Archive for November 2019
STB: U.S. Class I employment slide continued in October
(Source: Progressive Railroading 11/27/2019) Class Is as of mid-October employed 134,582 people, down 1.67 percent from mid-September’s level and down 9.51 percent from October 2018’s count, according to Surface Transportation Board (STB) data. All but one of six workforce categories posted month-to-month employment decreases: Executives, officials and staff assistants logged a 0.37 percent increase to 7,653 employees…
Read MoreRailroads abandon Toys for Tots; toys to arrive by trucks instead
(Source: The Daily Star, November 26, 2019) ONEONTA, N.Y. — The annual Capital Region Toys for Tots train, which makes stops in Cobleskill, Oneonta and Bainbridge, will not be running this year, according to officials. Instead, a convoy of tractor trailers, buses and emergency vehicles will deliver the toys, said Patrick Lurenz, Capital Region Toys…
Read MoreFRA says PTC now operating on 92 percent of route miles
(Source: Federal Railroad Administration press release, November 25, 2019) ABSTRACT: The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today released a quarterly status update on railroads’ self-reported progress toward fully implementing positive train control (PTC) systems. Based on railroads’ Third Quarter 2019 (Q3) PTC Progress Reports which were due to FRA by October 31, 2019, the majority of the…
Read MoreTeamsters Reach Tentative Agreement with CN, Ending Strike
(Source: teamsterscanada.org 11/26/2019) Montréal, November 26, 2019 – After a weeklong strike, the Teamsters and Canadian National (CN) have reached a tentative agreement to renew the collective agreement for over 3,000 conductors, trainpersons and yard workers. Normal operations at CN will resume tomorrow at 0600 local time across Canada. “I am pleased to announce that…
Read MoreTeamsters Canada releases audio recording of CN ordering fatigued conductor to work
(Source: Teamsters Canada press release, November 25, 2019) MONTREAL — Teamsters Canada today released a recording of a CN supervisor, a chief rail traffic controller (RTC), ordering a fatigued conductor to continue working for several hours. The chief RTC ignored pleas from the conductor, a railroader with over 30 years of experience, that he and the…
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