Transportation News

Visit the digital archive of the SMART-TD News (PDFs)

SMART TD saddened by the sudden loss of Charlene Payne

Charlene Payne, a long-time UnitedHealthcare representative for the Railroad Accounts, passed away unexpectedly Saturday, December 17, 2016. Payne was a dear friend to many at SMART Transportation Division, and her passion and dedication in serving all railroad members was re [...]

OSHA’s Cold Stress Guide

Anyone working in a cold environment may be at risk of cold stress. Some workers may be required to work outdoors in cold environments and for extended periods, for example, snow cleanup crews, sanitation workers, police officers and emergency response and recovery personnel, [...]

Human Rights Committee update

In an effort to improve efficiencies and provide enhanced, more cost effective service to our members, the SMART Transportation Division has recently conducted a review of its internal operations. One of the areas identified for restructuring is the process for providing assi [...]

Republicans plan attacks on unions’ political power

According to an article published by The Hill, Republicans are planning a renewed attack on the political power held by unions via the passing of right-to-work and other unfavorable laws. This comes in the wake of the GOP victories across the country in November giving Republ [...]

Sen. Schumer implores feds to screen transit employees

U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is asking the Dept. of Homeland Security to “immediately step in to enforce a recommendation” made years ago to screen mass transit employees against federal terror watch lists.  Read the complete article from abcnews.go.com.

STB signs Memorandum of Understanding with Canadian Government

Chairman Daniel R. Elliott III of the Surface Transportation Board (STB) visited the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) in Ottawa, Canada, and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to facilitate information sharing between the agencies. The CTA is the economic regulato [...]

Trump slams union leader for speaking the truth

President-elect Trump wasted no time in slamming a union leader for speaking the truth. Chuck Jones, president of United Steelworkers Local 1999 at the Carrier plant in Indiana, stated that the actual number of jobs that will remain at the Indiana plant is near 800, not the n [...]

LACMTA increases security after bomb threat

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) increased security after having received a bomb threat Monday, Dec. 5. The threat warned of a possible attack at the Red Line subway’s Universal Station in Studio City, Calif. LACMTA is working with t [...]

Rail labor seeks federal mediation in national negotiations

On December 5, 2016, Rail Labor’s Coordinated Bargaining Group (CBG) released the following statement, requesting that a federal mediator assist in negotiations: “Despite our best efforts, collective bargaining with the major U.S. Class 1 railroads completely stalled la [...]