Transportation News

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

Our fight for right has just begun

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. By International President Mike Futhey I was asked if our Collective Bargaining Defense Fund, the UTU PAC and our recently inaugurated direct-contact-with-members outreach can stop the assault on labor by [...]

FAA to overhaul pilot, flight attendant training

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. WASHINGTON — An extensive overhaul of air-carrier crew training has been proposed by the Federal Aviation Administration. “This is a major effort to strengthen the performance of pilots, fligh [...]

Amtrak pass information

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. Amtrak provides eligible active and retired UTU/SMART TD members with passes which can be used to get free or reduced-rate travel aboard the passenger railroad. UTU/SMART TD membership alone does not make [...]

Florida Tri-Rail members approve new contract

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. MIAMI – By a four-to-one margin, UTU-member train and engine workers employed by Veolia Transportation — operator of South Florida Tri-Rail — have approved a new agreement. The UTU repre [...]

New bus operator CDL and CLP rules finalized

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. WASHINGTON — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has published a final rule — effective for drivers in 60 days — amending the commercial driver’s license (CDL) knowledg [...]

Amtrak big winner in latest rail-grant release

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. WASHINGTON — Amtrak’s vision for high-speed rail along the Northeast Corridor gained a significant boost May 9 when the Federal Railroad Administration redistributed to Amtrak $795 million of [...]

Lollapalooza of event aids injured conductor

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. Norfolk Southern conductor Larry McVay, 43, caught a bad break Jan. 3 when he lost his right arm and right leg in a horrendous switching accident near Lafayette, Ind. His brothers and sisters in UTU Local [...]

‘No-ride’ list for Amtrak; armed cops on VRE

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. WASHINGTON — Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) says he wants Amtrak and the Department of Homeland Security to create a “no-ride” list for intercity passenger trains, similar to the Secure Fli [...]

al-Qaida but one transport terrorist threat

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. The news media may be atwitter with concerns of an al-Qaida attack on trains, but there is no validation that any specific attack is imminent or has been planned. What is crucial is that each of us — [...]

Union Plus offers disaster relief grants

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. Union members living in areas impacted by the recent tornadoes and flooding, and who participate in Union Plus programs, may be eligible for financial assistance. Union Plus disaster relief grants of $500 [...]