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A CSX locomotive operated by a two-person crew powers a train with a mix of freight and tanker cars.

New rail safety rules mandate two-person crews for freight trains traveling in Ohio and require wayside defect detectors be installed 10-15 miles apart.

In 1993, newly elected President Bill Clinton was taking the reins from George H.W. Bush. “Home Improvement,” “Murphy Brown,” and “Murder, She Wrote” were winning the ratings war in American broadcast television (streaming hadn’t been invented yet), and the state of Ohio had passed its most-recent rail safety legislation.

The worlds of politics, entertainment, and railroading have changed dramatically in the 30 years since. On Ohio’s transportation front, freight carrier Conrail has been split among Norfolk Southern and CSX Transportation, trains have tripled in length/tonnage, and technology has revamped every conceivable aspect of the industry, yet the Ohio legislative body has seen zero reason to adapt with the times … until today.

On March 31, Gov. Mike DeWine signed into law House Bill 23 (H.B. 23), which is the state’s transportation budget. This budget included in it two items known as the Ohio Rail Safety Bill with a two-person crew minimum for all freight trains traveling inside Ohio, as well as verbiage that regulates the use of wayside-defect detector technology in the Buckeye State.

WATCH: SMART-TD Ohio State Legislative Director Clyde Whitaker testified about rail safety issues before a U.S. Senate committee in March 2023.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t just the hard work and dedication of SMART Transportation Division Ohio State Legislative Director Clyde Whitaker that got these two common-sense rail-safety legislative components across the finish line. As we are all aware, the Feb. 2 Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine near the Pennsylvania border and the industry scrutiny that followed played a large role in forcing state leaders to do some overdue soul searching about safeguarding the state’s communities from the greed of the nation’s rail carriers.

“I’m glad lawmakers placed party politics aside and worked together for the greater good, as the government should. These bipartisan efforts have placed safety above the false narratives of the railroads,” Whitaker said. “Safety of our members in the locomotive cab is now intact, and the public will be much safer going forward. Though a major victory, we do have a lot more to accomplish in Ohio.”

That being said, this legislative victory didn’t occur solely because of what happened in East Palestine. By the time the state and national media turned their attention to Ohio’s railroads, Brother Whitaker had already done the work of preparing the legislation and had built relationships in the state’s Legislature that were required to seize the momentum created by the derailment. Whitaker had also filed complaints with the Federal Railroad Administration months prior to the derailment, citing Norfolk Southern’s tendency to override alerts from defect detectors in order to keep freight moving. The fact that he had identified the problem prior to it leading to the disaster, gave all of his information and arguments about the Ohio Rail Safety Bill additional credence.

Whitaker had also filed complaints with the Federal Railroad Administration months prior to the derailment, citing Norfolk Southern’s tendency to override alerts from defect detectors in order to keep freight moving.

Whitaker and his team knew it was the right time to bring substantive changes in Ohio laws that would help protect our members and the general public for years to come, continuing to solidify bipartisan coalitions in both the Ohio House and Senate and going toe to toe with the rail lobbyists who were sent to Columbus to do the bidding of the carriers.

But Whitaker didn’t do it alone — this accomplishment came as a result of work done both in the present and the groundwork laid by the hard work of prior State Legislative Board officers and SMART-TD members alike, who got the word out to their state legislators that the legislation was necessary.

“I believe in giving credit, where credit is due,” Whitaker said. “Stu Gardner, our former director who is now retired, helped lay the groundwork in this battle, and I’m thankful he had faith in me to finish leading the charge.”

In the end, SLD Whitaker, SMART-TD, railroad workers, railroad families and common sense came out with a hard-fought victory. 

On behalf of our members, and the members of every community the railroads roll through each day, SMART- TD would like to thank Gov. DeWine for his leadership on rail safety issues not only in Ohio but also on a national stage.

We would also like to thank the Ohio legislators and their staffs for their diligence and hard work on getting the legislation to the governor’s desk. SMART-TD is proud of the unbelievable work and professionalism we have seen from SLD Whitaker and the State Legislative Board as they shepherded the legislation through the legislative process, and most of all we want to thank all the conductors and SMART engineers who grind every day to move Ohio’s freight and protect its people by ensuring safe and effective rail operation.

Freight rail safety in the news

By a 19-2 vote, the Pennsylvania House Consumer Protection, Technologies and Utilities Committee advanced its comprehensive rail safety bill, H.B. 1028, out of committee May 3.

“This is a starting point,” said Republican Committee Chairman Rep. Jim Marshall (District 14) about the legislation. “This is an all-in approach.”

Democratic Committee Chairman Rep. Robert F. Matzie (District 16) was the primary sponsor of the legislation introduced April 25 that covers train length, two-person crews and wayside detectors.

““This is a unique situation relative to the severity of what happened in East Palestine, Ohio,” Matzie said before the bill’s passage through the committee. “We believe that rail safety does give us the purview to act. We believe time is of the essence. We don’t need another tragedy.”

H.B. 1028:

  • Fines carriers $10,000 for blocking rail crossings for more than five minutes.
  • Limits train lengths to 8,500 feet.
  • Permits rail labor representatives to have an active, participatory role while the state investigates rail safety matters.
  • Requires a two-person crew aboard freight trains and fines carriers who violate the provision.
  • Authorizes the state to inspect to ensure the functionality of wayside detectors in the state.
  • Authorizes a state study of hazmat/waste transport.
  • Create a reporting system when carriers operating trains carrying hazmat/waste report these to the state.

SMART Transportation Division Pennsylvania State Legislative Director Paul Pokrowka has been working for years to advocate for rail safety and to get similar legislation across the finish line.

“The incident February just across the border from our state in East Palestine brought attention nationwide to the importance of railroad safety,” he said. “Legislators in Pennsylvania have taken notice and have decided to do something about it. We appreciate their support and look to advance this legislation out of committee and into the full House and beyond — we thank Rep. Matzie and his staff very much for their help in advocating for H.B. 1028.”

Reps. Natalie Mihalek and Ryan Warner, both in the committee’s nine-member Republican minority, were the two votes against the bill’s advancement.

Neighboring Ohio had rail-safety legislation governing wayside detectors and crew size signed into law in late March.

Read the bill.

Looking to follow in the footsteps of Ohio, Pennsylvania’s Legislature has before it a comprehensive rail safety bill covering train length, two-person crews and wayside detectors.

H.B. 1028 was introduced by 24 representatives April 25 with the House Consumer Protection, Technologies and Utilities Committee scheduled to vote upon the bill on Wednesday, May 3.

Chairman Robert F. Matzie (District 16) was the primary sponsor, which has, among its provisions:

  • Fines carriers $10,000 for blocking rail crossings for more than five minutes.
  • Limits train lengths to 8,500 feet.
  • Permits rail labor representatives to have an active, participatory role while the state investigates rail safety matters.
  • Requires a two-person aboard freight trains and fines carriers who violate the provision.
  • Authorizes the state to inspect to ensure the functionality of wayside detectors in the state.
  • Authorizes a state study of hazmat/waste transport.
  • Create a reporting system when carriers operating trains carrying hazmat/waste report these to the state.

SMART Transportation Division Pennsylvania State Legislative Director Paul Pokrowka has been working for years to advocate for rail safety and get legislation across the finish line.

“The incident February just across the border from our state in East Palestine brought attention nationwide to the importance of railroad safety,” he said. “Legislators in Pennsylvania have taken notice and have decided to do something about it. We appreciate their support and look to advance this legislation out of committee and into the full House and beyond — we thank Rep. Matzie and his staff very much for their help in advocating for H.B. 1028.”

Read the bill.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (April 28, 2023) — Conductors and trainmen on CSX northern lines ratified an agreement for paid sick time today.

SMART Transportation Division GO-049 negotiated the deal with CSX Transportation earlier this month, but it still faced approval by the membership and local officers. Today, SMART-TD General Chairperson Richard Lee announced that the agreement was ratified by the majority of ballots returned.

The lack of paid sick time within the railroad industry was highlighted in the media in 2022 when workers rejected a tentative national agreement that covered most railroad carriers and labor organizations, almost leading to a shutdown of the nation’s vital supply chain.

Since then, CSX reached agreements with several non-operating-craft labor organizations. However, CSX and other Class I carriers failed to reach an agreement with any operating-craft labor organization. The operating crafts (which include engineers, conductors and trainmen) have what is perceived as the most demanding of working conditions of the railroad crafts due to the travel requirements, working in the elements and the on-call nature of their positions. This agreement establishes a benefit in the railroad industry that the majority of the American workforce already enjoy.

In addition to paid sick time, the agreement, which covers approximately 2,400 conductors and trainmen on CSX Northern line, also adopts the current attendance policy put in place by CSX into the collective bargaining agreement. Railroads in the past have been reluctant to negotiate attendance and this is another first for the operating workforce as it subjects the former policy (now agreement) to negotiations if any changes are desired by either the carrier or the employees in the future. In return, the carrier gained flexibility and cost savings through provisions that allow conductors and trainmen to drive company-provided vehicles under certain conditions and also settled a long-term dispute between the SMART-TD and CSX regarding assignment placement.

“It’s refreshing and impressive to see the overwhelming support of the membership on this tentative agreement. It is also encouraging that SMART-TD and CSX leadership were able to sit down at the table and reach a consensus on items as important as these. I am hopeful this momentum will carry forward in future negotiations and help us collectively improve the working conditions and overall moral at CSX,” GC Lee said when asked about his overall feelings on the issues and outcome of the process.

Upon the initial announcement of the tentative agreement being reached, SMART Transportation Division President Jeremy, Ferguson said, “We thank CSX CEO Joseph Hinrichs and Executive Vice President Jamie Boychuk for exhibiting flexibility and working with our union in a collaborative manner in reaching this tentative agreement. This serves as a vital first step to giving T&E personnel the paid sick time they deserve, and I am hopeful this accommodation will be soon be extended to the employees working under the jurisdiction of the other General Committees at CSX as well.”

About SMART Transportation Division GO-049

SMART Transportation Division GO-049 (General Committee of Adjustment) is based in Jacksonville, FL. The General Committee negotiates and maintains property agreements for approximately 2,600 railroad employees in the northeastern quadrant of the United States including several short-line carriers and CSX Transportation. GO-049 is one General Committee of 62 that make up SMART-TD, the largest freight railroad labor union in the United States.

Tentative agreement includes scheduling, paid sick leave

ATLANTA and INDEPENDENCE, OH, (April 28, 2023) — Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers — Transportation Division (SMART-TD) announced Friday that they have reached a ground-breaking, system-wide tentative agreement. The agreement would offer a comprehensive suite of new benefits and workplace enhancements to improve quality of life for Norfolk Southern’s conductors.

“This agreement underscores the progress we can make when SMART-TD and Norfolk Southern come together to improve the lives and workplace experience of our hard-working members,” said Jeremy Ferguson, president of SMART-TD. “I want to thank Norfolk Southern for their partnership, and most importantly, our tireless SMART-TD leaders – Jim Ball, Tommy Gholson, David Phillips, Drew Evans, Brian Sharkey, and Jason Roberts – for working collaboratively to reach this extremely positive outcome for Norfolk Southern conductors.”

The new agreement contains meaningful improvements that will transform the conductor experience, including:

  • Technology-driven enhancements that offer all conductors scheduled days off and greater certainty around their weekly assignments.
  • Tools and work-rule changes that provide greater transparency and flexibility to enjoy their vacation and other paid time off.
  • Higher reimbursement for meals when away from home, and additional compensation when working weekends and spending time away from home.
  • Up to seven days of paid sick leave, including five new paid sick days and the option to use two days of existing leave, to care for their personal well-being.

“I have a deep appreciation and respect for the contributions that my craft colleagues make to our company, our customers, and the U.S. economy,” said Alan H. Shaw, president and CEO of Norfolk Southern. “Coming out of national negotiations, we committed to taking a comprehensive look at quality of life at Norfolk Southern. With this agreement, we are leading the industry’s efforts to provide more predictable work and greater support for the wellbeing of our craft railroaders.”

“I am incredibly proud of the work we’ve done with our labor partners at SMART-TD to reach this landmark deal,” said Wai Wong, vice president, Labor Relations at Norfolk Southern. “This agreement is the culmination of many honest, open discussions with our General Chairmen about our employees’ perspectives and priorities. I look forward to building on the foundation of trust we’ve laid as we continue working together to improve quality of life for our dedicated railroaders.”

The tentative agreement, which is subject to member ratification, also satisfies the parties’ obligation to discuss scheduling enhancements and other related items that were part of last year’s national agreements. The agreement would go beyond those obligations, however, underscoring Norfolk Southern’s and SMART-TD’s mutual commitment to holistically improve quality of life and enhance their shared team’s ability to safely deliver reliable and resilient service as a customer-centric, operations-driven organization.

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About Norfolk Southern

Since 1827, Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) and its predecessor companies have safely moved the goods and materials that drive the U.S. economy. Today, it operates a customer-centric and operations-driven freight transportation network. Committed to furthering sustainability, Norfolk Southern helps its customers avoid 15 million tons of yearly carbon emissions by shipping via rail. Its dedicated team members deliver more than 7 million carloads annually, from agriculture to consumer goods, and is the largest rail shipper of auto products and metals in North America. Norfolk Southern also has the most extensive intermodal network in the eastern U.S., serving a majority of the country’s population and manufacturing base, with connections to every major container port on the Atlantic coast as well as the Gulf of Mexico and Great Lakes. Learn more by visiting www.NorfolkSouthern.com.

About SMART-TD

SMART Transportation Division is comprised of approximately 125,000 active and retired members who work in a variety of different crafts in the transportation industry. These crafts include employees on every Class I railroad, Amtrak, many shortline railroads, bus and mass transit employees and airport personnel. More information about the union is available at www.smart-union.org.

The SMART Transportation Division would like to remind members of the grassroots organizational meeting being led by Brother Arin Johnson of Local 194 (Elkhart, Ind.,) in Cleveland on May 3, 2023. 

SMART-TD International officers and staff have been invited to attend the meeting and will have representatives on hand to participate in the discussion being led by Brother Johnson. The meeting will begin at noon EST at the SMART Sheet Metal Local 33 Building 12515 Corporate Dr., Parma, OH, 44130.  

SMART-TD would like to clarify that the May 3 meeting in Cleveland is not part of the international’s training program. Rather, it is a coalition-building session organized and led by Brother Johnson, who has had success building on the best-demonstrated practices of the locals in Indiana through his meetings. TD leadership is supportive of his efforts and has encouraged him to expand the reach of his project to include meetings around the country. SMART-TD published an article on March 29 to promote the event and to give Johnson’s efforts a wider reach. 

SMART-TD is proud to organize and to lead a strong curriculum of educational and informational opportunities for our members around the country. These opportunities include Regional Training Seminars like those scheduled later this year Oct. 3-6 in Toledo, Ohio, and Nov. 6-9 in Davenport, Iowa. SMART’s annual Leadership Conference in Washington D.C. for general chairperson officers and state legislative board officers is scheduled July 30-Aug. 2. A slate of educational videos also is available through the SMART Member Portal 24-7 via SMART University. 

SMART-TD again thanks Brother Johnson for having coordinated this meeting and looks forward to seeing as many of you there as possible. 

2023.05.03_Coalition_MeetingDownload

Charles “Al” Nowlin, a stalwart supporter of the union through and through and a multiple-term general chairperson for GO-569, passed away unexpectedly April 24. He was 68 years old.

“Al was a true brother to all of us. He was steadfastly dedicated to our cause and that of the labor movement in general,” SMART Transportation Division Vice President Brent Leonard said. “I always admired his kindness and true caring for those he represented and worked for, as well as his tenacious fight against the railroad carrier.”

Brother Nowlin joined the union in December 1973 after hiring on as a fireman for the Missouri Pacific at age 18. A member of Local 349 in Kansas City, he later was promoted to engineer and worked for the carrier’s successor, Union Pacific, for the duration of his career.

Brother Nowlin first became a union officer in his home local in 1978, winning election as a local chairperson. This began four decades of dedicated service as a union officer, eventually leading to his being elected as GO-569 chairperson and serving three terms before his retirement in December 2018.

Leonard recalled a story that Al’s wife, Phyllis, shared that summed up Brother Nowlin’s belief in the organization.

“When Al would meet non-railroad people, upon his telling them that he worked for the railroad, most often their response would be, ‘Wow, the railroad is a great job!’ Al’s response would be,’No, the railroad is a good job, with a GREAT union.’ “

Upon the occasion of his 35th year as a union officer, Brother Nowlin was honored at the 2013 Anaheim Regional Meeting by then-SMART General President Joe Nigro with a clock to recognize his service.

“Al was a man of strong faith and had incredible love for both his family and his union family,” Leonard said.

Brother Nowlin was a delegate to multiple UTU/SMART-TD conventions, a constant donor to TD PAC, served as a special organizer for the union, maintained membership in the SMART-TD Alumni Association and served as a mentor to union leadership while maintaining his labor activism even after his retirement.

“Al will be sorely missed by those who knew him,” Leonard said. “His legacy will be that future railroad employees will continue to be benefited from the work he did on their behalf.”

A celebration of Brother Nowlin’s life will occur Monday, May 15 at the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer, 7110 Route 9 Highway, Kansas City, Mo. 64152. Visitation is scheduled 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. with services to follow at 6:30.

A reception of coffee and dessert will follow the service.

The family suggests that in honor of Al’s life and works of service for the betterment of the working men and women across this country that any memorial donations be directed toward the TD PAC.

Under the Budget Control Act of 2011, and a subsequent sequestration order to implement mandated cuts, Railroad Retirement Board-administered unemployment and sickness insurance benefits were reduced by a set percentage that is subject to revision at the beginning of each fiscal year. In December 2020, in an effort to minimize the effects the COVID-19 pandemic was having on the rail industry, Congress passed the Continued Assistance to Rail Workers Act (CARWA).

This legislation temporarily suspended the sequestration, and railroad workers who were eligible for unemployment and sickness benefits from RRB went back to receiving the full dollar amount of their benefits. This legislation was intended to be temporary, relieving out-of-work rail employees during the pandemic, and its language stated that the suspension of the benefit cuts would end 30 days after the date the COVID-19 state of emergency was terminated.

On April 10, 2023, President Biden officially declared the end of the COVID-19 pandemic emergency by signing House Joint Resolution 7. The 30-day clock to the reinstatement of the RRB benefit cuts runs out next month.

To avoid these cuts, the Railroad Employment Equity and Fairness (REEF) Act was introduced April 20 in the House by U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (Ill.-District 9), a chief deputy whip and a senior member of the House Budget Committee, alongside Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.-District 1), Rep. Rick Larsen (Wash.-District 2), Rep. Don Bacon (Neb.-District 2), Rep. Chuy Garcia (Ill.-District 4), and Rep. Pete Stauber (Minn.-District 8). U.S. Sens. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), introduced the bill in the Senate.

The current RRB daily rate for unemployment is $85 and pays out five days weekly for biweekly payment of $850. After the emergency relief’s expiration, the daily rate for unemployment will become $80.15 daily for a biweekly total of $801.50. This bill will reduce the payment of our out-of-work brothers and sisters by $48.50 per pay period.

Sickness benefits paid to an employee within six months from the date last worked for a reason other than an on-the-job injury are also subject to regular Tier I Railroad Retirement taxes, resulting in a further reduction of 7.65%. Applying the 5.7% reduction to these sickness benefits will result in a maximum two-week total received of $740.23.

If these cuts seem aimed at the most-vulnerable population within our union, that is because they are. The sequestration for unemployed, sick, and injured railroaders benefits that the pandemic relief temporarily eliminated already has been done away with for other federal retirement plans. This clawing-back of funds, implemented 12 years ago, is literally only applicable to the Railroad Retirement Board. Allowing the CARWA Act to fall off the table accomplishes nothing other than taking a $50 bill out of the hands of our out-of-work brothers and sisters every other week while they are struggling to bridge the gap until they can get back to the rails.

SMART-TD is asking you to rally around our own by contacting your House representative as well as your U.S. senators to demand they support a permanent end to sequestration of railroad unemployment and sickness insurance benefits. By reintroducing and passing the REEF Act, Congress can restore railroaders’ hard-earned benefits.

This sequestration is out of date, and unfairly targeted at our profession. Please follow the link provided to make your voice heard to protect the hard-working men and women in your crew base when they are in financial difficulty.

State Senate has rail safety bills regarding two-person crews and train length before it

Michigan State Legislative Director Donald Roach served as a primary source as The Detroit News published articles this week (subscription required to read) centering on two pieces of rail safety legislation in the state Legislature.

Michigan State Legislative Director Don Roach
Donald Roach

After reviewing the circumstance of derailments and details of recent rail accidents in the state, the piece highlighted the renewed focus on the need to examine freight rail safety in the wake of the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment.

S.B. 100 would codify the long-standing standard and safe rail practice of requiring two operating crew members aboard a train. S.B. 139 places a-length limit of 7,500 feet on trains.

“Any time if there’s an incident along the rail, whether it be a pedestrian strike, or a car in a crossing, or there’s trespassers along the way, the conductors are always the first responders,” Roach told the Detroit News. “… They could be walking back to a fire. They could be walking back to just a set of wheels on the ground. It could be anything.”

State Sen. Erica Geiss, who introduced both the train-length and crew-size legislation, told the Detroit News that she expected the state Transportation Committee to consider these bills this spring.

Neighboring Ohio passed and saw a two-person crew signed into law at the end of March.

Lance Fritz, president and chief executive officer of the Union Pacific Railroad, is on his way out the door after announcing in late February that he will vacate his office by the end of 2023. Though there is no publicly announced date for his departure, his hand is on the ripcord and he’s preparing to deploy that golden parachute.

That being said, SMART Transportation Division Colorado State Legislative Director Carl Smith didn’t want Fritz to go without a little something to remember his legislative committee by. But rather than going with the cliché of getting Fritz a ritzy timepiece and a handshake, he rented a digital billboard truck to track Fritz around Colorado for four days in early April.

As Fritz took the executive business car around Smith’s state, he was escorted by the billboard truck that showed rotating signs that featured several messages regarding Colorado’s rejection of Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR), such as “Our Mile-High State Doesn’t Need 3 mile-long trains!” and, “It can happen here too!” with pictures of the derailment and hazmat spill in East Palestine, Ohio. Messages on the truck’s rolling billboards included a QR code that could be scanned by anyone who saw it and took people directly to the SMART Legislative Action Center, where people could support national rail safety legislation.

In these photos courtesy SMART-TD Local 202, an advertising truck appears in various locations in Colorado showing messages concerning rail safety.

The truck made several stops mirroring Fritz’s Mile High State tour. First, the truck went to the Rocky Mountain Train Show at the National Western Complex in Denver. Per the train show’s website, this event averages 11,000 attendees as the largest train show west of the Mississippi River. SLD Smith had the truck there both days of the show and prompted many discussions among the train enthusiasts in attendance.

The truck stayed in Denver over the weekend but did not only target the good people attending the show. It also made its way to three governmental functions. On Saturday, the truck and its messages could be seen circling Colorado’s statehouse as legislators were holding a rare weekend session. Additionally, the truck’s presence was felt at the Colorado Democratic Assembly meeting in Denver. On Saturday evening there was a large gathering of legislators and dignitaries at what is called the Colorado Obama Gala which features the former president and all the press that naturally follows him. As you might have guessed, Smith made sure SMART-TD’s anti-PSR message crashed that, too.

On April 3, Fritz and his entourage took UP’s business train to LaSalle, Colo., for a meeting. If they thought not being in Denver would spare them the presence of Smith’s billboard truck, they were undoubtedly disappointed that it had made the 50-mile journey north to greet them in LaSalle.

On April 4, Fritz held a legislative breakfast meeting on the business train. Brother Smith and his truck made sure they made their presence felt their too. UP’s attempt to get these legislators’ undivided attention was disrupted by the Smith’s inconvenient reminder that there are real-world consequences attached to the empty rhetoric of the rail carriers and their lobbyists try to sell.

The graphics for the signs were put together in house by SMART-TD’s PR staff, and the cost for the truck was shared between the Colorado State Legislative committee, Local 202 out of Denver and other local boards of adjustment.

This effort on the part of the Colorado Legislative Committee was not all about making departing CEO Fritz and co. aware of SMART-TD’s objections to the way they run a railroad, and the public awareness the truck created throughout the state has an additional purpose.

Brother Smith has a three-pronged bill to be introduced in the halls of Colorado’s Legislature. His bill looks to directly undo some of the basic problems our faces in the era of PSR. The legislation has not been assigned a bill number yet, but seeks to limit train lengths, regulate the use of hot box defect detectors in the state and bring about penalties for the carriers to discourage blocked crossings.

Getting his box truck in front of as many Colorado voters, and news cameras as possible was a unique and creative kickoff to Smith’s campaign to get this important legislation the momentum it needs.

SMART-TD wants to thank Brother Smith, Local 202, and all the men and women who made this possible. We look forward to reporting on the progress of your bill as it makes its way through the process of becoming the law of the land in the great state of Colorado, and we hope you never stop fighting for our members!