSX TRAIN. Pierce crossed the tracks and did not see the crossing arms because he was using his cellphone with earphones, the Florida Highway Patrol said. The highway was closed for two hours, WTSP reported.

Read more here.