Posts by William Wallace
AAR: U.S. traffic volume tumbled in week 37
(source: Progressive Railroading 09/21/2017) After registering gains for most weeks in 2017, total U.S. rail traffic declined in the year’s 37th week. Traffic clocked in at 530,774 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Sept. 16, down 1.4 percent compared with total volume from the same week last year, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR)…
Read MoreBill to repeal right-to-work nationwide introduced in Senate
(Source: Washington Examiner, September 21, 2017) WASHINGTON, D.C. — Senate Democrats introduced legislation Wednesday to repeal all state right-to-work laws, arguing that the laws, which prevent workers from being forced to join or financially support a labor union as a condition of employment, are wrong because they make it harder to form unions. The legislation…
Read MoreFour rail hazmat training classes available
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, September 20 — The Rail Workers Hazardous Materials Training Program is hosting four rail worker training sessions in the coming months. The dates are as follows: November 12-17, 2017; January 7-12, 2018; February 11-16, 2018; and March 18-23, 2018. These 40-hour chemical emergency response training courses will run on a Sunday through Friday…
Read MorePort Tampa Bay OKs pact to fund channel expansion
(source: Progressive Railroading 09/20/2017) Port Tampa Bay‘s board yesterday approved a public-private partnership agreement that will determine how to pay for a $60 million expansion of the Big Bend Channel. The other partners involved in the agreement include the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Florida Department of Transportation, Tampa Electric Co. and Mosaic Co., a…
Read MorePublic infrastructure for public benefit
By Dennis R. Pierce BLET National President (Editor’s Note: The following editorial by President Pierce was published in the Washington Times on September 13, 2017.) INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — The story of the growth of our Nation — the expansion of 13 Eastern Seaboard states from sea to shining sea — is the story of infrastructure. It is…
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