Protect Community Safety:
No single person train crews

Aliceville Alabama 11/14/13

 

Dear

​Community Activist​

,

We have until May 16th to tell the Federal Railroad Administration under no circumstances is it safe to run trains through our communities with fewer than two crew members.

On March 15th, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced a Proposed Rule on the whole question of crew staffing for trains in the United States. After careful consideration, Railroad Workers United has come to the only conclusion possible: The Proposed Rule provided a road map for any and all rail carriers to obtain the FRA's blessing to run trains with a single employee, even on hazardous materials oil trains. Therefore, RWU cannot support this Proposed Rule, period. This letter to the FRA is Railroad Workers United response to the proposed notice of rule making. 

We continue to agree with the joint statement from nearly 7 years ago that the BLET and UTU unions made in a joint Petition filed in June 2009 with the FRA on the question which reads: "No conditions exist where one-person operations are safe."  And since the Proposed Rule is predicated on the "safe" operation of trains with a single crew member, we urge the FRA to promulgate a rule that outlaws the practice.

We urge all RWU members, railroad workers, and community allies to contact the FRA and tell them in plain language: "No single employee train crews!" 

  

Sincerely,

Ross Grooters

Steering Committee Co-Chair

Railroad Workers United

railroadworkersunited@gmail.com
202-798-3327