Transportation News

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UTU hero school-bus driver avoids fatal crash

BUFFALO — UTU-member and Buffalo school bus driver Yolanda Luciano (Local 1908) is being hailed as a hero — likely saving the lives of one or more of the eight elementary-school students aboard her First Student bus by engaging in a split-second emergency defensiv [...]

UTU to FRA: ‘Say no’ to Mexican safety checks

First it was Union Pacific wanting to have its trains inspected in Mexico. Now BNSF is making the same plea to the FRA — and as the UTU and other rail unions did in the case of UP — the FRA is being advised to, “just say no.” Putting safety first canno [...]

FRA to fine railroad for safety violations

WASHINGTON — Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis (TRRA) faces a fine from the FRA for alleged failure to report an injury and for underreporting of days lost by an injured employee and failure to maintain complete and timely records of injuries to other employees [...]

Pigskin to conductor: ‘It’s job security’

Keith Fitzhugh is a conductor trainee on Norfolk Southern’s Atlanta North District. He could be playing football with the New York Jets. If you think trading a National Football League playbook for an operating employee’s rulebook is something akin to carrying the ball [...]

House Republicans choose committee chairs

WASHINGTON — House Republicans selected their committee leaders Dec. 7. As expected, John Mica (R-Fla.) was elected to chair the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee for 2011-2012. Most legislation affecting air, bus and rail members originates in this committe [...]

2011 drug, alcohol test rates set by DOT

WASHINGTON — Random drug and alcohol tests administered by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the Federal Aviation Administration, the Federal Railroad Administration and the Federal Transit Administration to air, bus and rail workers in safety sensitive p [...]

California chooses initial HSR route

A 65-mile route through California’s Central Valley and Fresno has been selected by state officials as the starting point for a high-speed rail passenger line intended initially to connect Los Angeles and San Francisco, reports The New York Times. That segment would make use [...]

Supreme Court to hear attack on FELA

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court will hear an argument by CSX in 2011 challenging standards for rail workers bringing lawsuits under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA), reports Bloomberg. The decision could affect future FELA cases. The specific case to be heard, [...]

National rail talks: November update

The UTU’s negotiating committee and railroads party to the national rail agreement — affecting some 40,000 UTU members — have met seven times since the contract came open for amendment Jan. 1. “Nothing has been agreed to, but progress is being made on [...]

New battery chemistry may ‘green’ transit buses

A zero-tailpipe-emissions transit bus is in the works from GE Global Research, report canadiandriver.com and wired.com. The new technology, according to canadiandriver.com, combines an energy-dense sodium batter with a high-power lithium battery, and could “help acceler [...]