[DrewADesign]

From what people in the industry have told me, freight train management is no less scummy than any other kind of freight transportation management, and they continually make trains longer and longer despite nearly everyone’s objections. Some are miles long so there’s no way engineers can see the front of the train even with a gentle curve, and they’re taking hazardous cargo through populated areas.

I’d take Amtrak’s word on it.

[bluGill]

Those in the industry includes those who benefit from calling management bad. As such it is hard to know if anyone is telling the truth.

everything I've heard doesn't add up. So I know someoneeis lying but not who or how much

[DrewADesign]

Do you have any reason to believe amtrak would lie?

[mcv]

Wasn't there a big train crash with hazardous materials on an understaffed train a few years ago? And a strike for more sensible working conditions that was struck down by Congress?

I love that the US moves so much freight by train rather than truck, but everything I hear about how trains are run in the US sounds terrible.

[queenkjuul]

The infrastructure is horrifying and the railroads do everything possible to defer any and all maintenance. Practically every train arrives late, but the customers can't really do much about it (how else are you going to move 4 million pounds of coal?)

[bluGill]

The main infratructor is in great shape. There are a lot of little used lines in terrible shape

[supertrope]

The East Palestine, Ohio crash can’t be directly blamed on lean staffing.

Biden for all his pro-union talk intervened to prevent a strike, valuing consumers and capital over the union.

https://www.bls.gov/opub/btn/volume-13/tracking-productivity...

[DrewADesign]

Yeah, kind of like when they put ‘style’ on the end of a product that copies the aesthetic of something without functionally being that thing— like a kosher-style deli or a professional-style stove— the mainstream democratic leaders are pro-labor-style politicians.