Federal Comments

March 20, 2023   John Karl Alexy Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety Federal Railroad Administration 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE Washington, DC 20590 RE:     Petition for Extension of Waiver of Compliance, CN Extraterritorial Dispatching Docket No. FRA-2003-15012 Dear Mr. Alexy: On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I am pleased to respond […]

March 19, 2023   John Karl Alexy Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety Federal Railroad Administration 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE Washington, DC 20590 RE:     BNSF Railway’s Request to Amend Its Positive Train Control Safety Plan and Positive Train Control System Docket No. FRA-2010-0056-0614 Dear Mr. Alexy: On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO […]

March 13, 2023   The Honorable Shalanda Young Director Office of Management and Budget 725 17th Street, NW Washington, DC 20503 RE: Proposing to revise OMB Guidance for Grants and Agreements under the Build America, Buy America Act provisions of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act; Notification of proposed guidance Docket No. OMB-2023-0007 Dear Director […]

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I am pleased to respond to the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) notice regarding Union Pacific Railroad’s (UP) February 3, 2023, request to amend its Positive Train Control (PTC) safety plan and control system. TTD consists of 37 affiliated unions representing the totality of rail labor, including both passenger and freight rail workers[1]. For the reasons stated below, TTD is again asking FRA to deny UP’s request without prejudice because of a lack of information provided by UP in this filing. Additionally, we endorse the comments filed by our affiliated union, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS).

Background

The current PTC safety plan amendment being considered by FRA is a re-filing of an amendment that was originally offered on December 12, 2022. UP withdrew that amendment following significant concerns and opposition from TTD and our affiliated unions. The original December 2022 filing consisted of two documents totaling more than 1,000 pages, including a 586-page document that contained more than 550 fully-redacted pages. In that document, UP stated that “…no changes to the PTC System are identified or proposed in this RFA [Request for Amendment].

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I am pleased to respond to the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) notice regarding Union Pacific’s (UP) recent petition to suspend the use of block signals on its Winnemucca Subdivision. TTD consists of 37 affiliated unions representing the totality of rail labor, including both passenger and freight rail workers.[1] TTD endorses the comments of our affiliates, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS) and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers – Transportation Division (SMART-TD). We ask FRA to deny this application because UP’s request would result in a decrease in safety and is not warranted since UP itself made the decision to decrease the workforce and capital investment needed to maintain the Winnemucca Subdivision.

In its application, UP requests to temporarily “remove [Centralized Traffic Control (CTC)] limits and replace with [Track Warrant Control (TWC)] limits through the same area.” UP states that this request is made due to “an uncurable (sic) situation with contaminated track conditions that will not allow the signal system to function properly.” UP notes that “This condition is resulting in roughly 5 recrews a day for this area, leaving the new STB ruling to serve Foster Farms expeditiously, in jeopardy.”[2]

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I am pleased to respond to the Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration’s (PHMSA) notice regarding a recent application for a new special permit (21283-N) from Gas Innovations. TTD consists of 37 affiliated unions representing the totality of rail labor, including freight rail workers who transport hazmat daily and fire fighters who are called to respond to dangerous releases of hazardous materials. TTD endorses the comments of our affiliates, the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers – Transportation Division (SMART-TD) and the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU). We ask PHMSA to deny this application until railroads are forced to take responsibility for creating a safer rail system and first responders are provided with adequate resources to safely and effectively respond to emergencies.[1]

Norfolk Southern Derailment and Hazmat Release

It is impossible to ignore recent events in East Palestine, Ohio, when discussing an application such as this one to introduce new hazardous materials to the freight rail system. A train derailment occurred at approximately 8:54 PM EST on February 3, 2023, in East Palestine, OH. The railroad, Norfolk Southern, reported the incident at 10:53 PM EST to the National Response Center. At that time, it was reported that an unknown number of the 150 train cars had derailed, but 20 of the cars were listed as carrying hazardous materials. As is being reported by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) as of this writing, 38 rail cars derailed and a fire ensued which damaged an additional 12 cars. Local officials issued evacuation orders for the surrounding area and there have been reports of residents experiencing effects many miles away from the scene of the derailment.[2]

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I am pleased to respond to the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) notice regarding Union Pacific’s (UP) recent petition to extend an expired waiver of compliance regarding brake procedures for its Roseville, California yard. TTD consists of 37 affiliated unions representing the totality of rail labor, including both passenger and freight rail workers.

In its petition, UP seeks to use track speed retarders, known as Continuous Speed Control, instead of securing cars with handbrakes, which is required under 49 CFR 232.103(n)(1). This waiver was originally requested in 2010 and granted in November 2011 following a public hearing in which the United Transportation Union (now SMART-TD) raised concerns about the potential for rollouts to injure workers or cause the release of hazardous materials.[1] When it was time for the waiver to be renewed, UP filed its renewal request six months late. When FRA granted the extension in December 2017, FRA noted this tardiness and noted that it “reserves the right to take enforcement action under 49 U.S.C § 20111 for noncompliance with any condition of this waiver or applicable Federal regulations.”[2] Additionally, that 2017 decision letter noted that UP had failed to comply with all of the conditions required as part of the original waiver, including providing copies of elevation validation reports. When FRA surveyed the yard at that time, it found multiple tracks were out of compliance.

February 1, 2023 David P. Pekoske Administrator Transportation Security Administration 6595 Springfield Center Drive Springfield, VA 20598       RE:     Enhancing Surface Cyber Risk Management                   Docket No. TSA-2022-0001 Dear Administrator Pekoske: On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I am pleased to […]

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I am pleased to respond to the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) notice regarding Norfolk Southern’s (NS) petitions for waiver of compliance from 49 CFR 236.566 to allow unequipped locomotives to operate in its Keystone Division and several other control points. TTD consists of 37 affiliated unions representing the totality of rail labor, including both passenger and freight rail workers.[1] TTD endorses the comments of our affiliate, the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS).

As TTD has commented before, positive train control (PTC) and centralized traffic control (CTC) technologies provide an additional layer of safety for rail workers and the public.[2] The National Safety Transportation Board (NTSB) first recommended that PTC be required in 1969 and Congress subsequently put into place the PTC mandate in 2008 because it saves lives and reduces injuries. Furthermore, these are not new technologies. CTC has been around since 1927 and the Class I railroads, including NS, have widely installed CTC across their networks.[3] NS’s petition for a waiver of compliance undermines the progress that has been made over the past few decades in installing signal systems that make our rail system safer. That is why the continued permission from the FRA to NS to operate this equipment without modern signal systems undermines the safety of rail workers and the general public and is counter to the safety mission of the FRA.

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I am pleased to respond to the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) notice regarding Union Pacific Railroad’s (UP) December 12, 2022, request to amend its Positive Train Control (PTC) safety plan and control system. TTD consists of 37 affiliated unions representing the totality of rail labor, including both passenger and freight rail workers.[1]

UP Request Should be Denied Without Prejudice

TTD formally asks FRA to deny without prejudice UP’s request for this amendment to its PTC plan until such time as UP publicly explains in full detail what their amendment entails. TTD and its unions support FRA’s goal of implementing safe and effective PTC systems in a timely fashion in order to protect rail workers and the general public. However, UP’s petition is emblematic of both the freight railroads’ desire to implement unproven, and sometimes risky technology such as Trip Optimizer through these PTC safety plans and also a rushed and flawed process at FRA in reviewing and allowing for public input of these plans.