Coverage of the Department of Transportation and everything related to the nation's infrastructure.
By Michael Balsamo - Associated Press
One event recorder recovered so far from the new Jersey Transit commuter train that crashed in Hoboken killing one and injuring more than 100 more was not functioning on the day of the accident, officials said Sunday. Published October 2, 2016
Federal investigators are sifting through the wreckage of a train crash in New Jersey to determine what happened before it barreled through a station and crashed into a barrier, causing a young mother to be killed by falling debris and injuring more than 100 others.
A rush-hour commuter train crashed through a barrier at the busy Hoboken station and lurched across the waiting area Thursday morning, killing one person and injuring more than 100 others in a tangle of broken concrete, twisted metal and dangling wires.
Nearly 20 percent of Metro trains have arrived late this year, missing the transit agency's goal of providing more reliable subway service, according to a quarterly report released Tuesday.
Nine activists claiming to be with a British chapter of the Black Lives Matter protest movement were arrested on charges of trespassing on Tuesday after squatting on the tarmac of a London airport and causing air traffic delays as a result, The Guardian newspaper of London is reporting.
Authorities say an Amtrak train in South Carolina was delayed after hitting a vehicle that got stuck on the tracks by a drunken driver north of Charleston.
Mountain View, California-based Google is testing out carpooling on its Waze traffic app in nearby San Francisco, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.
There were reports of an active shooting incident late Sunday night in the baggage claim area of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), but they turned out to be unfounded.
Overnight service is finally beginning in London's 153-year-old Underground subway service, nearly a year after it was originally planned to go into effect.
Delta fliers faced delays, cancellations and more headaches Wednesday as the Atlanta-based airline struggled with its computer systems for the third straight day.
Most car drivers know they should stop at all red lights, but for some Metro train operators, the stop signal has been more of a suggestion than a command.
Metro says a train has derailed in northern Virginia, and fire officials say one of about 75 passengers on the train was taken to a hospital with minor injuries.
Two Italian commuter trains collided Tuesday in the southern region of Puglia, killing a dozen people, firefighters said.
Authorities said five train cars overturned outside of San Antonio, spilling about 1,000 gallons of sodium hydroxide and prompting a temporary evacuation.
D.C.'s Metro is set to eliminate 500 jobs that no longer are "deemed critical" and positions considered "non-essential."
Authorities are investigating after an Amtrak train collided with a van killing five people, including three children, in Colorado on Sunday morning.
Washington-area government and business leaders met Monday with transit officials from across North America to discuss the challenges and approaches to repairing Metrorail's facilities and reputation.
Authorities say a freight train has derailed in a tunnel in Baltimore, but there are no injuries or hazards to the public.
Officials say normal operations are expected at John F. Kennedy Airport's Terminal 7, one day after a computer outage caused massive check-in delays.
The National Transportation Safety Board is scheduled to meet to detail the probable cause of last year's deadly Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia, a day after a U.S. official briefed on the investigation revealed that the engineer was distracted by radio transmissions.
Subway riders blasted Metro on Monday as a small track fire caused major delays along three rail lines -- the ninth such incident in just over two weeks -- coming days after the transit agency had announced its systemwide repair plans and federal overseers had threatened to defund and shut down Metro operations.
A pothole in Jackson, Mississippi, was finally paved over the weekend, but only after a resident threw a birthday party for the crater when more than a dozen calls to the city went unanswered.
The New Jersey Transit is nearly done installing audio and video recorders inside each of its light-rail trains, but opponents are up in arms over what they say is a lack of privacy safeguards.
An unattended package forced Washington Dulles International Airport to close off part of the main terminal for about an hour and a half Tuesday afternoon.
A man was pulled down by a moving Metro train in D.C. when his backpack got stuck in the doors Friday.
Commuters in the nation's capital were returning to their regular routines Thursday morning after an unprecedented daylong shutdown of the Washington subway system.
An unprecedented shutdown for a safety inspection of the Washington area's Metro subway system on Wednesday inconvenienced hundreds of thousands of people -- commuters, travelers, even students.
A truck used to deliver feed to a business where cattle are fattened hit a train track and shifted it at least a foot before an Amtrak train derailed in southwest Kansas and injured at least 32 people, an investigator said.
An Amtrak train carrying 131 passengers derailed in rural Kansas early Monday, moments after an engineer noticed a significant bend in a rail and applied the emergency brakes, an official said.
Since the long-awaited D.C. Streetcar was launched Feb. 27, many of its passengers already have made it a part of their commute, riding along H Street NE from Benning Road to Union Station every day.
The rift between Democratic legislators and Gov. Larry Hogan grew wider Thursday, as black lawmakers criticized him for not funding minority priorities, and Mr. Hogan compared the legislature to students on spring break "throwing beer bottles off the balcony."
Amtrak officials have determined a rock struck one of its trains in Philadelphia.
D.C. residents are being told to stay off the streets or risk facing hefty fines if their vehicles get stuck in the snow and hamper the city's cleanup efforts following this weekend's historic blizzard.
The nation's capital crept back to life Monday with residents digging cars out of roadside snowbanks and public transportation and airports restarting service after a weekend snowstorm that pummeled the D.C. region.
Metro officials say the last paper ticket for the rail and bus system has been sold.
Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton promised labor union construction workers $275 billion in new infrastructure spending Monday, adding to a pile of expensive promises she's making on the campaign trail, with less detail on how she'll pay for it.
President Obama used his "autopen" Friday to sign legislation extending the government's authority to keep highway and transit funds flowing to states temporarily.
House and Senate negotiators sat down Wednesday and pledged to hammer out their first multi-year highway bill in a decade, saying stopgap measures are failing motorists and businesses who contend with America's crumbling roads and infrastructure.
Alaska officials have put the final kibosh on the infamous "bridge to nowhere" -- a $400 million project tucked into the federal transportation plan 10 years ago that became the symbol of Washington pork, spawned massive voter outrage and forever changed the way the government does business.
Officials at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport say an investigation has found that a bag near gates at its "A'' terminal is not a hazard.
House lawmakers have filed 270 amendments to a multiyear highway bill that presents the first key test for newly elected Speaker Paul D. Ryan.
Gov. Larry Hogan has announced a $135 million plan to redesign Baltimore's local and express bus systems.
Metro says three of its rail stations will be closed this weekend for work.
Federal investigators recommended Wednesday that the federal government assume oversight of Washington's troubled subway system, an unprecedented step for an urban mass transit network.
Most major railroads will not meet the mandated Dec. 31 deadline to install an automated train navigation system, according to a federal report.
The National Park Service says repairs will begin in late August to restore the Arlington Memorial Bridge.
President Obama signed a three-month highway bill Friday while chastising Congress for failing to approve long-term transportation funding and other legislative business before lawmakers' summer vacation.
House Republicans said Tuesday they will vote on a three-month highway bill to keep road projects moving past Friday's funding deadline, offering a way out of a standoff with Senate leaders who barreled ahead with their own, multi-year bill before Congress leaves town next month.
House and Senate leaders refused to blink Monday in a cross-Capitol standoff over highway funding, edging Congress perilously close to a Friday deadline to keep road projects moving before lawmakers skip town for their August recess.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's new highway spending bill is already on the skids, with both Democrats and Republicans questioning $47 billion in fees and penalties the legislation counts on to fund new road-building over the next three years.
All traffic along a major freeway connecting California and Arizona was blocked indefinitely when a bridge over a desert wash collapsed during heavy rain, and the roadway in the opposite direction suffered severe damage, authorities said.
The Department of Transportation has fallen dangerously behind on its debt collection, putting hundreds of millions of tax dollars at risk of default as Congress debates multibillion-dollar transportation legislation.
House Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan said Friday he is working on an $8 billion extension of a federal road-building fund to keep money flowing past a July 31 deadline and inch closer to the definitive, six-year highway bill that both parties want.
Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx and Senate Democrats urged Republicans Thursday to reveal their plan for a long-term extension of highway funds, saying the lack of a clear strategy is sowing uncertainty on Capitol Hill and among states that have placed projects on hold.
A bipartisan framework emerged in the Senate Wednesday to overhaul the taxes paid by U.S. firms on foreign profits while potentially providing much-needed funding to repair the nation's roads and bridges.
Montgomery County Council President George Leventhal says there are no deal-breakers among potential Purple Line cost cuts proposed by Gov. Larry Hogan.
The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee unveiled a bill Tuesday to reauthorize funding for transportation projects for six years, saying the nation's crumbling roads and bridges need a long-term fix and that Congress should be able to rally around their bipartisan package.
The engineer at the controls of the speeding Amtrak train that lurched off the tracks in Philadelphia, killing at least seven people, has no recollection of the crash and wasn't on his cellphone or using drugs or alcohol, his attorney said.
Federal investigators have determined that the Amtrak train that crashed Tuesday night and killed seven people aboard had been traveling at 106 mph into a 50 mph curve that was not equipped with a widespread safety program to limit train speeds, and which a key federal safety official said Wednesday likely would have prevented the crash.
An Amtrak train traveling from Washington to New York derailed Tuesday night in the northeastern part of Philadelphia, killing six people and injuring dozens.
In response to a rash of recent crashes, U.S. and Canadian officials Friday announced new safety standards for rail cars transporting flammable liquids, including crude oil.
Nearly a fifth of American travelers switch from a preferred airline to one that offers better Wi-Fi, according to a study by Honeywell International.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is legendary for not giving a hoot about the convenience or dignity of travelers who must pass through its airport gantlets.
The key to success in business is seizing opportunity.
It is no secret that many of our interstates, highways, and bridges are in dire need of repair. This impacts everyone -- from the school bus driver taking children to school, families traveling out of state for vacations, and truck drivers transporting consumer goods. Not only does this impact our daily lives, but it also threatens our safety in emergency situations.
