September 20, 2001
To: International Officers, State Directors, and General Chairmen
From: Byron A. Boyd, International President
James Brunkenhoefer, National Legislative Director
RE: Railroad Industry Security Teleconference
Attached to this memo is a summary of the conference call held today with the Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration and all constituencies of the Rail Industry concerning the status of our security and ideas on how to improve the security of our Rail Industry.
Six task forces were established to evaluate and offer suggestions for improvements in security:
President Boyd has asked our officers to work in a cooperative and proactive manner with this group to help find solutions.
Please share your thoughts, suggestions, and ideas for security improvements with us in writing at:
FAX (202) 543-0015
E-Mail: utsldutu@aol.com
We would like to have your ideas no later than the close of business on Monday, September 24, 2001. Our Washington office will compile these suggestions and deliver them to the FRA. We must act quickly.
September 20, 2001
To: All Concerned
From: James M. Brunkenhoefer
On September 20, 2001, UTU was invited to join in on a conference call hosted by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). This call dealt with the tragic events of September 11th and our nation's concern for safety and security in our transportation system. Participating in this conference call were representatives of numerous freight and passenger railroads and labor organizations. FRA Administrator, Allan Rutter, directed the conference call.
Allan Rutter made an opening statement and informed us that he was speaking from a transportation crisis center in New York. Mr. Rutter had arrived there via Amtrak with approximately 40 U.S. Senators. The Senators were there to take a tour of "Ground Zero." Administrator Rutter first introduced representatives of the Port Authority Trans-Hudson Railroad (PATH) who spoke of the events of September 11th. PATH is currently operating at 80% of normal and moving 220,000 riders a day. PATH had previously had a major operation into the World Trade Center, which obviously is no longer in operation. The PATH representative was very thankful for the job that UTU members had done in keeping the system operating and emphasized what a necessary role that they had played.
Mr. Rutter stated that he was very appreciative that neither labor nor management had taken advantage of the situation by using harsh discipline or trying to gain a labor relations advantage.
A representative of the Department of Transportation (DOT) then went through, with some detail, how the FRA receives crisis information, as with what happened with the events of September 11th. It is the same method used for derailments, hazardous materials releases, etc. The US Coast Guard, a division of the DOT, operates a transportation crisis hotline, which is manned 24 hours a day. It is used for all transportation crises - air, highway, rail, water etc. The Coast Guard compiles the information and reports to the Secretary of Transportation.
The Coast Guard received notice at 8:55 a.m. on September 11th. By 9:30 a.m. the FRA was in action contacting all freight and passenger railroads. Later, they contacted Transport Canada who were dealing with congestion that immediately took place in Buffalo. This caused a backup in railroad yards in Canada, in addition to the delays experienced in the United States. Due to the tightened immigration procedures VIA Rail (Amtrak of Canada) were experiencing two to six hour delays. There still remains a significant delay at Border Points.
This office was contacted during the day by Union Pacific and Amtrak who needed to move, via air, an emergency response team from Omaha due to the UP derailment located near Salt Lake City. Railroads in the New York Area asked for and received waivers for approximately six crews in the New York to exceed the Hours of Service Act due to the emergency service situation. Numerous security issues poured in to the National Response Center and these issues were passed to the companies involved.
The DOT representative expressed one of the key concerns they are having. That concern is the upcoming Winter Olympics scheduled at Salt Lake City, Utah. Efforts are being made to coordinate with the FBI, state and local police, as well as the UP. This is especially in regards to the movement of hazardous materials during that period of time. The Department of Energy, which handles the movement of nuclear materials, is also being included.
There continues to be concern expressed about the transportation system of the Untied States. The DOT concluded by saying that there are no specific threats at this time. Mr. Rutter then thanked DOT and all concerned for keeping the FRA informed and he passed on appreciation from the White House and the National Security Council to everyone for keeping America's railroads operating.
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) led by Ed Hamberger and Chuck Dettman, was the next to report. They stated that upon receiving notice on September 11th, all freight trains were slowed, special inspections were made of critical areas such as bridges and tunnels. Special security was added to critical dispatching offices. Particular attention was given to the location and movement of hazardous materials. The CSX and NS held back traffic that was designated for the Northeast for a period of time. AAR has set up direct links with the American Chemical Council and others. AAR expressed their first priority being the safety of their employees and the communities through which their trains operate. They pledged to work with their union, tank car manufactures and those involving security issues.
The next to report was Frank Turner from the Shortlines. He stated that Rail America had set the standard that was shared by others. The standard is that 1) the shortlines would stay in contact with the major railroads 2) they had contacted and conducted an inventory of their customers who could face a security threat 3) monitor borders interchanges and 4) communicate with their employees.
Fran Hooper reported for the American Public Transportation Fund. She pointed out that PATH's quick thinking and response saved lives at and near the World Trade Center. She also expressed appreciation for the excellent job that New Jersey Transit, Metro North and the Long Island Railroad did in evacuating New York.
Pete Canino represented New York's MTA. He thanked labor and management and pointed at out that the MTA lost three subway tunnels. New York's MTA moves approximately 7 million riders a day -- approximately 530,000 of those riders are moved by Metro North and Long Island Railroad. On September 11, they had to immediately secure Penn Station and Grand Central. The MTA immediately stopped all inbound trains. They also responded to numerous false bomb threats throughout its system. Grand Central had to be evacuated twice due to false threats. On Wednesday, inbound highway traffic to New York remained closed. The only way into the city was by MTA. Current ridership in MTA is about normal.
Virginia Railroad Express was represented by Pete Sklanaik. He stated that due to the situation at the Pentagon, and it being very difficult to access the area by highway, their ridership is up approximately 24%. Their employees have been educated to be on the look out for threatening situations.
The next presentation was made by Maryland's Department of Transportation, which operates three commuter lines. On September 11th, the Northeast Corridor was closed for a period of time and was partially reopened at 2:30 p.m. with limited service. Full service was not restored until Wednesday morning. They have prevented passengers access to the equipment for security reasons until a crew member is present. They placed into effect their plan to deal with bomb threats and felt that this plan worked.
Another representative from New York's MTA stated that there were inbound special trains operating to bring in emergency response personnel. He stated that for a period of time, this was the only inbound service into New York.
Mr. Walker a spokesman for Amtrak stated that on September 11th, Amtrak went on high alert at 9:15 am and is still at that level. They set up an emergency command and control center. They viewed the situation as a national crisis and not just one dealing with the Northeast Corridor. They worked with the commuters and labor organizations. They made special inspections of bridges tunnels and stations before the Northeast Corridor was restarted. Amtrak reached out to the airlines because they were not flying. It was recognized that certain emergency responders were needed to be brought into the New York and Washington areas. Amtrak was the only available form of transportation. Amtrak also contacted the Post Office and has kept the mail moving when the airlines couldn't.
The first representative from organized labor to speak was Mark Filipovic, from the Machinists. He stated that his union contacted the National Carriers Conference Committee of the railroads and promised any assistance that was needed.
James M. Brunkenhoefer, UTU, stated that if any additional security was going to be mandated by the government than the government should pay for it. This is what the government is expected to do in regards to the airline industry. David Hakey, UTU, pointed out that it should be recognized that the railroads did the job and kept running in serving America when the airlines were down.
Leroy Jones, BLE, requested that the unions and the employees be kept informed.
Mark Filipovic said that he agreed with UTU that additional security was needed and should be paid for by the Federal government.
Allan Rutter took the lead and stated that the FRA was making an assessment of what is vulnerable. He went on to say that DOT, the FBI and other Federal Agencies may be contacting some to ensure that they have a security clearance in order to participate in some events. He asked that if someone is contacted that they immediately respond so as not to slow the efforts.
Mr. Rutter then went on to discuss the five task forces that the FRA has set up to deal with the ongoing situation. The task forces are: 1) Security of physical assets such as tracks, bridges, tunnels, etc. 2) Security of operations 3) Security of information technology 4) Security of chemical and hazmat movements and 5) Working with the Department of Defense for the movement of critical war materials.
Pete Canino, of the MTA, added that there were passenger security issues that the MTA has with over 120 stations and 100,000 people/hour that they deal with. He thought that this should be a sixth task force and Allan Rutter agreed.
James M. Brunkenhoefer pointed out that the nation needed economic security. A way of achieving economic security would be the passage of the pending Railroad Retirement legislation. This would open up an additional 5,000+ jobs and provide a higher living standard for over 50,000 widows. The bill's passage would also free up an additional several hundred million dollars for the railroad's infrastructure.
Mr. Rutter ended the call by thanking everyone for their participation. He stressed the need to continue to stay in communication with each other. He also requested ideas for additional security ideas to be developed. In order to fulfill Mr. Rutter's request, please forward any ideas to the UTU Washington Office via (f) 202-543-0015 or UTSLDUTU@aol.com and we will forward them to the proper security task force, which are: