NRC Welcomes New Members Alternate Power Solutions, Cutting Edge Lawn Service & Landscaping, and Daley Mohan Groble

Alternate Power Solutions is a company specializing in electrical, generator, solar, and wind power installations. For more information visit their website at alternatepowersolutions.us. 

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Christian Jostlein of Holland LP Named Chairman of NRC Safety Committee  

The NRC is pleased to announce the appointment of Christian Jostlein, Safety Manager at Holland LP, as the new Chairman of the NRC Safety Committee. Jostlein replaces outgoing Chair Tammy Mathews, Corporate Safety, Health & Environmental Director at RailWorks Corporation, after her successful term as Chair expired.

NRC Board Chairman Bill Dorris of RailWorks Track Services appointed Jostlein at the recent NRC board meeting in Lake George, New York due to his increasingly active role on the Safety Committee and the safety culture he has helped foster during his time at Holland.

Chairman Dorris and the NRC staff want to thank outgoing Chair Tammy Mathews for her time and dedication both to safety and to the NRC Safety Committee. Mathews will remain active as the lead representative in various FRA RSAC working groups and as the NRC's representative on the FAMES Committee. During her tenure as Chair the NRC Safety Committee grew significantly in size and scope, undertaking an unprecedented amount of activities and increasing its status in the industry.

The NRC Safety Committee oversees the Safety Training DVD program, the NRC's participation in the Federal Railroad Administration's RSAC process, the Contractor Safety Award contest, the NRC's Roadway Worker Protection training materials, the Pocket Safety Manual, Tool Box Talks, and all of the NRC's other safety programs. The Committee interfaces with and leads the NRC's response to the FRA as they create regulations dealing with such key issues as minimum training standards for railroads and contractors performing maintenance-of-way work, drug and alcohol testing policies, medical standards for safety-critical workers, bridge safety, roadway worker protection regulation updates, roadway maintenance machine operating rules, rail integrity testing, rail safety technology in dark territory, Positive Train Control implementation, hours of service and track safety standards.

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 Rep. Richard Hudson Visits Aberdeen Carolina and Western Railway in Candor, NC

From left to right: ACWR President Robert Menzies, Congressman Richard Hudson, NRC VP of Grassroots Advocacy & Events Ashley Bosch, ACWR VP of Marketing Russ Smitley, ACWR VP of Operations & General Manager Carl Hollowell

On July 18, U.S. Congressman Richard Hudson (R-NC-08) joined representatives from the Aberdeen Carolina and Western Railway (ACWR) and the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) for a tour of ACWR's facility in Candor, NC. Additional attendees included Mayor of Candor Philip Hearn, Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation Director Ashley Kegel, Montgomery County Manager Matthew Woodard, Montgomery County Commissioner Jim McTheny, Montgomery County Community College Dean of Continuing Education Robin Coats, Montgomery County Community College Vice President of Curriculum Randy Gunter, and members of the local media.

The Congressman met with the ACWR executive team and their invited guests on a newly refurbished business train car, where they discussed the importance of the 45G short line railroad rehabilitation tax credit which creates a strong incentive for short line railroads to invest private sector dollars in upgrading critical freight railroad track. Later, the Congressman was led on a tour of ACWR's Candor facility and was briefed on the planned expansion of their locomotive yard. The event concluded with a train ride from the Candor facility to local poultry feeds, Perdue Farms and Mountaire Farms.

"This new facility is a huge boon to Montgomery County and the entire state of North Carolina" said Congressman Hudson. "Railroads are a critical component of our nation's infrastructure and help businesses expand their markets and bring goods to consumers everywhere. I am very excited about the jobs that will be supported and the contribution that ACWR will make to our state's economic development."

NRC Scholarship Program Applications Due August 30

The NRC Scholarship Program application period is open to children or grandchildren of NRC members. The tuition assistance scholarships are in Memoriam of Vinnie Vaccarello  (former NRC Board Member and Co-President of All Railroad Services Corp.) and Patsy Crisafi (former NRC Safety Committee Member and Executive Vice President of Roadway Worker Training)

AMOUNT OF AWARDS: three scholarships will be awarded as follows: the first place applicant will receive $8,000, the second place applicant will receive $4,000, and the third place applicant will receive $2,000. 

Scholarship funds will be sent directly to the student at the beginning of the next term of study. Students must be in attendance for a full year following receipt of the award.

To be eligible for consideration, an applicant must:

• be a son, daughter, grandson, or granddaughter of a current employee of an NRC member company; and
• be enrolled at the time of application as a full-time college student at an accredited two-year college offering an associate's degree or an accredited college or university offering a bachelor's degree

APPLICATION DEADLINE - August 30, 2014

A complete application and all accompanying materials must be sent via email no later than August 30, 2014 for consideration for the following academic term. Click here to download and view the NRC Scholarship application and criteria.

To make a donation to the NRC Scholarship Program in Memoriam of Vinnie Vaccarello and Patsy Crisafi, please make checks payable to "NRC Scholarship Fund" and send to: NRC, 500 New Jersey Ave, NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20001

The NRC thanks past contributors to the Scholarship Program:  

ARS Corp.

Richard J. Zemencik & Nancy L. Zemencik (ARS Corp)

Land Clearing Specialists, Inc.

Roadway Worker Training

Van R. Sorrells (Dixie Precast)

William E. Tarvin & Karen L. Tarvin  

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RFP from the State of Maryland for Private Partner to Build and Operate Purple Line

The Maryland DOT / Maryland Transit Administration (MDOT/MTA) announced the release of a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the Purple Line, a light rail line to be constructed in Montgomery and Prince George's counties.  MDOT/MTA is seeking to select a private-sector team to design, build, construct, finance, operate and maintain the Purple Line during a 35-year contract term.  Four teams, short-listed by MDOT/MTA in January, are eligible to submit proposals due on January 9, 2015.

The Purple Line is a 16-mile light rail line will run east-west inside the Capital Beltway between Bethesda in Montgomery County and New Carrollton in Prince George's County with 21 stations planned that will provide direct connections to Metrorail's Orange Line, Green Line and two branches of the Red Line, and the MARC Brunswick, Camden and Penn Lines.

The total project cost is $2.37b, with the private sector expected to invest between $500m and $900m.  A combination of federal, state and local monies also will be used to fund the project.

Following RFP proposal submissions on January 9, 2015, MDOT/MTA will select a preferred partner in Spring 2015 and recommend the final agreement to the Board of Public Works for its review and approval.  Construction would start later that year.  The primary RFP documents can be found at www.purplelinemd.com under Public-Private Partnerships.  For more information on the MTA , go to www.mta.maryland.gov.

Elecnor Preselected for SCVTA Double Track Project

Elecnor has been pre-selected by the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (SCVTA) in California as contractor on double tracking the Mountain View single-track segment. The project forms part of the SCVTA's action plan to improve rail service on the southern section of the San Francisco peninsula over the next two years. With a cost estimated at $60 million on a number of proposals, Elecnor hopes to work on all phases of the project and is now finalizing a bid of around $25 million for the first project. The construction focuses on widening approximately .31 miles of track to be used as a siding facility, enabling the authority to operate express rail services with fewer halts.