Transportation News

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Federal Metra investigation begins after complaints

CHICAGO (WLS) — A federal investigation into Metra’s operations has begun following three separate complaints that have raised red flags about safety. Those three incidents happened within days of each other, one of them occurring a little bit south of the 35th St [...]

Former UTU Vice President George Cahill dies

Former UTU Vice President George J. Cahill, 85, died June 3 after a courageous battle with cancer. A member of SMART Transportation Division Local 1978 at New York and the former Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen Lodge 328, Cahill began his railroading career as a crew caller [...]

SEPTA railroad engineers authorize strike

Nearly 99 percent of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) members working for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) have voted to authorize a strike when a mandatory 30-day cooling off period under the Railway Labor Act ends in less [...]

AAR promotes safe behavior at rail grade crossings

WASHINGTON – The Association of American Railroads (AAR) June 3 announced that North America’s freight railroads will host events in multiple cities across the country in observance of the sixth-annual International Level Crossing Day (ILCAD) aimed at raising public awareness [...]

Amtrak, FRA, NS kick off $71M Indiana Gateway

Amtrak, the Federal Railroad Administration, Norfolk Southern, and the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) have embarked on constructing the $71.4 million Indiana Gateway project, which will upgrade the right-of-way between Porter, Ind., and the Illinois state line s [...]

SMART Announces June 21 Rally in LIRR Dispute

The International Association of Sheet, Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers and its allied unions on the Long Island Rail Road invite members of organized labor and their family, friends and supporters to a “LIRR Labor Rally” on Saturday, June 21, at 11 a.m. at the Ma [...]

SMART offers to postpone LIRR strike until Sept.

The LIRR unions’ chief negotiator says he wants to make a deal with the MTA that would delay a possible July strike until after Labor Day – sparing Long Island’s summer tourism business and buying more time to negotiate a contract settlement. Although the Metropol [...]

OSHA launches campaign to prevent heat illness

It is getting hotter throughout the country. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) launched a National Campaign to Prevent Heat Illness in Workers. Each year, thousands of workers experience heat-related illnesses and many even die working in the heat. This [...]

Grow America: Federal Railroad Administration

The Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) mission is to ensure the safe, reliable, and efficient rail transportation of people and goods for a strong America, now and in the future. Unfortunately, the growth of our economy and population is outpacing our level of investment [...]

House panel approves transportation bill

The full House will take up a $52 billion spending bill that would fund transportation and housing programs in fiscal 2015 as early as this month. Appropriators backed the legislation May 21 by a vote of 28-21 during a committee hearing. Read the complete story at Transport Topics.