Monday morning rail news:
TRAINS: David Lassen
CDC issues mask order for domestic travel, effective tonight
Responding to an executive order by President Joe Biden, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued an order requiring mask use for all domestic travel, effective today at 11:59 p.m. The Washington Post reports the order, issued late Friday, will require masks on trains, planes, and other forms of public transportation, as well as in stations, airports and bus terminals. The order says the requirement “will protect Americans and provide confidence that we can once again travel safely even during this pandemic.” It requires operators to use their “best efforts” to ensure mask use, including removal of passengers who refuse to comply, and says enforcement will be handled by the Transportation Security Administration and other federal authorities, “and my be enforced by cooperating state and local agencies.” The CDC mandate adds details to the executive order signed Jan. 21 by the President [see “Digest: Biden executive order requires masks …,” Trains News Wire, Jan. 22, 2021]. The full order is available here.
Amtrak begins accepting claims resulting from disability discrimination settlement
Amtrak has begun accepting claims for compensation from people with disabilities who encountered mobility issues at 78 stations covered in a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice. The settlement, announced in December, requires the passenger railroad to pay $2.25 million to settle claims it discriminated against disabled passenger by failing to accommodate them at those stations, and to repair those stations [see “Digest: Amtrak will pay $2.25 million …,” Trains News Wire, Dec. 3, 2020]. A list of the 78 stations involved, along with details on eligibility for compensation, is available here.
VIA, Rail Canada, Unifor reach tentative agreement on new contract
VIA Rail Canada and Unifor, the union representing more than 2,400 of its workers, have reached agreement in principle on a new contract. CTV News reports the two-year agreement will replace on that expired Dec. 31, 2019, and covers maintenance workers, onboard service personnel, sales agents, and customer service personnel. Terms were not announced. The agreement must still be ratified by union members.
