Amtrak inspector general: company has trouble identifying employee drug, alcohol issues NEWSWIRE

Amtrak2

WASHINGTON — Amtrak has difficulty in identifying and addressing issues of drug and alcohol use among its employees, “a longstanding challenge for the company,” Amtrak’s Office of Inspector General says in a new report. The report issued Wednesday summarizes the following issues with the company’s program for employees in “safety-sensitive positions:” — Testing requirements were […]

Read More…

Locomotive horns blow for Boardman funeral NEWSWIRE

ROME, N.Y. – Locomotive horns blew at 11:01 a.m. on Friday in Rome and across the Amtrak network to honor former President and CEO Joe Boardman who died March 7 following complications of a stroke. A moment of silence was held at 11 a.m., followed by the sounding of a former F40PH locomotive horn mounted […]

Read More…

Passenger found dead on ‘Silver Star’ at Washington NEWSWIRE

Amtrak2

WASHINGTON – The Metropolitan Police Department responded to a report of a deceased passenger on Amtrak train No. 92, the northbound Silver Star, at Washington Union Station on Monday, WUSA-TV reports. Police do not suspect any “criminal activity” took place. Passengers continuing north were accommodated on another train. The Silver Star operates daily between Miami […]

Read More…

Supporters, Amtrak officials strike positive note after meetings on Duluth-Twin Cities train NEWSWIRE

Amtrak2

DULUTH, Minn. — After a day of meetings with local officials, an Amtrak executive promised Monday that the passenger railroad is “going to deliver” on proposed service between Duluth and Minneapolis-St. Paul. Joe McHugh, Amtrak’s vice president, state-supported business development, told the Duluth News-Tribune that the proposed 152-mile, 2 ½-hour Northern Lights Express is “in the […]

Read More…

Trump administration budget would end long-distance Amtrak trains, cut DOT spending NEWSWIRE

Trains_Washington_Watch

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration’s proposed 2020 budget calls for refocusing Amtrak on routes of less than 750 miles and would slash discretionary funding for the U.S. Department of Transportation by 21.5 percent, a decrease of $5.1 billion. “Simply put, Amtrak trains inadequately serve many rural markets while not serving many growing metropolitan areas at all,” […]

Read More…