PTC extension introduced by committee

The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation introduced a positive train control (PTC) extension bill. The bill seeks to extend the statutory deadline for PTC implementation by five years to Dec. 31, 2020, as well as provide another optional two-year e [...]

Avantair forced into Chapter 7 bankruptcy

Avantair locked its doors to employees June 26 and ceased all operations. Now, less than two months later, executives have also been locked out, this time by the courts. Florida bankruptcy courts have allowed creditors to file Chapter 7 bankruptcy against the airline. Judge C [...]

Emergency RSAC meeting announced

The Federal Railroad Administration announced Aug. 8 that it would hold an emergency meeting of the Railroad Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC) Aug. 29. The meeting will focus on the July 6 train derailment in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec. Preliminary findings from the derailment and s [...]

Mississippi Export workers grab 8-year deal

Train and engineer workers employed by Mississippi Export Railroad have ratified a new eight-year agreement by a unanimous vote. SMART Transportation Division Vice President David Wier said the agreement provides for cumulative wage increases of 22 percent over the life of th [...]

Thank you fellow bus operators and President Futhey

Bus companies are comprised of many departments and each department relies on one another in order to be a successful operation. But rarely do the bus operators get the credit they deserve. The daily elements that they face would make a lot of people second-guess their career [...]

Va. agrees to pay more for Amtrak’s rail service

Responding to a federal mandate and acting on transportation legislation passed this year by the General Assembly, Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Tuesday that Virginia will assume more financial responsibility for Amtrak regional service in the state. The agreement had to be in [...]