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• Thales was awarded a $14.9 million contract by Polish railway operator Polskie Koleje Panstwowe to supply and deploy a European Train Control System (ETCS) Level 1 system along the 139-mile line connecting Grodzisk Mazowiecki to Zawiercie. Once the train-control system is deployed in June 2011, trains will be able to reach speeds up to 124 mph, according to a prepared statement.

• Alstom Transport’s Atlas control and signaling system began operating earlier this month on the 28-mile Havenspoorlijn line linking Vaanplein to Maasvlakte in The Netherlands. The line, which links the port of Rotterdam to Germany, is the second in The Netherlands to be equipped with Atlas. Currently, 110 locomotives are equipped with the onboard system, which is compliant with the European Traffic Management System (ERTMS) Level 1 standard, and running on the Betuweroute line, according to a prepared statement. Alstom also has installed Level 2 Atlas ERTMS technology on the Belgian section of the L4 high- speed line, which links Antwerp with the Dutch border.

• Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. recently signed a contract with Amtrak to provide program management and construction management services for more than 100 infrastructure improvement projects with a potential value “in excess of $560 million” being funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, according to a prepared statement. Under the pact, Jacobs will manage, procure, and administer, in part or in full, the design and construction of projects at more than 360 locations. Projects include maintenance facility upgrades, bridge replacements, trackwork, security enhancements and various station improvements.

• On Wednesday, Colo Railroad Builders announced the “substantial completion” of its Baton Rouge, La., yard construction project for The Watco Cos. Since being awarded the contract in January, Colo built more than 103,000 feet of track and about 90 switches “in what could be considered record time,” according to a prepared statement. The expansion of the yard, which serves Exxon Chemical, permits “in-transit storage and switching of thousands of cars each year,” according to Colo.

• On the “people in the news” front: David Rollason, who has more than 17 years of experience in software development, product design, team management and IT infrastructure (most recently with Soltech), was named senior vice president - business growth, optimization and performance for CargoWise® edi; Patrick Klacka, who previously served as senior software engineer for FreightScan L.L.C., was promoted to director of system engineering; and Tiffany Poley, who after interning at Alligare, has joined Dow AgroSciences L.L.C. as a sales representative with the vegetation management group.