By Mike Futhey, SMART Transportation Division President – The events that unfolded July 6 in the Canadian province of Quebec, where a runaway train exploded and killed 47 people in the city of Lac-Megantic, weigh on the minds of an assortment of people whose lives were touch [...]
Responding to a federal mandate and acting on transportation legislation passed this year by the General Assembly, Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Tuesday that Virginia will assume more financial responsibility for Amtrak regional service in the state. The agreement had to be in [...]
On July 29, Railroad Retirement Board Labor Member Walt Barrows addressed attendees at the SMART Transportation Division’s Anaheim, Calif., regional meeting. He spoke about the beginnings of the RRB, pensions and retirement plans, attacks on workers in both the public and pri [...]
WASHINGTON – As hundreds of commuters emerged from Amtrak and commuter trains at Union Station on a recent morning, an armed squad of men and women dressed in bulletproof vests made their way through the crowds. The squad was not with the D.C. Police Department or Amtrak’s po [...]
Canadian midstream company Gibson Energy Inc and logistics provider U.S. Development Group (USDG) said on Tuesday they will build a 140,000-barrel-per-day terminal in Hardisty, Alberta, to ship oil sands crude by rail. The project would be the largest terminal for western Can [...]
The collapse of U.S. transportation funding bills in both houses of Congress points to a broader stalemate over fiscal 2014 spending and threatens to extend across-the-board budget cuts into next year. Senate Republicans yesterday blocked a $54 billion measure funding highway [...]
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The chief executive officer of the state-owned Alaska Railroad is stepping down after his three-year contract expires in September. Chris Aadnesen announced his departure at a board of directors meeting July 30. Read the complete story at the Miami Herald.
A train carrying highly flammable and corrosive materials derailed in Louisiana on Sunday. Over 100 homes have been evacuated as a precaution, Gov. Bobby Jindal said, adding there were no fatalities or injuries and air monitors have not picked up anything to cause concern. Ac [...]
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) August 2 issued an emergency order and safety advisory to help prevent trains operating on mainline tracks or sidings from moving unintentionally. The FRA’s announcement was made in res [...]
CLEVELAND — The Transportation Division of the Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation International Association (SMART) and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET/IBT) have jointly announced that legislation requiring at least two crew members on all fr [...]
