July 25, 2023 | 2-man Crews
In a speech on the Senate floor earlier this month, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) condemned Senate Republicans for pushing “self-regulation” of the railroad industry in the aftermath of the toxic East Palestine derailment. Such dangerous political games...
July 20, 2023 | 2-man Crews, News
Your help is requested to support BLET’s case for two-person crew requirements in Kansas and New Jersey. In Kansas, State Legislative Board Chairman Brandon Nunnenkamp reports that the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) has proposed a two-person crew...
July 18, 2023 | 2-man Crews, Headlines, UP
(Source: Associated Press, July 17, 2023) Union Pacific will renew its push for one-person train crews later this summer when the railroad tests out the idea of having a conductor in a truck respond to problems on trains in Nebraska and Colorado. The railroad will...
July 7, 2023 | 2-man Crews, AAR Freight Trends, Headlines, Lawsuit
(Source: Associated Press, July 7, 2023) The railroad industry has sued to block a new minimum crew-size requirement that Ohio imposed after a fiery train derailment in East Palestine in February. Full story: Associated Press
July 5, 2023 | 2-man Crews, Headlines, Lawsuit, Railroad Safety
(Source: Railway Age, July 5, 2023) The Association of American Railroads filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio on June 30 seeking to block the state’s two-person train crew mandate, which AAR contends doesn’t permit exceptions and is...
July 3, 2023 | 2-man Crews, Headlines, Legislation, Railroad Safety, Train Length
(Source: Associated Press, June 27, 2023) Spurred on by train derailments, some states with busy criss-crossing freight railroads are pursuing their own safety remedies rather than wait for federal action amid industry opposition and questions about whether they even...
June 21, 2023 | 2-man Crews, Derailment, Headlines, Technology
(Source: Trains Magazine, June 19, 2023) KARRATHA, Australia — Australian mining giant Rio Tinto has begun an investigation after 30 cars of one of its autonomous iron ore trains derailed Saturday. Full story: Trains Magazine
June 16, 2023 | 2-man Crews, Headlines, Technology
(Source: Trains Magazine, June 15, 2023) Startup Autonomous Intermodal LLC envisions a system that features an integral 4,000-foot double-stack train and 9,000-horsepower locomotive. Each 4,000-foot double-stack platform can be combined into trains of up to 16,000...
June 13, 2023 | 2-man Crews, East Palestine-NS, Headlines, Legislation, Railroad Safety
(Source: Morning Journal, June 13, 2023) U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) took time out of his tour of RBS Manufacturing in East Palestine on Monday to discuss the current status of the Railway Safety Act of 2023 — the bipartisan bill introduced by Brown and his...
May 31, 2023 | 2-man Crews, Headlines, Legislation, Railroad Safety, Train Length
(Source: Trains Magazine, May 30, 2023) Following a nationwide legislative trend in the wake of February’s derailment and toxic-chemical release in East Palestine, Ohio, the New York state Senate has passed a series of bills seeking to regulate the way railroads...
