advertisement

---

As more U.S. cities plan to build streetcar systems, demand for steel girder rail is expected to spike. That’s why U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) officials held a roundtable discussion in Washington, D.C., yesterday with transportation, manufacturing and steel industry leaders to discuss a plan for producing steel streetcar rails in the United States.

The discussion was led by U.S. Deputy Transportation Secretary John Porcari, who said he hopes the meeting will help determine the potential market size for steel rails and the level of interest among manufacturers, as well as identify obstacles that need to be addressed.

Industry experts estimate that 18,000 metric tons of steel girder rail will be needed over the next three years to meet the demand of streetcar projects being planned and built in the United States. The amount could total upwards of 33,000 metric tons over the coming decade, according to a press release.

The USDOT called the meeting after a survey by the FTA and U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology Manufacturing Extension Partnership indicated that domestic steelwork foundries were interested in manufacturing streetcar rails.