Delegate credentials for the first SMART Convention in Las Vegas have now been emailed to all Transportation Division local secretaries, except those secretaries for whom no email address was available. This credential is for the so-called “automatic delegate,” that is, the local delegate of record and presumed to be attending the Transportation Division Convention in San Diego.
If your local is going to be represented in Las Vegas by the alternate delegate, the local secretary must email smartbase@smart-union.org advising that the alternate delegate will be attending. Information contained in the email about the alternate delegate should include: the last four digits of the social security number, first and last name, email address, telephone number and street address.
Once the alternate delegate information is received and confirmed, a new credential will be created for the alternate delegate and emailed to the local secretary.
Upon receipt of these delegate credentials, they must be properly executed by the local and the duplicate credential returned to the SMART offices in Washington, D.C. The original credential must be properly executed by the local and given to the delegate for presentation at registration upon arrival at the Las Vegas convention.
For those locals electing additional delegates for attendance in Las Vegas, the secretary must be a registered SMART Base user in order to submit the required election information. To become a SMART Base registered user, visit http://smartbase.versiform.net.
Delegates and guests should go to the “Cvent” registration site in order to properly register for the convention. The web site for this purpose is http://cvent.com/d/z4qs82.
It is very important that the handling of credentials and registration of delegates and guests be completed as soon as possible to avoid any potential delays or problems upon arrival in Las Vegas for the first SMART Convention.
If there are any questions, feel free to contact the SMART offices in Washington or Cleveland, or email questions to smartbase@smart-union.org.
WASHINGTON – In response to concerns raised by communities across Illinois, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) June 3 called on Canadian National to address ongoing safety and traffic issues including: Canadian National’s lack of cooperation with the State of Illinois and Amtrak, which has hindered efforts to expand rail service in Northern Illinois between Galena and Rockford; increased rail traffic that has resulted in a record rate of blocked rail crossings; and Canadian National’s refusal to work with local communities, like Richton Park, to resolve safety issues.
“Last year, I met with Canadian National President Claude Mongeau to discuss ongoing concerns regarding CN operations along the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway and new Amtrak service between Chicago-Rockford-Galena,” Durbin said. “Unfortunately, several significant issues remain unresolved, and I continue to hear from local communities looking for better cooperation from the rail company regarding their traffic and safety concerns.”
With the acquisition of the EJ&E Railway, Canadian National plans on significantly increasing freight rail traffic along the line (a four to six time increase in trains per day). In the decision to approve Canadian National’s acquisition of the EJ&E, the Surface Transportation Board (STB) established an oversight period of 5-years to monitor the operational and environmental impacts of the acquisition. In the June 3 letter, Durbin raised the possibility of extending that oversight period in order to ensure that the issues outlined below are addressed.
Lack of Cooperation Hindering Passenger Rail Expansion: The State of Illinois and Amtrak have been negotiating an agreement with CN to bring new passenger rail service from Chicago to Rockford and Galena. In May, the State of Illinois announced that due largely to the lack of cooperation from CN, it would be pursuing an alternate route between Chicago and Rockford along Union Pacific tracks. Because the only feasible rail route west from Rockford to Galena runs along the CN, the State of Illinois and Amtrak will not be able to provide service to Galena if CN continues to slow walk negotiations and makes unreasonable capital demands.
Failure to Respond to Community Safety Issues: Canadian National has not responded to even minor safety issues brought to its attention by communities along its rail line. Richton Park recently requested a small easement from CN to install safety fencing, using funding the community received through a grant from the Illinois Commerce Commission. Although these easements were required by the STB in several locations along the EJE, CN rejected Richton Park’s request and has been unresponsive to appeals to reconsider.
Increased Rail Traffic and Blocked Road-Rail Crossings: Increased rail traffic along the EJ&E has resulted in a record number of blocked road-rail crossings and increased delays throughout the EJ&E corridor. In the first quarter of this year, there have been 5,267 instances of crossings being blocked by trains for ten minutes or more – the highest number since CN took ownership of the rail line.
Durbin has been working to address community concerns about blocked crossings that exacerbate traffic bottlenecks and challenge emergency responders’ mobility, rail safety, noise, air pollution from additional congestion, and interference with proposed Metra expansions. In 2010, Durbin announced the City of Barrington received a $2.8 million grant to fund the planning, designing and engineering of a grade separation at the U.S. Route 14 and EJ&E crossing through the Department of Transportation’s Transportation Investments Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER II) program.
In 2011, Durbin and Senator Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) sent a letter to members of the STB regarding the Village of Barrington’s petition seeking additional mitigation efforts from the Canadian National. The Village also commissioned a study regarding the impact of Canadian National’s increased use of the EJ&E line that bisects the community. The Village’s review found that the STB’s previous study contained several flaws in the methodology and provided results that diluted actual traffic congestion and traffic delay impacts.
In 2013, after learning of CN’s efforts to avoid paying its fair share of mitigation efforts in Lynwood and Aurora, Durbin sent a letter to the STB urging the agency to extend the deadline by which construction must start on critical grade separations, preventing CN from running out the clock on meeting their responsibilities to those communities.
The full text of Durbin’s letter to Canadian National is below.
Claude Mongeau President and CEO Canadian National Railway Company P.O. Box 8100 Montreal, QC H3C 3H4
Dear Mr. Mongeau:
I am writing regarding CN’s poor communication and cooperation with Illinois passenger and freight rail stakeholders. We met last year to discuss local community concerns with CN operations over the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway (EJE) and new Amtrak service between Chicago-Rockford-Galena. Since that time, several of the issues we discussed then remain unresolved, and I encourage you move expeditiously to address them.
The State of Illinois and Amtrak have been trying to negotiate an agreement with CN to bring new passenger rail service from Chicago to Rockford and Galena. Last month, the State of Illinois announced it is pursuing an alternate route between Chicago and Rockford along Union Pacific tracks. This decision was due largely to the lack of cooperation from CN, which owns the originally selected route between those two cities. Unfortunately, the only feasible rail route West from Rockford to Galena runs along the CN. The State of Illinois and Amtrak will not be able to provide service to Galena as long as CN slow walks negotiations and makes unreasonable capital demands.
Secondly, several communities have contacted my office with concerns about increased rail traffic along the EJ&E. The Village of Barrington and City of Aurora have been vigilant in promoting increased rail safety, especially for trains carrying crude oil and ethanol. These large unit trains and other freight trains are blocking crossings and increasing delays throughout the EJ&E corridor. In fact, despite CN’s claims that track upgrades would decrease the number and duration of blocked crossings, there have been 5,267 instances of crossings being blocked by trains for ten minutes or more in the first quarter of 2014 – the highest number since CN took ownership of the rail line.
Even minor safety issues are being dismissed out of hand. For example, Richton Park recently requested a very small easement from CN to install safety fencing with a grant it received from the Illinois Commerce Commission. These easements were required by the Surface Transportation Board (STB) in several locations along the EJE, but CN summarily rejected Richton Park’s and has been unresponsive to appeals from our office and the local community to reconsider.
The STB placed CN under an unprecedented six year monitoring period after your railroad completed the controversial purchase of the EJE. The monitoring period is in place to ensure CN fully complies with the promises it made when CN acquired the EJE. That monitoring period expires at the end of this year, but it may be prudent to extend this period while the problems outlined above remain.
I hope CN can resolve these issues as soon as possible. I stand ready to work with you to improve the safety and availability of passenger and freight rail service along CN routes in Illinois.
Two railroad companies want to prevent the public from getting details about oil shipments through Washington state, information the federal government ordered be given to state emergency managers after several oil-train accidents.
But restricting such information violates the state’s public-records law, so the state has not signed documents from the rail companies seeking confidentiality, said Mark Stewart, a spokesman for the Washington Military Department’s Emergency Management Division.
Cahill Former UTU Vice President George J. Cahill, 85, died June 3 after a courageous battle with cancer. A member of SMART Transportation Division Local 1978 at New York and the former Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen Lodge 328, Cahill began his railroading career as a crew caller on New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad in 1944. He became a mailroom clerk and later worked as a baggageman and brakeman. He became a ticket collector in 1952 and a passenger conductor in 1954. Before being elevated to the office of UTU International vice president, he served as a general chairperson from 1958 to 1976. Cahill served in the U.S. Marine Corps and was an alderman from the City Point neighborhood of New Haven, Conn. He was appointed a member of the Connecticut Transportation Authority by Gov. John Dempsey and was appointed chairman of the Connecticut Public Transportation Authority by Gov. Ella Grasso. He was one of the 84 delegates of the Connecticut Constitutional Convention that revised the current Connecticut Constitution in 1965. He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Sally Tracey Cahill, his sons, George (Jackie) Cahill Jr. of Branford; Robert (Isabelle) Cahill of Uxbridge, Mass.; Stephen (Gina) Cahill of Hamden; Michael (Sandra) Cahill of Guilford; and his daughter Kathleen (Andrew) Omicioli of West Warwick, R.I. In addition, he is survived by his sister, Ann Marie Eaton, 16 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren. Cahill’s friends and family will leave the W.S. Clancy Memorial Funeral Home, 244 North Main St. in Branford, Conn., Friday morning (June 6) at 9:30 a.m. for a Mass of Christian Burial in St. Mary’s Church at 10:00. Burial will follow in St. Agnes Cemetery in Branford. Friends may call June 5 from 4 to 8 p.m. at W.S. Clancy Memorial Funeral Home. For more information, visit www.wsclancy.com.
Nearly 99 percent of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) members working for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) have voted to authorize a strike when a mandatory 30-day cooling off period under the Railway Labor Act ends in less than two weeks, BLET officials announced this morning.
Locomotive engineers could walk off the job or be locked out by SEPTA at 12:01 a.m. on June 14 unless President Barack Obama intervenes and appoints a Presidential Emergency Board (PEB), according to a BLET press release. A PEB would delay a strike or lockout, and would investigate and issue a report and recommendations concerning a dispute in negotiations, union officials said.
WASHINGTON — The nation’s top railroad regulator drew withering criticism Tuesday for his agency’s record of safety enforcement against Metro-North Railroad.
The Federal Railroad Administration’s use of its power to fine railroads for safety violations “is a mockery of justice,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal with some heat in an interview after tangling with FRA Administrator Joseph Szabo during a Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation subcommittee hearing.
WASHINGTON – The Association of American Railroads (AAR) June 3 announced that North America’s freight railroads will host events in multiple cities across the country in observance of the sixth-annual International Level Crossing Day (ILCAD) aimed at raising public awareness about safe behavior around railroad grade crossings.
“Safety is the foundation for everything we do, and supporting ILCAD gives railroads another opportunity to help educate the public about being safe around grade crossings,” said AAR President and CEO Edward R. Hamberger. “Education and outreach are key to saving lives, so it’s up to all of us to spread the word and make people aware of the consequences of risky behavior around railroad tracks. One accident because someone was in a hurry or looking to save time is one accident too many.”
Across North America, freight railroads, community leaders, law enforcement and Operation Lifesaver, Inc., (OLI) are hosting grade crossing safety awareness events and conducting promotional outreach across the country. This includes things such as:
“Officer on a Train” rides where law enforcement officers are invited to ride on trains and observe motorist behavior at crossings;
train safety displays in passenger and commuter rail stations;
participation in local television shows and children’s programs, and
distribution of literature about railroad safety and a safety program targeting truck drivers.
Railroads have worked with communities and law enforcement to promote grade crossing safety and commit significant resources each year to educate the public on grade crossing and pedestrian safety. This includes the “See Tracks? Think Train!” campaign recently launched jointly by AAR and OLI.
These efforts have helped reduce grade crossing collisions and fatalities over the years, with grade crossing collisions in 2013 down 80 percent since 1980 and grade crossing fatalities down 70 percent since 1980. Grade crossing infrastructure improvements also help improve safety. Since 1980, the total number of public grade crossings has declined 40 percent, and the number of crossings with gates has increased 177 percent.
The ILCAD Campaign was established in 2009 by the international railroad community in conjunction with various highway organizations, the European Commission and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) to raise awareness among road users and pedestrians of the risks at grade crossings. To date, more than 40 countries around the world have participated in ILCAD. For more information on International Level Crossing Awareness Day, please go to www.ilcad.org.
Each year, the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) prepares a “Certificate of Service Months and Compensation” (Form BA-6) for every railroad employee who had creditable railroad compensation in the previous calendar year. The RRB will mail the forms to employees during the first half of June. While every effort has been made to maintain current addresses for all active railroad employees, anyone with compensation reported in 2013 who has not received Form BA-6 by July 1, or needs a replacement, should contact the nearest RRB field office by calling the agency’s toll-free number (877) 772-5772.
Form BA-6 provides employees with a record of their railroad retirement service and compensation, and the information shown is used to determine whether an employee qualifies for benefits and the amount of those benefits. It is important that employees review their Form BA-6 to see whether their own records of service months and creditable compensation agree with the figures shown on the form.
In checking the 2013 compensation total, employees should be aware that only annual earnings up to $113,700 were creditable for railroad retirement purposes in that year, and that $113,700 is the maximum amount shown on the form. To assist employees in reviewing their service credits, the form also shows service credited on a month-by-month basis for 2012, 2011, and 2010, when the creditable compensation maximum was $110,100 for 2012 and $106,800 for both 2011 and 2010. The form also identifies the employer(s) reporting the employee’s 2013 service and compensation.
Besides the months of service reported by employers, Form BA-6 shows the number of any additional service months deemed by the RRB. Deemed service months may be credited under certain conditions for an employee who did not work in all 12 months of the year, but had creditable Tier II earnings exceeding monthly prorations of the creditable Tier II earnings maximum for the year. However, the total of reported and deemed service months may never exceed 12 in a calendar year, and no service months, reported or deemed, can be credited after retirement, severance, resignation, discharge, or death.
Form BA-6 shows the number of months of verified military service creditable as service under the Railroad Retirement Act, if the service was previously reported to the RRB. Employees are encouraged to submit proofs of age and/or military service in advance of their actual retirement.
Filing these proofs with the RRB in advance will streamline the benefit application process and prevent payment delays.
For employees who received separation or severance payments, the section of the form designated “Taxable Amount” shows the amounts reported by employers of any separation allowance or severance payments that were subject to railroad retirement Tier II taxes. This information is shown on the form because a lump sum, approximating part or all of the Tier II taxes deducted from such payments made after 1984 which did not provide additional Tier II credits, may be payable by the RRB upon retirement to qualified employees or to survivors if the employee dies before retirement. The amount of an allowance included in an employee’s regular compensation is shown under “Compensation Amount.”
Form BA-6 also shows, in the section designated “Employee Contributions,” the cumulative amount of Tier II railroad retirement payroll taxes paid by the employee over and above Tier I social security equivalent payroll taxes. While the RRB does not collect or maintain payroll tax information, the agency computes this amount from its compensation records in order to advise retired employees of their payroll tax contributions for federal income tax purposes.
Employees should check their name, address, birth date and sex shown at the top of the form. If the form shows the birth date as 99-9999 and the gender code is “U” (for unknown), it means the RRB is verifying his or her social security number with the Social Security Administration. Otherwise, if the personal identifying information is incorrect or incomplete (generally a case where the employee’s surname has more than 10 letters and the form shows only the first 10 letters) or the address is not correct, the employee should contact an RRB field office. The field office can then correct the RRB’s records. This is important in order to prevent identity or security-related problems that could arise if the employee wants to use certain Internet services available on the RRB’s website at www.rrb.gov.
Employees may view their railroad retirement service and compensation records; get annuity estimates; apply for or claim railroad unemployment benefits; claim sickness benefits; and access their railroad unemployment insurance account statements through the RRB’s website. To use these online services, an employee must set up an RRB Internet Services account. Instructions for establishing an online account can be found in the “Benefit Online Services Login” section on the home page. For security purposes, first-time users must enter a Password Request Code (PRC). The agency mails a PRC to any employee who files a paper application for unemployment or sickness benefits. If an individual has not received a PRC, they can request one by clicking the appropriate box on the home page. They will then receive the PRC by mail at their home address in about 10 days.
Employees can also request that printouts of their individual railroad retirement records of service months and compensation be mailed to them. A PIN/Password is not required to use this service. It can be accessed by visiting www.rrb.gov, moving the cursor over the “Beneficiaries & RR Employees” category and then clicking on “Request Service & Compensation History.”
If the employee’s name was incomplete on Form BA-6, and he or she has not yet contacted an RRB field office to correct it, the employee should enter his or her first and middle initials and his or her surname just as it appears on the Form BA-6 or a previously furnished printout of service and compensation, along with the other requested information, in order to submit an online request.
Any other discrepancies in Form BA-6 should be reported promptly in writing to: Protest Unit-CESC, U.S. Railroad Retirement Board, 844 North Rush Street, Chicago, IL 60611-2092. The employee must include his or her social security number in the letter. Form BA-6 also explains what other documentation and information should be provided. The law limits to four years the period during which corrections to service and compensation amounts can be made.
For most employees, the address of the RRB office serving their area is provided on the form along with the RRB’s nationwide toll-free number (877) 772-5772. Most RRB offices are open to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except on federal holidays.
Amtrak, the Federal Railroad Administration, Norfolk Southern, and the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) have embarked on constructing the $71.4 million Indiana Gateway project, which will upgrade the right-of-way between Porter, Ind., and the Illinois state line shared by Amtrak and NS trains.
The Indiana Gateway project will improve seven locations on NS’s Chicago Line and one on the Amtrak Michigan Line. NS will install universal crossovers at five locations and construct a third main line track at three locations. Amtrak will build a new passing siding near Porter Interlocking, where NS, Amtrak, and two CSX lines intersect.
WASHINGTON – The Association of American Railroads (AAR) issued the following statement by President and CEO Edward R. Hamberger in response to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Power Plan proposal.
“While AAR is still reviewing the proposal, freight railroads are concerned about the economic consequences the rule could have for both the coal industry and the larger American economy. We must not lose sight of the energy needs required to maintain our nation’s well-being and economic competitiveness in the years ahead. EPA needs to strike the right balance between environmental goals and technological and economic feasibility, and avoid actions that undermine job growth or place American manufacturers at a competitive disadvantage in world markets.”
Delegate credentials for the first SMART Convention in Las Vegas have now been emailed to all Transportation Division local secretaries, except those secretaries for whom no email address was available. This credential is for the so-called “automatic delegate,” that is, the local delegate of record and presumed to be attending the Transportation Division Convention in San Diego.
Nearly 99 percent of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) members working for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) have voted to authorize a strike when a mandatory 30-day cooling off period under the Railway Labor Act ends in less than two weeks, BLET officials announced this morning.
WASHINGTON – The Association of American Railroads (AAR) June 3 announced that North America’s freight railroads will host events in multiple cities across the country in observance of the sixth-annual International Level Crossing Day (ILCAD) aimed at raising public awareness about safe behavior around railroad grade crossings.
Each year, the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) prepares a “Certificate of Service Months and Compensation” (Form BA-6) for every railroad employee who had creditable railroad compensation in the previous calendar year. The RRB will mail the forms to employees during the first half of June. While every effort has been made to maintain current addresses for all active railroad employees, anyone with compensation reported in 2013 who has not received Form BA-6 by July 1, or needs a replacement, should contact the nearest RRB field office by calling the agency’s toll-free number (877) 772-5772.
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