From AnnArbor.com

The freight company that owns the railroad tracks that carry Amtrak trains through Ann Arbor said today that it is restricting the speed those trains are allowed to travel, cutting the rate to 25 miles an hour in some parts.

The decision means that travelers on Amtrak’s Wolverine line may experience 90-minute delays on the trip from Kalamazoo to Dearborn, Amtrak said. Passengers need to check with Amtrak before heading to the station for their trips.

Trains will be reduced to traveling as slowly as 25 miles per hour in some areas, said Rudy Husband, a spokesman for Norfolk Southern Railway in an interview.

Read more: http://www.annarbor.com/business-review/freight-company-cuts-amtrak-trains-speed-to-as-slow-as-25-mph-sparking-delays/

From The Detroit News

If it’s true that “a journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step,” then  the Michigan Central Station may be on its way toward restoration.

On Tuesday morning, a crew of workmen from Professional Abatement Services  Inc. began removing asbestos-laden caulking and glazing from all the first floor  windows of the iconic building, which has sat abandoned on Michigan Avenue for  decades.

The work backs up a recent pledge by Ambassador Bridge owner Matty Moroun — who also owns the train depot — to replace the roof and more than a thousand  broken windows in the 17-story building.

“The activity occurring at Michigan Central Station is the beginning of a  long process for depot restoration,” said Moroun’s wife, Nora. “It is the first  of many positive steps to come.”

Workers also will remove asbestos ductwork and tiles from the first floor,  according to Danny Bennett, president of the abatement company.

“This is really a huge job and we could be here for months to come,” Bennett  said.

“Once we finish the first floor, we’ll probably start working our way up to  the top.”

Milford resident Mark Klaserner drove to the train station with his daughter,  Meghann, and her fiance, Sean Ziegler, who were visiting from Denver.

“I think it needs to be restored,” Klaserner said, shading his eyes.

“There are so many beautiful abandoned buildings in Detroit that people just  don’t see. There is so much potential.”

From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20110608/METRO01/106080357/Michigan-Central-Station-one-step-closer-toward-restoration#ixzz1Or6SN8iG

From The Detroit News

With the derelict Michigan Central Train Depot as a backdrop, hundreds of  Detroiters on Friday demanded more jobs as well as more accountability from  Ambassador Bridge owner Matty Moroun.

The rally, sponsored by the AFL-CIO-backed Good Jobs Now team and the Service  Employees International Union, was held at Roosevelt Park and featured a  12-foot-tall caricature of the controversial billionaire.

Moroun, who has been taking heat for the condition of the building since he  purchased it in 1996, has also been waging a bitter fight against the  construction of a new, publicly owned bridge to Windsor.

Moroun wants to build a twin to the aging Ambassador Bridge and argues plans  for a publicly owned bridge favored by Gov. Rick Snyder would take money from  his bridge while leaving taxpayers on the hook for construction costs. Snyder  continued to lobby for a publicly owned span Friday on Mackinac Island.

“If he was to tear down or restore the train depot, it would create jobs for  Detroiters. Instead, blight takes jobs away, which is a problem for Detroiters,”  said Detroit resident JoMeca Thomas, a member of Good Jobs Now.

Owners of Detroit International Bridge Co., which owns and operates the  Ambassador Bridge, were unavailable for comment, according to a company  spokesman.

In March, Moroun announced that renovations would soon begin on the  98-year-old depot that would include a new roof and new windows for the 18-story  building.

The last train to pull out of the station was on Jan. 6, 1988. Despite  fences, barbed wire and guards, thieves and vandals have wreaked havoc on the  building since Moroun purchased it.

Democratic State Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who represents southwest Detroit where  the depot and bridge are located, addressed the crowd Friday.

“The people of Detroit want jobs, and they want people to be accountable,”  Tlaib said.

Tlaib said she wasn’t surprised Moroun didn’t appear at the rally.

“But if he did appear, I’d tell him that people become demoralized when they  see the derelict depot, see the abandoned homes that he owns and trucks rumbling through their neighborhoods.

“I’d tell him ‘Matty, open your eyes!’ ”

Retired construction worker Clifford Marion, who attended the rally, said he  agrees with Moroun’s bridge view.

“I don’t see the need for another bridge,” said Marion of Detroit. “I’d  rather they took the money to build another bridge and use it to create jobs  here in Detroit. This rally is all about jobs, jobs, jobs.”

From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20110604/METRO/106040330/Protest-targets-train-depot–Moroun#ixzz1Or4dHuZO

From The Flint Journal

An Amtrak spokesman said all safety devices were in use on a Amtrak train that struck 11-year-old Tomas Rodriguez.

Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said all the warning devices at the crossing were working and “the train was also flashing lights, ringing its bell and using its loud horn.”

Police also said the gate was down and warning lights working properly just after 7 a.m. at the crossing near Third and Handley streets when the sixth grader was struck.

The conductor chose to go on compassionate leave following the incident, said Magliari. No passengers or crew members were hurt.

The train, heading from Port Huron to Chicago, had a locomotive on each end and six passenger cars in between during the incident.

Source: http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2011/06/amtrak_spokesman_says_all_safe.html

From the Detroit Free Press

Officials say a sixth-grade student has been struck and killed by a train in Imlay City while walking to school.

WNEM-TV and The Flint Journal report the collision happened about 7 a.m. Thursday. Police say a crossing gate was down and warning lights were flashing.

Read more: http://www.freep.com/article/20110609/NEWS06/110609018/Child-struck-killed-by-train-Imlay-City?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE