Category: News
Montreal, Maine & Atlantic files for bankruptcy
Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Ltd, the railway involved in last month’s deadly derailment and explosion in Lac-Megantic, Quebec, filed for bankruptcy protection on Wednesday, saying the move would enable the company to preserve the value of its assets. The railway said [...]
Single-person train crew operations must be stopped
By Mike Futhey, SMART Transportation Division President – The events that unfolded July 6 in the Canadian province of Quebec, where a runaway train exploded and killed 47 people in the city of Lac-Megantic, weigh on the minds of an assortment of people whose lives were touch [...]Va. agrees to pay more for Amtrak’s rail service
Responding to a federal mandate and acting on transportation legislation passed this year by the General Assembly, Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Tuesday that Virginia will assume more financial responsibility for Amtrak regional service in the state. The agreement had to be in [...]RRB’s Barrows: ‘We are entitled…we worked for it’
On July 29, Railroad Retirement Board Labor Member Walt Barrows addressed attendees at the SMART Transportation Division’s Anaheim, Calif., regional meeting. He spoke about the beginnings of the RRB, pensions and retirement plans, attacks on workers in both the public and pri [...]TSA expands to railroad stations
WASHINGTON – As hundreds of commuters emerged from Amtrak and commuter trains at Union Station on a recent morning, an armed squad of men and women dressed in bulletproof vests made their way through the crowds. The squad was not with the D.C. Police Department or Amtrak’s po [...]Oil sands rail terminal to be built in Canada
Canadian midstream company Gibson Energy Inc and logistics provider U.S. Development Group (USDG) said on Tuesday they will build a 140,000-barrel-per-day terminal in Hardisty, Alberta, to ship oil sands crude by rail. The project would be the largest terminal for western Can [...]Transportation bill’s demise points to 2014 stalemate
The collapse of U.S. transportation funding bills in both houses of Congress points to a broader stalemate over fiscal 2014 spending and threatens to extend across-the-board budget cuts into next year. Senate Republicans yesterday blocked a $54 billion measure funding highway [...]Derailed train in La. carrying highly toxic substances
A train carrying highly flammable and corrosive materials derailed in Louisiana on Sunday. Over 100 homes have been evacuated as a precaution, Gov. Bobby Jindal said, adding there were no fatalities or injuries and air monitors have not picked up anything to cause concern. Ac [...]