Obama lays out vision for transportation infrastructure

On Feb. 26, President Obama spoke at the historic Union Depot train station in St. Paul, Minn., where he launched a competition for $600 million in competitive transportation funding and outlined his vision for investing in America’s infrastructure with a $302 billion, four-y [...]

First Student memo exposes incentives to cut corners

News 4 has obtained a memo from the president of a huge school bus company telling its employees if they want to make extra money they need to cut serious corners. And that, employees told News 4, is at the root of all the dangerous problems we’ve been uncovering. Read the co [...]

MBTA buses get live video technology

BOSTON – Homeland Security in Washington DC has awarded the MBTA about $7 million to outfit buses with the latest in live video technology. Sophisticated new 360-degree lenses embedded in the ceilings and walls of the buses will now capture everything. And on some buses, ther [...]

Feds get 'aggressive' against bus co. violators

In a fundamental shift in the way tour buses are regulated, the federal agency that oversees the companies is implementing a long-sought rule to aggressively go after and shut down those that repeatedly violate safety laws, endangering the lives of tour bus riders as well as [...]

L.A. Metro proposes fare increases to address deficit

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced last week that it was considering a number of fare-restructuring options that would increase fares, change its current transfer policy and help the bus and rail operator address its mounting operating defi [...]

Stem: FMCSA denies bus company's CDL exemption

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has denied an application by motorcoach tours company Miami Nice Tours to operate bus tours in the United States by drivers who would be exempt from the commercial driver’s license (CDL) provisions of part 383 of the Federal Mot [...]

Addition of new members brings additional responsibility

I hope this edition of the SMART Transportation Division News finds that all our members enjoyed a safe and happy holiday season. The SMART TD has been successful in recent organizing campaigns, adding new members to our union in general, and the bus department in particular. [...]