FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (22-13)
Contact: Madison Butler, mbutler@narprail.org

August 17, 2020

Rail Passengers Association Statement On PEB Recommendations

WASHINGTON – In response to today’s Presidential Emergency Board report on the long-running dispute between railway labor and management, Rail Passengers Association President & CEO Jim Mathews issued the following statement:

“Passengers and Amtrak-served communities who rely on rail for work, school, medical visits, and more are watching these negotiations with great interest. We are cautiously hopeful that the PEB’s recommendations have created a framework for meaningful improvements for engineers and conductors that Class I railroads can live with. Although the PEB does not address the scheduling and precision-scheduled railroading (PSR) questions directly, these issues remain in formal mediation; America’s passengers are depending on all sides to work in good faith to reach a fair deal that will allow these essential services to continue—for everyone, but especially for the most vulnerable passengers with few or no other alternatives to rail."

###

About Rail Passengers Association

The Rail Passengers Association is the oldest and largest national organization serving as a voice for the more than 40 million rail passengers in the U.S. Our mission is to improve and expand conventional intercity and regional passenger train services, support higher speed rail initiatives, increase connectivity among all forms of transportation and ensure safety for our country's trains and passengers. All of this makes communities safer, more accessible, and more productive, improving the lives of everyone who lives, works and plays in towns all across America.