CLEVELAND, June 25 — The future of high speed passenger and commuter rail in America is brighter than ever before, and that means more good jobs for members of the Teamsters Rail Conference.
A delegation of passenger rail leaders from the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees (BMWED) came away highly encouraged about President Obama’s plan for high speed rail after attending a Passenger Rail Forum sponsored by the Federal Railroad Administration in Philadelphia on June 2.
Representatives from the federal government outlined the Obama Administration’s national vision for passenger rail in the United States and how the recently allocated stimulus money will be spent to achieve those goals.
“Rail industry veterans who have spent most of their careers reluctantly witnessing the downsizing of many rail facilities and services were heartened by the prospect of infrastructure being restored or newly installed to ease congestion and/or allow the coexistence of freight and passenger services,” said Marcus Ruef, BLET Vice President.
Joining Ruef at the June 2 forum were the BLET’s Amtrak General Chairman Mark Kenny; SEPTA General Chairman Rich Dixon; Long Island Rail Road General Chairman Mickey Quinn; SEPTA Vice General Chairmen Paul Osciak and Don Hill; Pennsylvania State Legislative Board Chairman Ken Kertesz; Division 752 Legislative Rep and New York State Legislative Board 2nd Vice Chairman Brian Gallagher; and BLET Regulatory Coordinator Steve Bruno.
Nearly 500 individuals attended the forum, including the BLET and BMWED. Others in attendance were representatives from passenger and freight railroads, transportation consultants, rail and transit suppliers, federal state and community government representatives, and a variety of consumer and rail passenger advocacy groups.
Breakout sessions followed the initial presentation and some questions and answers from the floor. Many of the labor representatives were seated at tables with complete strangers from other walks of life, but found they shared a common interest in the renaissance of American passenger rail. Participants were asked to contribute their views on how to define and measure the success of the new passenger rail program.
“This was another example of how both BLET and BMWED are staying ahead of the curve and helping to fashion a future where Americans will enjoy reliable, frequent passenger trains operated by Rail Conference members over Rail Conference maintained rights of way,” said BLET National President Ed Rodzwicz.
“Having come up during railroading’s darkest era, and witnessed the destruction of so much infrastructure, it is such a thrill to listen to policymakers talking seriously about putting some of it back so that our members can run faster, more frequent and reliable passenger trains over tracks built and maintained by them as well,” Ruef said.