BNSF adopting new locomotive locking mechanism

In an effort to help secure unattended controlling locomotives of all trains against unauthorized entry, BNSF Railway has adopted a D575-style locking mechanism as a standard for new locomotives and is retrofitting existing locomotives with this design, the company announced [...]

Canada moves ahead in phasing out old tank cars

WASHINGTON – In response to a deadly train derailment last summer, the Canadian government Wednesday ordered the country’s railroads to phase out tens of thousands of older, puncture-prone tank cars from crude oil transportation within three years. Though Transport Canada and [...]

Bus travel gives other modes run for the money

Buses are starting to give airlines, trains, and even cars a run for their money. With spiffed up coaches, internet reservations, and often significantly cheaper fares, bus travel is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to flying, taking the train and even driving you [...]

SMART To Seek Two-Person Crew Laws By State

CLEVELAND – As part of an ongoing effort to secure a law mandating a minimum of two crew members in the cab of all locomotives, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and the Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Ra [...]

NTSB: Oil tanker rail safety has been compromised

The recent spate of accidents in the U.S. and Canada involving trains carrying crude oil demonstrates that “far too often, safety has been compromised,” the head of the top U.S. transportation safety agency said today. The amount of crude oil transported on railroads — shipme [...]

AFL-CIO's TTD thanks Foxx for engaging labor

WASHINGTON – Edward Wytkind, president of the AFL-CIO’s Transportation Trades Department, issued this statement in support of U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx’s effort to highlight the importance of investing in America’s surface transportation nee [...]

CSX conductor robbed, injured in Ocala, Fla.

OCALA, Fla. – Ocala Police are searching for whoever robbed a freight train this week. The crime sent the train’s conductor to the hospital. Now the railroad company is offering a reward for the robber’s capture. People at the Ocala Laundromat where train tracks run underneat [...]