NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The town of Elmira, an upstate New York community that once prospered during the manufacturing boom, got a spot of good news Friday.
A total of 575 jobs are coming to the small city, after Amtrak awarded an Elmira-based company a contract to build 130 new train cars.
CAF USA, a subsidiary of a Spanish rail manufacturer, will build the single-level rail cars and hire hundreds for manufacturing and assembly work at its plant in Elmira. The first car is scheduled to be completed in October 2012.
The five-year contract, worth $298.1 million, is the first step in a fleet renewal plan. Amtrak said the new cars will replace some old fleet cars still in use -- including some built in the 1940s and 1950s.
The car replacements will save money and improve trains' on-time performance, Amtrak added. The company plans to replace its entire fleet over the next 30 years. 
| Index | Last | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow | 32,627.97 | -234.33 | -0.71% |
| Nasdaq | 13,215.24 | 99.07 | 0.76% |
| S&P 500 | 3,913.10 | -2.36 | -0.06% |
| Treasuries | 1.73 | 0.00 | 0.12% |
| Company | Price | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Motor Co | 8.29 | 0.05 | 0.61% |
| Advanced Micro Devic... | 54.59 | 0.70 | 1.30% |
| Cisco Systems Inc | 47.49 | -2.44 | -4.89% |
| General Electric Co | 13.00 | -0.16 | -1.22% |
| Kraft Heinz Co | 27.84 | -2.20 | -7.32% |
|
Bankrupt toy retailer tells bankruptcy court it is looking at possibly reviving the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brands. More |
Land O'Lakes CEO Beth Ford charts her career path, from her first job to becoming the first openly gay CEO at a Fortune 500 company in an interview with CNN's Boss Files. More |
Honda and General Motors are creating a new generation of fully autonomous vehicles. More |
In 1998, Ntsiki Biyela won a scholarship to study wine making. Now she's about to launch her own brand. More |
Whether you hedge inflation or look for a return that outpaces inflation, here's how to prepare. More |
