Happening Now
Join the Fight for a Better Amtrak Board!
May 3, 2023
Rail Passengers Association has made securing a voice for passengers in the Midwest, West, and the South a key plank of our advocacy over the past few years, including as part of this year's advocacy push during RailNation:DC.
Thanks in part to our advocacy, Congress included language in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) that requires Amtrak’s Board to include two individuals from the Northeast Corridor (NEC), and four individuals from regions outside of the NEC—two from states served by an Amtrak long-distance service and two from states served by an Amtrak State-supported service.
Unfortunately, the Biden Administration chose to ignore these statutes, with four of their five nominees living along the NEC.
Now, thanks to the work of our volunteer advocates, we have allies in the U.S. Senate. Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Jerry Moran (R-KN), Todd Young (R-IN), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), J.D. Vance (R-OH), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), and Jon Tester (D-MT) have informed the White House that they will block action on this until the slate of nominees are brought into compliance with BIL requirements.
Ask your Senator to join us in demanding a passenger voice on the Amtrak board!
Read more about the fight for a better Amtrak board on the Rail Passengers blog.
"On behalf of Amtrak’s onboard service staff, I want to thank the Rail Passengers Association for honoring their hard work with this award. The past couple years have indeed been difficult for Amtrak onboard service staff – coping with furloughs and job insecurity, adapting to changing protocols and services, not to mention the unfortunate events such as a tragic derailment and a fatal shooting. Nevertheless, our dedicated members at Amtrak have handled these hurdles with the care, attention and diligence for which they’re known. We thank Rail Passengers for their acknowledgement of our members’ hard work and, as always, look forward to seeing you on the rails."
Arthur Maratea, TCU/IAM National President
December 21, 2021, on the Association awarding its 2021 Golden Spike Award to the Frontline Amtrak Employees.
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