MBTA
The MBTA on April 8 reported that pre-testing for the signal modernization work on the Red Line at Columbia Junction just north of JFK/UMass station has been completed more than two weeks ahead of schedule, and regular Red Line service has resumed in this area.
“Crews completed a significant portion of the testing required prior to commissioning the new, digital signaling system, which will bring important upgrades that strengthen Red Line service reliability for riders and provide Red Line Operations the ability to route trains more quickly, turn trains around faster, and recover from unplanned disruptions more efficiently,” the transit authority said.
Columbia Junction merges the Ashmont and Braintree branches and connects the Red Line’s main passenger track to the Cabot Yard Maintenance Facility where the majority of the Red Line fleet is stored and maintained. According to MBTA, the signal system in this area was “significantly damaged following the major derailment of a Red Line train in 2019.” Initial repairs restored service at that time, it noted, but signal and switch operations were limited. “The work completed,” it said, “in addition to some final work later this spring, which could have been completed in 2019, fully corrects these issues, restoring full system functionality.” The work is also said to follow through on MBTA’s commitment to complete major signal upgrades on the Orange and Red lines prior to the World Cup matches this summer.
Testing of the new system began in mid-February, and a significant portion of testing has been completed following Red Line service changes at JFK/UMass over the past several weeks, according to MBTA. Crews, it said, have worked on testing more than 100 track circuits within the Columbia Junction area, and the remaining track circuit testing will be completed during the overnight hours when service does not operate or impact Red Line riders. Final testing and commissioning of the new signal system will take place over a series of longer weekend service suspensions in May.
“I’m very proud of the hard work of our teams to finish this long-overdue signal work at Columbia Junction, also completing this pre-testing ahead of the schedule that we put in place for ourselves,” Interim Secretary of Transportation and MBTA General Manager and CEO Phillip Eng said. “This important work means our Red Line Operations team can provide better, more reliable service to riders. We continue to push ourselves to accomplish essential work in a timely manner, striving to minimize impacts to the public. I thank the Healey-Driscoll Administration and Legislature for their support in rebuilding our workforce and their commitment to rebuilding our transportation system; our riders for their patience as we accomplish this critical work; and I congratulate our work crews for delivering these major modernization upgrades, even beating our own aggressive schedule.”
Click here for more MBTA project information.
Further Reading:
- MBTA Invites Public Comment on Proposed FY27-31CIP
- MBTA Commuter Rail Announces Summer Fare Promotions (part of Transit Briefs)
- MBTA Issues RFP for New Battery Electric, Low-Emissions Locomotives
- MBTA Debuts Third Heritage Unit (part of Transit Briefs)
Omaha Streetcar
Crews on April 8 began track installation in downtown Omaha as part of the $421 million, 3.2-mile Omaha Streetcar project connecting downtown Omaha to the University of Nebraska Medical Center (see map, below).
In March, crews began delivering the track to staging areas along the route in preparation for welding and installation. The first batch was delivered March 5 to a site downtown near 10th and Farnam streets.
“Crews were transporting and putting the first tracks in place at 3 a.m. Wednesday [April 8],” WOWT of Omaha reported. “They started near 10th and Farnam, moving the railing down to 10th and Capitol.” More track will be brought to sites along the route through mid-2027, according to the media outlet, which noted that “[b]ased on the current timeline, people are expected to start riding the streetcar in September of 2028.”
A full timeline for streetcar construction is available here.
The Omaha Streetcar Authority is overseeing the design, implementation and operation of the streetcar. It was created in April 2022 through an interlocal agreement between the Omaha City Council and the Metro Transit Board of Directors. Board members include: City of Omaha Deputy Chief of Staff for Economic Development Steve Jensen, City of Omaha Finance Director Steve Curtiss, City of Omaha Planning Director Dave Fanslau, Metro Transit CEO Lauren Cencic, Metro Finance Director William Clingman, Metro Legal Director Edith Simpson and Jay Noddle, President of the Omaha Streetcar Authority, who represents the Greater Omaha Chamber.
Further Reading:
Amtrak
“The Southern Rail Commission [SRC] is working to bring Amtrak passenger rail service to the Shreveport-Bossier area in the coming years,” KSLA of Shreveport, La., reported April 7.
According to the media outlet, Knox Ross, SRC’s Mississippi Commissioner, “said they are in the preliminary stages” for the proposed service. It is slated to “split [at Meridian, Miss.] from the existing Crescent Amtrak service, which runs from New York through Atlanta to New Orleans,” KSLA said, and according to Ross, “bring a section of the train across from central Mississippi and north Louisiana and Texas over to Fort Worth.”
“There’s a tremendous amount of work that has to be done, especially with Union Pacific to determine what that looks like, and we are in very, very preliminary stages of that,” Ross told KSLA.
The Amtrak route would offer “an additional travel option and create economic growth for the region,” according to the media outlet.
“With the tremendous amount of AI data centers going in on the I-20 corridor, especially in Louisiana and Mississippi, the amount of economic activity is beginning to show itself. We have to find out a way to get people to us and around,” Ross told KSLA.
In December 2023, the Federal Railroad Administration granted $1 million as part of the Corridor Identification and Development Program to SRC; $500,000 was dedicated for the I-20 Corridor Intercity Passenger Rail Service that would connect Dallas, Tex., to Meridian, Miss., and would serve the following cities in Texas: Fort Worth, Mineola, Longview, and Marshall; the following cities in Louisiana: Shreveport, Ruston, and Monroe; and the following cities in Mississippi: Vicksburg and Jackson. The proposed corridor would provide new service on existing alignment, including UP and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC). SRC, the corridor sponsor, was to enter Step 1 of the program to develop a scope, schedule, and cost estimate for preparing, completing, or documenting its service development plan.
Subject to the Surface Transportation Board’s approval of the Canadian Pacific (CP)-Kansas City Southern (KCS) merger, which was approved in 2023 and formed CPKC, CP in 2022 committed to support:
- The study of potential Amtrak service between Meridian and Dallas.
- The establishment of Amtrak service between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, La. (The last passenger train between the cities was KCS’s Southern Belle, which was discontinued in 1969, one year before Amtrak’s creation.)
New Orleans currently hosts three long-distance Amtrak trains: the Crescent, the City of New Orleans to and from Chicago, and the Sunset Limited to and from Los Angeles.
Further Reading:
Phoenix Valley Metro
The 5.5-mile South Central Extension/Downtown Hub light rail since opening in June 2025 has recorded more than 1.6 million rides, averaging more than 6,400 boardings per day, “improving regional mobility and expanding economic opportunity for riders across the region,” Valley Metro reported April 8.
The project extended Valley Metro’s light rail system south along Central Avenue from downtown Phoenix to Baseline Road; introduced a two-line rail system; and included a new transit hub in downtown Phoenix and eight new stations (see maps below).
The project, Valley Metro said, has recently received national and regional including:
- The 2026 WTS International Innovative Project Solutions Award and WTS Metro Phoenix Innovative Project Solutions Award “honor an outstanding transportation project that has improved quality of life for its users and the broader community. Selection is based on innovation, community impact and the project’s ability to improve access to services, employment and opportunity.”
- The 2026 Arizona Forward Environmental Excellence Award — Creating Resilient Communities and Arizona Forward Governor’s Award for Arizona’s Future “recognize outstanding projects for their leadership in advancing sustainability and strengthening Arizona’s long-term resilience.”
- The 2026 American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) Engineering Excellence National Grand Award “recognizes outstanding engineering achievement and projects that demonstrate innovation, creative problem-solving and engineering’s unique ability to improve our world.”
A full list of awards is available here.
“To see this project recognized nationally and regionally across several industries is a true reflection of the talent and commitment of our team and partners who brought this project to life,” Valley Metro Capital Development Chief Trevor Collon said. “Projects like this are exactly why we do this work; and this one will continue to make a difference for riders and communities across the region for generations to come.”
Further Reading:
- Phoenix City Council OKs Valley Metro Light Rail Extension to West Phoenix (part of Transit Briefs)
- Phoenix Launches South Central Extension/Downtown Hub
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