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Daily Headlines
California high-speed rail project targets ‘disadvantaged’ workers
(Source: Sacramento Bee, March 4, 2013) FRESNO, Calif. — The prospect of construction jobs in the recession-weary Central Valley has long been a selling point for proponents of California's $68 billion high-speed rail project. A controversy has arisen, however, since...
Amtrak ridership surges on shorter routes, study finds
(Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 2, 2013) ST. LOUIS, Mo. — Americans are increasingly turning to Amtrak for trips less than 400 miles, like those served by the Missouri River Runner between St. Louis and Kansas City, and the Lincoln Service between St. Louis...
Amtrak sees more national travelers heeding call of ‘All Aboard!’
(Source: The Commercial Appeal, March 2, 2013) MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Last year, a record 31.2-million riders used the government-launched rail service nationwide. Locally, ridership also reached new peaks, as 73,116 riders bought tickets to or from Memphis, up 11 percent...
Amtrak is on track to weather any spending cuts
(Source: CNN, March 1, 2013) WASHINGTON, D.C. — As the hours count down to $85 billion in government-wide spending cuts, there’s one transportation service that won’t be derailed — Amtrak. Officials of the nation’s only long-haul passenger railroad say there will be...
Railroads emerge as alternative to Keystone XL pipeline for moving oil sands from Canada
(Source: Washington Post, March 3, 2013) WASHINGTON, D.C. — Even if foes of the Keystone XL pipeline block it, companies seeking to get Canada’s oil sands to U.S. and world markets could travel the old-fashioned way: by rail. While TransCanada has been trying to...
Swiss voters approve limits on ‘fat cat’ executive pay
(Source: Bloomberg, March 3, 2013) NEW YORK — Swiss voters approved some of the world’s toughest limits on executives’ pay in a referendum, a move critics say could make Switzerland less attractive to multinational corporations. The initiative against “fat cats,”...
Opinion: Billions for Wall Street, sacrifice for everyone else
(Source: Truth-Out.org, March 2, 2013) WASHINGTON, D.C. — The President’s “sequester” offer slashes non-defense spending by $830 billion over the next ten years. That happens to be the precise amount we’re implicitly giving Wall Street’s biggest banks over the same...
Anti-union bill falters in Missouri, thanks in part to your calls and emails
(Source: Teamster Nation, March 3, 2013) WASHINGTON, D.C. — A nasty anti-union bill is stalled in the Missouri senate because Democratic senators are filibustering -- and because YOU are supporting them. The bill, SB 29, would make it illegal for employers to honor...
Acting for impaired Railroad Retirement beneficiaries
(Source: U.S. Railroad Retirement Board press release, February 4, 2013) CHICAGO — According to Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) policy, every annuitant has the right to manage his or her own benefits. However, when physical or mental impairments make a railroad...
The ‘Robin Hood Tax’ is back, and the Koch brothers hate it
(Source: Teamster Nation, February 28, 2013) WASHINGTON, D.C. — Teamsters think it's a terrific idea to levy a tiny tax on financial transactions to raise money for public needs and discourage reckless speculation. Friends-of-labor Sen Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Rep....
