The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) congratulated Class I carriers and rail labor unions for reaching a tentative agreement early this morning and averting a potential rail strike.
“Averting a strike was paramount, as a work stoppage would have produced severe ripple effects harming the entire U.S. economy. While the vast majority of short line railroads were not part of this national bargaining round, a strike would have immediately impacted our railroads and our customers, as nearly all short line customer shipments connect with Class I carriers along their journey,” Chuck Baker, president of the ASLRRA, said in a statement
“…We will celebrate this moment briefly, and then turn our attention back to railroading and providing world-class service to our customers,” Baker added. “We call on our industry to use the momentum spurred by today’s agreement to work together to solve the ongoing challenges of moving the nation’s freight and returning the U.S. supply chain to pre-pandemic levels of efficiency and effectiveness for the benefit of our customers in all corners of the country. Further, we call on all parties to focus on repairing and rebuilding relationships so that future negotiations progress productively and we avoid any risk of interrupting critical freight rail operations.”
