TWO REPORTERS

The pleasures - and perils - of driving a 2-mile long freight train / Railroads Part 2

October 07, 2023 David K. Shipler & Daniel Zwerdling
TWO REPORTERS
The pleasures - and perils - of driving a 2-mile long freight train / Railroads Part 2
Show Notes

Railroad supervisors ignore safety problems. Railroad executives lay off thousands of workers and see accident rates soar. Railroad corporations make record profits while their customers complain about lousy freight service. Marilee Taylor and Ron Kaminkow, veteran train engineers and labor organizers, have encountered those problems just about every day they've climbed aboard a locomotive - and they describe them in vivid detail. Still, they get a thrill from driving trains, if things go well. As Marilee says, sometimes she'd fire up the massive engine, and "I'm, like, yes." But they're stunned that America seems to stand by as its crucial railroad industry deteriorates.