SMART Transportation Division Illinois Legislative Board

SMART Transportation Division Illinois Legislative Board The legislative voice for SMART-Transportation Division members in the state of Illinois. The National Legislative Director is located in Washington, D.C.

While collective bargaining remains a major tool used by labor unions to achieve fair wages and decent working conditions for their members, another tool has emerged to become equally powerful: legislation. SMART-TD maintains one of the most extensive and effective legislative organizations in the labor movement to shape new laws protecting the interests of its members. and is assisted by a staff

widely respected for its professionalism in moving needed legislation while blocking the passage of laws hostile to the interests of working people. In the U.S., 49 of the 50 states have their own SMART-TD Legislative Boards, each made up of Local Legislative Representatives and headed by a State Director. Illinois is a major center of SMART-TD legislative activity because it is the hub of the North American rail network and has one of the largest populations of railroad employees. Illinois is the only state served by all five U.S. Class I carriers as well as both Canadian Class I roads. It has more than 50 short lines and switching carriers, 50 Amtrak trains per day, and the Metra system serving the six-county Chicagoland area with the largest commuter-train network outside New York. Making sure the employees of these railroads receive appropriate representation in state government—and at the national level as well—is the responsibility of the SMART-TD’s Illinois Legislative Board. The Board is made up of 38 Local Legislative Representatives, one from each SMART-TD Local in the state. Every four years the Board meets to elect a Director, an Assistant Director, and an Executive Committee consisting of Chairman, Vice Chairman and Secretary.

On this Workers Memorial Day we honor those who we lost on-the-job as well as being reminded of the never ending fight t...
04/28/2026

On this Workers Memorial Day we honor those who we lost on-the-job as well as being reminded of the never ending fight to protect the rights we have rightly won and to keep on fighting for the safe working conditions we deserve, even as some would like to turn back the clock on protections in the workplace. From the halls of government to yard offices and in the cabs of locomotives, let’s be sure to make safety a true priority!

SMART-TD is fighting on numerous fronts the drastic operational changes that CSX has incorporated at one of its core swi...
04/20/2026

SMART-TD is fighting on numerous fronts the drastic operational changes that CSX has incorporated at one of its core switching yards in Chicago, violating local CBA’s in the process.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX has significantly reduced operations at Barr Yard in Riverdale, Ill., its major Chicago-area terminal, and has shifted most of its switching work to the Belt Railway of Chicago and Indiana Harbor Belt. “CSX is reducing operations at Barr Yard as part of the company’s o...

01/24/2026
SMART-TD is thrilled to announce the signing today of SB 2111, the Northern Illinois Transit Authority(NITA) Act. This ...
12/16/2025

SMART-TD is thrilled to announce the signing today of SB 2111, the Northern Illinois Transit Authority(NITA) Act. This transformational bill, with its reform and funding, saves SMART-TD member jobs in the near term and provides a vision for a future transit system that should allow for expansion of services in the Chicagoland area and emphasizes and prioritizes rail service to other areas of the state.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=eXHC7R29qw0&list=PLEzBCEAoLRYr0XiqzZez4lXCvOhrWT6Kd&index=5&pp=iAQB0gcJCToKAYcqIYzvgoagt

Public transit is crucial for SMART members and the general public in Chicagoland. But earlier in the year, as a result of funding issues, Metra and other tr...

FRA panel OKs waiver to allow automated track inspection
12/08/2025

FRA panel OKs waiver to allow automated track inspection

Railroad industry news about: Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) Railroad Safety Board, temporary waiver, field testing of automated track inspection, ATI, Association of American Railroads. From the editors of Progressive Railroading Magazine

Metra wins $19.3M from UP for fare collection lapse; freight railroad may appeal
11/18/2025

Metra wins $19.3M from UP for fare collection lapse; freight railroad may appeal

A Cook County jury awarded Metra $19.3 million in a lawsuit against Union Pacific Railroad over not walking through trains and collecting fares during the COVID-19 pandemic. “We have said all along ...

The Illinois General Assembly last week failed to address the looming Transit Fiscal Cliff during the first week of Veto...
10/20/2025

The Illinois General Assembly last week failed to address the looming Transit Fiscal Cliff during the first week of Veto session in Springfield. As they look to return to Springfield next week, we must send a clear and strong message that failure to do so will have devastating and long-lasting effects for workers and commuters alike. Transit agencies, Metra included, have already publicly announced what 40% service cuts will look like in 2026.

Join the Labor Alliance for Public Transportation in telling Springfield to fix transit once and for all to avoid these planned service cuts, elimination of routes and mass layoffs. Please take a minute today and click on the button below to send that message to your elected officials in Springfield. The General Assembly must hear from us and that taking no action to fix the transit fiscal cliff is simply unacceptable.

The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), Metra, Pace and Regional Transit Authority (RTA) currently face a multi-million dollar fiscal cliff that will lead to service cuts, mass layoffs, and eliminated routes if left unaddressed. Illinois has the chance to demonstrate fiscal responsibility by passing a....

Congratulations to one of our longest serving board members on his recent retirement. Brother Brian Hagele ( #234) has ...
10/05/2025

Congratulations to one of our longest serving board members on his recent retirement. Brother Brian Hagele ( #234) has been a wonderful advocate for his local members and a constant presence at SMART-TD training sessions and conventions and deserves a long and healthy retirement. We wish you well Brother!

Primus sues Trump over dismissal from STB
10/02/2025

Primus sues Trump over dismissal from STB

Railroad industry news about: Surface Transportation Board, Robert Primus, President Donald Trump, lawsuit, unlawful termination. From the editors of Progressive Railroading Magazine

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