Posted on 03/04/2016 11:41:27 AM PST by george76
Railroads would be required to have at least two crew members aboard freight trains when they are traversing the state under a bill that won preliminary approval in the Colorado House .
...
Minority Leader Brian Del Grosso, R-Loveland, took the Democrats to task over the bill, saying it is a poor way to deal with a problem he said they created.
He said over the past several years, Democrats have made policy decisions that have contributed to the slowdown, and even closure of coal mines, citing the recent closure of the Bowie No. 2 mine near Paonia specifically.
That had a direct impact on the recent furloughing of 147 railroad workers at Union Pacific Railroad’s Grand Junction roundhouse, and the idling of a portion of the steel mill in Pueblo, which manufactures train tracks and pipes for oil and gas wells, Del Grosso said.
“Prior legislatures here have passed policies that have attacked certain industries in our state,” he scolded Democrats on the House floor.
“I’m sorry that you feel guilty and that’s why you feel like you need to support this bill.”
...
Del Grosso said Democrats can’t support policies that kill one industry, badly impact others and then try to fix the problem by telling some companies that are hurting because of it who they must hire.
“If you’re angry that railroad people are being laid off, you need to be angry at the fact that policies from this chamber have shut down an industry,” he said.
“We need to be mindful that what we do here has real-world impact, and it puts people out of work.”
(Excerpt) Read more at gjsentinel.com ...
Just don’t let those trains run on Rearden Metal.
And unions blindly following democrats
Driverless trains make more sense than driverless cars.
I would think this would be an interstate commerce issue. If the legislature was so concerned about hazmat they would ban the EPA from attempting mine cleanup.
The UP also shut down the Denver shop at the end of last year. The reason cited was the loss of coal traffic out of Colorado. The shop was literally in downtown Denver, and the real estate is worth a fortune. The rest of the system absorbed the employees that chose to stay on.
There is a good safety/redundancy reason for two person crews. That’s a big mess of stuff rolling on the rails.
If the *wild earth guardians * lawyers win in Craig, there will soon be even fewer union jobs driving trains, etc.
Somebody’s got keep an eye out while the other tokes up on CO legal ganga.
Directive 10-289.
LOL does a railroad crew take similar tests to a truck driver commercial driver licensee?
Would you like a train hauling 9000 tons of crude oil, ammonia, propane, or sulphuric acid running through YOUR neighborhood with no human presence on board?
That little incident up in Ontario that incinerated an entire town was the result of a single person crew.
not going to happen ....they got RANDOM drug testing just like we should do with all gov’t employees...start with our dear leader first...you guys must be the weed police
Quebec, no?
The Interstate Commerce Commission Termination Act grants exclusive jurisdiction over railroad operations to the federal government. If the law passes, it would be void and anyone pretending to enforce it would be subject to liability in federal court.
great
mandate a man on every car
just think of the job creation!
A week ago I saw a string of coal cars about 20 miles long, idle on a siding between Monte Vista and South Fork. (Colorado)
Obama at work.
no, sorry factoryrat, Megantic was caused by not following the rules.
And; no one was on the train.
You may get your wish. Coal traffic is down 25% across the board for all railroads, and dropping. At that rate, rhe railroads may just drop all coal traffic, and focus on intermodal from the west coast ports.
What that means to you: the coal fired power plants will be screwed, and 40% of the US power generation goes offline. In the mean time, you will have the satisfaction of knowing that you vanquished those evil unions, while you freeze in the dark in Denver.
But fear not! Rumors abound that the class one railroads are looking to sell out to the canadian and mexican railroads. That should make you feel better, assuming that you don’t live near any main line tracks.
Driverless trains exist. But only where unions haven’t undercut them.
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