Washington, D.C. — A transportation bill introduced by a Senate committee chairman would allow car rental companies to rent recalled vehicles that haven’t been repaired and eliminate any hard deadline for railroads to start using long-sought technology that automatically stops trains to prevent crashes, safety advocates say.
The bill was introduced Thursday by Sen. John Thune, R – S.D., the chairman of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
The bill includes provisions that would give freight and commuter railroads and Amtrak more time to install positive train control. The technology relies on GPS, wireless radio and computers to monitor train position and automatically stop trains that are in danger of derailing because they’re traveling too fast, are about to collide with another train or are about to enter an area where crews are working on tracks.
Washington, DC — Edward Wytkind, president of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), issued this statement on the Comprehensive Transportation and Consumer Protection Act of 2015, introduced by Sen. John Thune (R – S.D.):
Wytkind
“At a time when our country’s transportation infrastructure is failing and disenfranchised Americans are desperate for work, bipartisan support is crucial to fund our nation’s highway and transit systems, and boost job creation.
“Instead of following a bipartisan model — as Senators James Inhofe (R-OK) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) of the EPW Committee demonstrated last month — Commerce Committee Republicans are unwisely using their section of the surface transportation reauthorization bill to advance a partisan agenda that harms workers.
“The Thune bill includes a poorly veiled measure designed to blame workers and their unions for all port delays during a bargaining dispute. It also prematurely allows the use of hair specimens for drug testing of bus and truck drivers. These provisions have no place in any portion of the surface transportation reauthorization bill.
“Sen. Thune’s bill also fails to require rail carriers to provide emergency responders with information about the amount and type of hazardous materials moving through their localities — a commonsense measure that is critical to the efforts of first responders to save lives.
“The highway/transit reauthorization bill is one of the most important initiatives Congress will consider this year. Senate Commerce Committee Republicans must stop playing partisan politics with this already long-delayed transportation investment bill, and reject proposals that undermine the rights of employees and fail to support our transportation system.”
The following letter was written by Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission Chairman Stephen R. Miller.
Dear Reader,
Miller
Genevieve is a young woman pursing graduate work in computer science at a university in Pennsylvania. She is home visiting her family in Kansas City for a month this summer. I met Genevieve at Union Station in Kansas City. I was there on Sunday afternoon to catch the train to St. Louis for early morning meetings in St. Louis with business and civic leaders to discuss “The Road to Tomorrow” – MoDOT’s latest effort to re-vitalize public interest in the reconstruction of Interstate 70. For me, the trip represented an attractive option – I did not have to fight airport security and crowds nor worry about the traffic on I-70. It gave me a relaxing ride during which I had a quiet, serene environment to work on revisions to an appellate brief due later in the week and prepare for my meetings the next morning.
For Genevieve, the train was not an option, it was a necessity. Genevieve is blind. Her aunt dropped her off at Union Station, spotted me in the waiting room and asked me if I would allow Genevieve to take my arm as she navigated the stairs and railroad platform along with her guide dog, Peru. Genevieve was traveling to Warrensburg to visit her friend, Kelsey, another blind young woman, for the week and the train represented a safe, affordable means for her to travel. As Peru stretched out on the floor of the train, Genevieve spoke excitedly about her travel. She has ridden the train before, even taking it from Pennsylvania back to Kansas City. It is a long trip but less stressful than air travel on both her – and Peru.
As I walked through the four cars of the Missouri River Runner, I saw Missourians of all ages, races and economic backgrounds. Each had their own reasons and story for being on the train that day. I stopped and spoke with a Boy Scout leader returning from Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico with 12 scouts from St. Louis. (He seemed a little worse for the wear with his leg in a cast but grateful for the additional space of the rail car.) There was a father and son, a young male millennial watching a movie on an iPad, mothers traveling with young children and some businessmen.
As the beautiful Missouri countryside raced by, the train rocking gently and the low horn of the locomotive occasionally sounding, I was struck once again by the importance of transportation – in all its various modes. Passenger rail travel is just one of those modes for which the Commission is responsible. In my six years on the Commission, I have watched on-time performance and ridership increase dramatically. Ridership has grown by 72 percent since 2007, and of all the Amtrak routes in the country, the Missouri River Runner has climbed from 29th to second in the nation in customer satisfaction.
Missourians have told us they want more opportunities for passenger rail. They want increased frequencies on the existing route as well as new routes serving additional areas of the state. This increasing demand is not unique to Missouri and is prompting many states to invest in improving service, speed and frequencies of passenger rail. Capital investment in passenger rail in Missouri is falling further and further behind other states, which is unfortunate. Passenger rail is not only a safe and environmentally friendly form of transportation, but also an engine for economic development and civic pride.
My trip reminded me that even as we fight to save our current roads and bridges and as we look to the future for ways to rebuild I-70, we must also look to the past as a reminder that the transportation of the future must be an integrated system that embraces all modes of transportation. So, thank you Genevieve and Peru for showing us the way – and safe travels!
Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx threw cold water Wednesday, July 8, on a Republican plan to privatize large portions of the nation’s air traffic control system.
House Transportation Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) is expected to call for the creation of a new non-governmental agency that would take over air traffic control from the Federal Aviation Administration in a forthcoming funding bill for the agency.
Foxx said Wednesday, during a meeting with reporters at the Transportation Department’s headquarters that he did not see the need to remove the federal government from the airplane navigation process.
How many times have you been a part of a crew-induced emergency?
Conductors, how many times have you alerted your engineer to take action to stop the train?
Engineers, do you discuss parameters with your conductors for emergency brake application in your job briefings?
Conductors, have you ever pulled the emergency brake (dumped the air) to stop your train?
Do you discuss the possible situation of emergency in your job briefings and develop an action plan?
Did you know that on the BNSF only three percent of crew-induced emergencies are performed by the conductor?
According to the SMART Rail Safety Task Force, this message is not intended for conductors to take control of the locomotive from the hands of the engineer. This message is meant to encourage crews to work together for safe train operation. Conductors must know they are empowered to take action if deemed necessary after assessing the situation with their engineer. It is paramount for both crewmembers to stay engaged and focused on the task at hand for safe train operations.
All too often when signals are run, speeding is excessive or train handling is improper, conductors say, “I thought the engineer had it.”
Tips for success:
Job briefing: crews discuss parameters for conductors to take action and put that plan in place for emergency situations.
Conductors must stay focused and alert your engineer that he or she needs to take action.
Engineers must remain vigilant and aware of their situation.
CSX operating rule: 301 – control of train speed
301.1: Crewmembers must notify the locomotive operator of any condition that requires the train to reduce speed or stop not more than five miles, but not less than two miles, before reaching the condition.
301.2: If the locomotive operator fails to control the train in accordance with authorized speed, other crewmembers must take action to ensure the safety of the train. When train speed exceeds authorized speed by:( a.) Less than five mph, other crewmembers must direct the locomotive operator to slow the train to authorized speed, or (b.) five mph or more, other crewmembers must direct the locomotive operator to stop the train and immediately report the occurrence to the proper authority. The train must not proceed until released.
301.3: Make an emergency air brake application to stop the train if the: (a.) automatic braking system fails to respond as expected, or (b.) locomotive operator fails to take action when the train is required to stop or (c.) locomotive operator becomes incapacitated.
Do you see an unsafe trend developing, do you have an idea that will make our work place a safer one? Click here to email your SMART Rail Safety Task Force.
(This is Safety Alert #10 in a series of alerts posted by the SMART Rail Safety Task Force.)
Most Americans like to think of the United States as a classless society. At its core, the American dream has traditionally been defined by the freedom to choose a vocation, a strong belief in economic mobility, and a spirit of egalitarianism.
But over the last several decades we have been bearing witness to the growth of a disturbing streak of aristocratic bias in our cultural fabric and our national temperament, one that is increasingly manifesting itself in the views we hold and the assumptions we make about people who work with their hands.
Judgments about intelligence carry great weight in our society, and unfortunately Americans (especially American lawmakers and media elites) are developing an unsettling tendency to make sweeping assessments of people’s intelligence, as well as their overall worthiness as human beings, based upon the kind of work they do.
Don’t joke with Metra Assistant Conductor Don Kiesgen that all he does is “take tickets and open doors.”
It’s nothing he hasn’t heard from his family already.
Sure, the Metra veteran handles those two jobs.
There’s also throwing switches, testing the air brakes, announcing stops, coupling cars, hoisting luggage, filling out paperwork, monitoring rowdy teens, making sure Train 2115 goes 10 mph at the Grayslake crossover, collecting trains from the yard and verifying foreman Rob McFarlin’s work crew isn’t on the tracks.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) is soliciting nominations to fill five, 3-year vacancies on the Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans, also known as the ERISA Advisory Council. The deadline to submit nominations is July 31.
The 15-member council provides advice on policies and regulations affecting employee benefit plans governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. The secretary of labor appoints members for staggered 3-year terms. Members represent specified groups or fields that are involved in employee benefits.
The council meets at least four times a year and makes recommendations to the secretary regarding functions carried out under ERISA. Participation in the council’s meetings and other work generally requires a commitment of 15 to 20 days per year.
EBSA will accept nominations to fill one vacancy in each of the following five fields:
Employee organizations
Employers
Investment counseling
Actuarial counseling
The general public
Interested individuals and organizations may nominate qualified candidates for membership.
Nominations should briefly describe the individual’s qualifications, and the group or field the candidate represents. Nominations should also include the nominee’s full name, work affiliation, mailing address, phone number and email address. The nomination should also state that, if offered, the candidate would accept the appointment to the ERISA council. Nominations must be submitted by letter, resolution or petition, and be signed by the person or, in the case of a nomination by an organization, by the group’s representative making the recommendation. Additionally, each nomination must include the nominating party’s full name, mailing address, phone number and email address.
Send nominations either by mail or email. Address mailed nominations to Larry Good, Executive Secretary, ERISA Advisory Council, Room N-5623, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20210. Alternatively, send nominations by email to good.larry@dol.gov. The nomination must be a separate attachment to the email.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson welcomed Peter Neffenger Monday, July 6, as the sixth administrator of the Transportation Security Administration in a ceremony held at TSA headquarters in Arlington, Virginia.
Neffenger was confirmed by the U.S. Senate June 22, 2015, following his nomination by President Barack Obama. He now leads a workforce of approximately 60,000 employees, the security operations at nearly 450 airports throughout the United States, the Federal Air Marshal Service, and shared security for highways, railroads, ports, mass transit systems and pipelines.
“TSA’s mission is critical to the safety and security of our nation. I am deeply honored to continue serving our country, particularly alongside the dedicated men and women of TSA,” said Neffenger. “I look forward to applying my years of leadership experience, law enforcement background and security skills to protecting our nation’s transportation systems.”
Neffenger recently retired from the U.S. Coast Guard, where he held many operational, staff and leadership positions during his 34-year career. Before joining TSA, he served as the 29th Vice Commandant, a position held since May 2014. Prior to this post, Neffenger served as the Coast Guard’s Deputy Commandant for Operations, where he directed strategy, policy, resources, and doctrine for the employment of Coast Guard forces globally. He is a recognized expert in crisis management, port security, and oversight of the commercial maritime industry. He most notably served as the Deputy National Incident Commander for the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the largest and most complex in U.S. history.
Neffenger officially took the oath of office as administrator on July 4, 2015.
Despite high-profile train derailments in Tennessee and Pennsylvania, railroads remain relatively safe transportation for people and freight, federal statistics show.
A derailment late Wednesday near Maryville, Tenn., of a CSX freight train carrying acrylonitrile, a hazardous material used to make plastics, rekindled attention in rail safety. So did the derailment May 12 of an Amtrak train in Philadelphia that killed eight people.
The number of freight train accidents dropped nearly in half during the last decade, to 1,644 last year from 3,094 in 2005, according to Federal Railroad Administration statistics.
Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx threw cold water Wednesday, July 8, on a Republican plan to privatize large portions of the nation’s air traffic control system.
Don’t joke with Metra Assistant Conductor Don Kiesgen that all he does is “take tickets and open doors.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Labor’s 
Despite high-profile train derailments in Tennessee and Pennsylvania, railroads remain relatively safe transportation for people and freight, federal statistics show.