Transportation News

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RRB releases final rule doubling fraud penalties

The Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) has released an interim final rule doubling penalties to health providers who submit false claims on a railroader’s behalf. Under the rule, the minimum penalty per false claim increases from $5,500 to $10,781. The maximum penalty per false [...]

RRB: Railroad Retirement age reductions Q&A

Railroad retirement benefits are subject to reduction if an employee with less than 30 years of service retires before attaining full retirement age. While employees with less than 30 years of service may still retire at age 62, the age at which full retirement benefits are p [...]

DOT announces $10 million TIGER grant to extend Amtrak

Project includes new passenger platforms in Middlebury, Vergennes and Burlington, Vermont BURLINGTON, Vt. – U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx and Federal Railroad Administrator Sarah E. Feinberg joined Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin, U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy and U. [...]

TTD: Making America great again means rebuilding America

By Larry I. Willis, AFL-CIO Transportation Trades Department Secretary-Treasurer Unfortunately, the anti-growth, anti-government movement is alive and well. Heck, we have extremists in the GOP who think House Speaker Paul Ryan is too moderate.I had the honor last week of spea [...]

Donald Trump: All talk, no plan for Appalachian coal

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reported that although Donald Trump asserted that he will get Appalachian coal miners back to work, he failed to provide details on exactly how he will revitalize the Appalachian coal industry.  Read the entire story here.

SMART TD at round table with Hillary Clinton in Kentucky

On May 2nd, SMART TD Kentucky State Legislative Director Jared Cassity and SMART TD Vice President Doyle Turner paticipated in a round table discussion in Ashland, Ky. with presidential candidate and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Read the complete story here.

FRA, FMCSA to host listening sessions on Obstructive Sleep Apnea

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will host three public listening sessions to solicit information on the prevalence of moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) among individuals occupying safety sens [...]

Unions reject NJT tentative agreement

SMART Transportation Division membership rejected a tentative agreement with New Jersey Transit from March that prevented a strike. BLET also rejected the agreement. Read more from NJ.com.

Ill. county passes resolution supporting proposed two-person crew rule

The following is an article written by SMART Transportation Division Illinois State Legislative Director Bob Guy and was originally published on the Illinois State Legislative Board website, www.illini.utu.org. Upon the urging of SMART, the Will County Board passed a resoluti [...]

Class I’s announce 2016 first quarter financial results

CSX Corporation announced declining financial results for the first quarter 2016. Net earnings for the railroad decreased to $356 million or $0.37 per share, down from first quarter 2015 reported net earnings of $442 million or $0.45 per share. “As we managed through the impa [...]