Rail

The Amtrak crash in Philadelphia has reopened the debate about what can done to make passenger and freight rail safer for both passengers and workers. At recent Senate Commerce Committee and House Transportation and Infrastructure hearings, a number of solutions were proposed, including immediately installing inward-facing cameras in locomotive rail cabs. Proponents of cameras argue […]

The start of summer vacation season begins soon and many families will rely on Amtrak to get them there. Almost 31 million passengers took an Amtrak train last year – that’s up 4 percent. This increased popularity in our U.S. passenger rail system comes at a time when Amtrak continues to be short-changed by those […]

On October 2nd, Amtrak reported that four of its century-old underwater rail tunnels in and out of New York City are in need of extensive repairs and that service will be “badly curtailed” — terrible news for both daily commuters and passengers who take 260 million trips a year along the vital Northeast Corridor. While some may […]

This week marks the one year anniversary of a tragic rail accident – a runaway train carrying 72 cars of crude ran into Lac-Megantic, Quebec killing 47 people and demolishing an entire town.  While millions of carloads and containers traverse the country safely each year, too many accidents have occurred lately both in the freight […]

15,000 ton freight trains carrying hazardous materials across America using 1-person crews sound like a bad idea? We think so and fortunately so do the government’s chief rail safety regulators at the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). The FRA announced that it will issue a proposed rule requiring two-person crews on crude oil trains, and establishing […]

A short quiz for you. If you had anything to do with the safe movement of a 10,000 ton freight train, does it make sense for you to routinely show up to work tired? Hint: NO. That’s the problem we have today in the freight rail industry. Too many tired employees are involved in operating […]

Members of Congress responsible for our nation’s transportation systems, including our national passenger rail system, are once again considering the reauthorization of Amtrak. The choice is clear: give Amtrak the resources it needs, or choose the routine ritual of starving it and wondering why we don’t have faster trains and more service. As a backdrop, […]