News Archive
SMART statement on President Biden’s 2023 State of the Union address
President Biden delivered his second State of the Union address on February 7, 2023 – outlining the ways in which the Biden administration’s economic plan is delivering results for working families. SMART issued the following statement in response: “On the campaign trail and [...]
TD President Ferguson, others to appear with senators to demand paid sick time for rail workers
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 – SMART Transportation Division leadership as well as officers from the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes and the AFL-CIO Transportation Trades Department [...]
Assistance for East Palestine, Ohio, derailment evacuees
Those wishing to contribute donations to the community of East Palestine, Ohio, due to the major Norfolk Southern derailment Friday are urged to pitch in to assist evacuees of the village near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. The NTSB will be the lead agency for providing update [...]
SMART Local 28’s Leah Rambo appointed deputy director of U.S. DOL Women’s Bureau executive team
The U.S. Department of Labor Women’s Bureau appointed SMART Local 28’s Leah Rambo as deputy director of its executive team in early February. In response, SMART issued the following statement: “The U.S. Department of Labor’s Women’s Bureau does important wor [...]
Local 1715 members ratify contract with CATS
Bus operators of SMART Local 1715 in Charlotte, N.C., on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023, ratified a new collective bargaining agreement with a vote margin of 20 to 1. The new contract for the operators for the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) calls for a significant wage increase [...]
Fiery derailment causes evacuation in Ohio
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has been launched to investigate a 50-car Norfolk Southern derailment that caused an inferno in East Palestine, Ohio, the night of Feb. 3. According to WKBN, a state of emergency was declared by the mayor of the village with a p [...]
BNSF asks the FRA for permission to run trains with 120 CFM of flow in the name of safety
It’s difficult to imagine trying to pass off reducing the braking power of a freight train as a safety precaution, but that is exactly what BNSF attempted to do recently in a request to the FRA for a variance to increase the allowable amount of flow from 90 CFM to 120 CFM. In [...]