Railway Track & Structures 12/07

widely-accepted engineering principles and procedures. FRA recognizes the potential impact of regulations related to the structural integrity of railroad bridges. This Safety Advisory is intended to guide railroads to adopt and abide by effective bridge management practices, which reduce the chance of bridge failures and, therefore, allow the FRA to continue employing a non-regulatory approach to railroad bridge safety. FRA encourages all railroads to carefully review the Safety Advisory, which interested parties can view on the Internet at http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/safety/advisories/sa_2007_03.pdf. FRA’s Bridge Safety Policy can be found in Appendix C of the Track Safety Standards, CRF 49, Part 213. (Editor’s Note: FRA drafted this article to help railroads understand the recent safety advisory on bridges. RT&S is publishing it to help FRA disseminate the information and as a service to our readers.) financing firms or another railway. Also, CPR signed an agreement with the Aboriginal Cogeneration Corporation that offers a new Canadian solution to CPR’s need for disposal of scrap railway crossties. Through this new program, scrap ties will be converted to useable energy through a process called gasification. In turn, this creates a combustible gas that is used to operate an electrical generator that feeds electrical power into existing power trans- mission grids. Compared to conventional burning methods, the plant is designed to gasify any biomass waste products and, through the process, create useable energy, while, at the same time, reducing greenhouse gas emissions. By spring 2008, ACC will be operating its first gasification plant, located in Ashcroft, B.C. This location will further decrease the railway's carbon footprint by reducing transportation time to dispose of scrap ties. CPR “disappointed” by STB decision on DM&E merger Canadian Pacific Railway CEO Fred Green said he was disappointed by the Surface Transportation Board’s decision to stall the company’s $1.5-billion (U.S.) takeover of Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern, the largest regional railway in the U.S., but he defended the purchase and touted growth prospects for coal shipments. CPR now expects the U.S. Surface Transportation Board to conduct an indepth review and issue a ruling by October 2008, a five-month delay from a proposed May decision that CPR had been pushing for, Green said. The STB ruled that CPR's DM&E takeover plans are "significant," rejecting the railway's argument that it was a “minor” transaction. Green stressed that CPR hasn't made any decision yet on expanding into the Powder River Basin coal project in Wyoming, but said the railway will carefully evaluate what looks to be "a great growth opportunity," at least at first glance. CPR still needs to negotiate rights-of-way, access to coal mines and competitive freight contracts. However, Green said CPR is well positioned to find innovative ways to bring Wyoming coal shipments to fruition, perhaps through partnerships with utilities, construction companies, www.rtands.com Railway Track & Structures December 2007 9 http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/safety/advisories/sa_2007_03.pdf http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/safety/advisories/sa_2007_03.pdf http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/safety/advisories/sa_2007_03.pdf http://www.rtands.com

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Railway Track & Structures - December 2007 Contents On Track Industry Today Supplier News AREMA News NRC News TTCI R&D Hand-Held Tools Provide the Power to Get Big Jobs Done AREMA C&S Update Striving to Solve the Riddle of Wheel Climb RTA Stages Warm Gathering in Sunny Florida in October Products and Literature People Calendar Website Directory Advertisers Index Sales Representatives Professional Directory Classified Advertising Chicago Perspective

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