General Industry News

U.S. Class I workforce slips below 150,000 in September

Written by Progressive Railroading Wednesday, 21 October 2025 00:00

The U.S. Class I workforce not only shrank for the second-straight month in September, it fell below 150,000 for the first time in many months. As of mid-September, the workforce stood at 149,428, down 0.4 percent from mid-August’s level and 7.9 percent from September 2008’s count, according to Surface Transportation Board (STB) data.

The transportation (other than train and engine) staff of 6,515 registered the largest month-over-month decline at 2.5 percent. The workforce segment also decreased 1.3 percent from September 2008’s level. Transportation (train and engine) ranks that totaled 56,592 in mid-September dropped 1 percent from mid-August’s count and a whopping 14.3 percent from September 2008’s level.

At 13,700, professional and administrative staff represented an increase of 1.6 percent on a month-over-month basis and 1.3 percent on a year-over-year basis. However, executives, officials and staff assistants numbered 9,194, down 1 percent from mid-August’s level and 8.8 percent from the year-earlier count.

Maintenance of equipment and stores ranks increased 0.3 percent from mid-August’s level to 28,326, but decreased 6 percent from September 2008’s count.

One year later: is Metrolink safer now?

Written by Joan Trossman Bien - Venture County Reporter Friday, 11 September 2025 00:00

CHATSWORTH, Calif. — On Sept. 12, 2008, at precisely 16:22:23 (4:22 p.m.), exactly 1.25 miles past the Chatsworth Metrolink station on the Ventura County line, the world as 222 people knew it was unalterably shattered. Twenty-five people on board Metrolink No. 111 heading from Union Station in downtown Los Angeles to Moorpark did not survive the trip. Another 135 were injured, 46 critically. All aboard the commuter train are now part of a statistic: the deadliest Metrolink accident ever and the worst train crash in the country in 15 years. If any one of the many layers of mistakes, delays and failures had not happened, that Friday afternoon in September might have been completely forgettable.

If only 46-year-old engineer Robert Sanchez had not been absorbed in texting teenagers up to 22 seconds before the crash. If only Sanchez had glanced up and tried to apply the air brakes before smashing head-on into a 500,000-pound Union Pacific freight train. If only Sanchez had seen the red light and waited on the turnout until the freight train had safely passed on the single track that they shared. Or the conductor on No. 111 had applied the emergency brake, as he was supposed to do, when Sanchez failed to call out the signals twice before the impact. Or the operators of Metrolink, Connex, had removed Sanchez from his job for repeated reports of forbidden cell phone use, as was ordered by Metrolink. The list goes on and on.

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U.S. Class I workforce slips below 150,000 in Sept

The U.S. Class I workforce not only shrank for the second-straight month in...

One year later: is Metrolink safer now?

CHATSWORTH, Calif. — On Sept. 12, 2008, at precisely 16:22:23 (4:22 p.m.), ...

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