Category Archives: TCU Blog

Railroads to Congress: Industry depends on international trade

On Tuesday, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) sent a letter to leaders of the Congressional committees with trade jurisdiction. The letter urges them to consider the effect of renegotiating NAFTA on the railroad industry. AAR President Ed Hamberger wrote, “approximately 50,000 rail jobs and more than $5.5 billion in annual wages and benefits…depend directly

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Reps. Lipinski and Bacon lead bipartisan effort supporting Rail Workers and Retirees

Today, Illinois Democrat Dan Lipinski joined with Nebraska Republican Don Bacon to lead a letter supporting additional funding to the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB). The letter had broad bipartisan support from their colleagues in Congress, including 12 Republicans and 23 Democrats. Click HERE to view read the Lipinski-Bacon letter Once secured, this funding will be

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Amtrak will suspend service if PTC not installed by year’s end

On Thursday, Amtrak CEO Richard Anderson told the House Railroads Subcommittee that they will suspend service on certain lines if Positive Train Control (PTC) is not installed and ready. Anderson did not specify which lines may be suspended, and an Amtrak spokesperson later confirmed that “it’s too early to speculate,” according to the Seattle Times. 

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Trump budget guts Amtrak long distance…again

For the second year in a row, President Trump’s budget calls for Amtrak funding to be cut in half. This year’s budget again asks to cut funding from the current $1.495 billion to $738 million in FY19. And though the math is the same, the Administration’s goals have apparently changed. Last year’s budget simply called

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