Transportation News

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First Student memo exposes incentives to cut corners

News 4 has obtained a memo from the president of a huge school bus company telling its employees if they want to make extra money they need to cut serious corners. And that, employees told News 4, is at the root of all the dangerous problems we’ve been uncovering. Read the co [...]

Lawmakers press LIRR to settle with unions

Members of the Long Island congressional delegation are beginning to pressure the MTA to settle a contract dispute with Long Island Rail Road union workers and avert a strike that could cripple the nation’s largest commuter rail system as soon as next month. But the Met [...]

Sen. Heitkamp Honors SMART Member from N.D. Derailment

WASHINGTON – On the floor of the U.S. Senate, Sen. Heidi Heitkamp Feb. 10 shared the heroic story of Geoff Andersen, an engineer in training for Burlington Northern Santé Fe railroad, from Larimore, N.D., whose actions during the recent train derailment near Casselton, N.D., [...]

FMCSA Wants Drug-Test Database for CDL Holders

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today announced a proposed rule to establish a drug and alcohol clearinghouse for all national commercial driver’s license (CDL) holders. The clearinghouse would help improve roadway s [...]

FAA issues rule on PEDs in the cockpit

The Federal Aviation Administration Feb. 12 issued a final rule that reinforces that airline pilots cannot use portable electronic devices for personal use in all operations. The rule codifies existing FAA policies and procedures and meets an FAA Modernization and Reform Act [...]

FMCSA wants drug-test database for CDL holders

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today announced a proposed rule to establish a drug and alcohol clearinghouse for all national commercial driver’s license (CDL) holders. The clearinghouse wou [...]

Amtrak's Boardman: Rural needs trump extras

Amtrak’s CEO says passenger rail service in Southeastern Colorado is more important than some other amenities such as chocolates on the pillows for long-distance travelers. “Our most essential goal is to ensure Amtrak continues to serve small town America that is being abando [...]

Amtrak suspends some service ahead of storm

WASHINGTON – Amtrak is suspending some trains as a winter storm threatens the South and the Northeast. Amtrak says the suspensions Wednesday are meant to reduce the exposure of passengers, crews and equipment to extreme weather. Read the complete story at the Associated Press.

MBTA buses get live video technology

BOSTON – Homeland Security in Washington DC has awarded the MBTA about $7 million to outfit buses with the latest in live video technology. Sophisticated new 360-degree lenses embedded in the ceilings and walls of the buses will now capture everything. And on some buses, ther [...]

Losing bidder for commuter rail contract to appeal

The loser in the battle for a $2.68 billion contract to run Massachusetts commuter rail trains is not going away quietly, vowing that it will appeal to state officials Friday to change their minds. Executives from the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Co. said they intend t [...]