Cory Martin
Illinois State Legislative Board Chairman
Support IL SB24 Call Now!
Tomorrow Wednesday March 20, 2019, SB24 "Two Person Freight Train" is scheduled to be heard in Senate Executive Committee at 2 pm. I have listed some of the members of the Executive Committee that need to hear from their constituents. "Please support SB24 and vote yes in committee" Every phone call made will be crucial Attend the hearing come to your state Capitol everyone is welcome. Don Harmon John Cullerton Napoleon Harris Toi Hutchinson Iris Martines co-sponsor John Mulroe Tony Munoz...
Illinois Dem congressmen eyeing bigger jobs after midterms
November 08, 2018 06:00 AM UPDATED 2 HOURS AGO Illinois Dem congressmen eyeing bigger jobs after midterms Now back in the majority, local representatives are in a position to chair key subcommittees and more in a Democratic-run House. GREG HINZ On Politics Bloomberg Chicago congressman Mike Quigley The Illinois congressional delegation looks like it's going to regain some of the clout it lost when President Barack Obama left office and Republicans took control of both houses of Congress. With...
President Pierce reelected by acclamation on Day 3 of BLET National Convention
LAS VEGAS, October 4 - Dennis R. Pierce was reelected by acclamation to his third full term as National President of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen yesterday at the union's Fourth National Convention in Las Vegas. Additionally, all Advisory Board members were elected without opposition. Their terms of office will begin on January 1, 2019. "You have my appreciation and I am honored to serve this great Brotherhood for another four years," President Pierce said. "I have hope...
Registered to Vote ??
Are you registered to vote???? Registering has never been easier. Just go to this online tool and spend two minutes getting registered. Seriously, two minutes. Also Thursday September 27th is EARLY VOTING: First day for early voting for the General Election.
Bipartisan group of 27 U.S. legislators urge DOT’s Chao to block KCS safety waiver that allows Mexican train crews to operate in U.S.
BLET NEWS FLASH Bipartisan group of 27 U.S. legislators urge DOT's Chao to block KCS safety waiver that allows Mexican train crews to operate in U.S. http://www.ble-t.org/pr/news/newsflash.asp?id=8140 (BLET Editor's Note: The following press release was issued by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.) WASHINGTON, D.C., September 18 — On September 17, House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Ranking Member Peter DeFazio (D-OR) and House Subcommittee on Railroads,...
Labor Day 2018
BLET NEWS FLASH Labor Day 2018 By Dennis R. Pierce BLET National President INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, August 31 - When the first Labor Day was celebrated in New York City in 1882, our Brotherhood had been fighting to improve wages and working conditions for locomotive engineers for nearly 20 years. Today, some note the holiday as marking the unofficial end of summer, but the true history of Labor Day is far more somber. America in the late Nineteenth Century was a decidedly unfriendly place for...
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen asks President Trump to intervene in Laredo
http://www.ble-t.org/pr/news/newsflash.asp?id=8119 INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, July 10 - As part of its continuing fight to save American jobs on the Texas border, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) has asked President Donald J. Trump to help the union in its struggle to preserve the jobs of BLET members who work for the Texas Mexican Railway (Tex Mex). On July 9, Tex Mex unilaterally replaced U.S. citizen crewmembers with Mexican train crews between Laredo Yard and the...
Trump chooses former Metra Chair Oberman for open STB seat
7/9/2018 Rail News: Federal Legislation & Regulation Martin Oberman Photo – Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning President Donald Trump has nominated former Metra Chairman Martin Oberman as a Surface Transportation Board (STB) member. If his nomination is approved by the Senate, Oberman will serve the remainder of a five-year term that expires Dec. 31, 2023. The open Democratic seat on the board was vacated by former STB Chairman Dan Elliott last year. An attorney and former...
BLET members ratify CN-IC contract
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, June 7 - By a better than 2-to-1 margin, members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) ratified a new collective bargaining agreement with the Canadian National's former Illinois Central property on May 30, 2018. The contract governs 475 locomotive engineers and runs through December 31, 2019. It provides retroactive pay beginning August 1, 2015, and 3 percent general wage increases on August 1 each year through 2019. The total of GWIs...
Division 665 LR Danny Friend
Danny J. Friend March 18, 1956 - February 21, 2018 View/Sign Guest Book| Danny J. Friend, 61, of New Baden, IL, born Mar. 18, 1956 in St. Louis, MO, died Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2018 at St. Mary’s Hospital, Centralia, IL. Danny was an engineer for Burlington Northern Santa Fe Rail Road, Centralia, IL, and was a member of the Quail Club in Millstadt, IL. He is survived by two daughters, Jamie (Adam) Topping, and Amanda Friend both of Cedar City, UT; his parents, Harold and Nancy, nee...
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen National President Eddie Hall introduced The Railroad Safety Enhancement Act of 2024
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen National President Eddie Hall introduced The Railroad Safety Enhancement Act of 2024 The following statement regarding important bipartisan rail safety legislation introduced today by Rep. Troy Nehls (R-TX-22) and Rep....
NTSB releases final East Palestine report
NTSB releases final East Palestine report WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board on Friday released the final report on the Feb. 3, 2023, Norfolk Southern derailment and hazardous chemical release in East Palestine, Ohio — a document finalized by the...
Norfolk Southern backs NTSB safety policy recommendations
Norfolk Southern backs NTSB safety policy recommendations Norfolk Southern Corp. on July 10 endorsed policy recommendations from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) regarding the agency’s investigation into the railroad company’s 2023 East Palestine, Ohio,...
Regulators nervous about rail freight decline
Regulators nervous about rail freight decline WASHINGTON — Federal regulators are summoning executives from the major freight railroads to a rare public hearing to explain how their companies plan to invest in and grow their business amid concern over recent negative...
FRA issues NOFO for $1.1 million in Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant Program funding
FRA issues NOFO for $1.1 million in Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant Program funding The Federal RailRoad Administration (FRA) has issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for more than $1.1 billion in Railroad Crossing Elimination (RCE) Grant Program funding....
Chicago transit officials say funding, not restructuring, is key to better service
Chicago transit officials say funding, not restructuring, is key to better service CHICAGO — The heads of Chicago’s four transit agencies argued Tuesday at a legislative hearing that financial support, not structure, is the key issue they face in trying to serve the...
Labor Leaders Urge Congress to Oppose Anti-Worker Resolutions in Congressional Review Act
Labor Leaders Urge Congress to Oppose Anti-Worker Resolutions in Congressional Review Act Today, a coalition of nearly 50 labor organizations sent a letter to lawmakers in Congress that outlines strong opposition to more than a dozen forthcoming Congressional Review...
Rail labor opposes Amtrak request for waiver to deal with ‘loss of shunt’ until testing data is shared
Rail labor opposes Amtrak request for waiver to deal with ‘loss of shunt’ until testing data is shared WASHINGTON — Three labor organizations have opposed Amtrak’s request for a waiver allowing installation of a device the company claims will prevent incidents where...
NTSB to investigate CPKC derailment, UP worker fatality
NTSB to investigate CPKC derailment, UP worker fatality The National Transportation Safety Board has launched investigations into two freight-rail accidents that occurred over the Fourth of July holiday weekend. The first incident involved a Canadian Pacific Kansas...
Chicago, Ill., area transit agencies see improved ridership
Chicago, Ill., area transit agencies see improved ridership Chicago, Ill.,'s transit systems have seen an increase in ridership in a post COVID-19 pandemic timeline, as the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) of Northern Illinois notes May 2024 showed the highest...