Heartland Flyer service between OKC, DFW to resume as national railroad strike is averted
The Heartland Flyer's return trip Thursday evening from Fort Worth to Oklahoma City was restored just hours after an early morning announcement Thursday by President Joe Biden that a tentative railway labor agreement had been struck, averting a strike.
Railroads and union representatives had been in negotiations for 20 hours at the Labor Department on Wednesday to hammer out a deal, as there was a risk of a strike starting on Friday that could have shut down rail lines across the country.
Amtrak began halting service on its long distance routes Wednesday in anticipation of the strike deadline at 12:01 a.m. Friday. Amtrak and its employees were not involved in the labor negotiations, but the passenger rail operator uses freight railroad tracks and dispatching.
That led Amtrak to announce Wednesday it would not run the northbound Heartland Flyer Thursday evening to Oklahoma City. The Oklahoma Department of Transportation was notified Thursday afternoon the trip was going to proceed on schedule as Amtrak sought to restore service on all of its long distance routes.
Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner released a statement Thursday afternoon indicating most operations should be restored on Friday if not sooner. The restoration is possible due to a 14-day cooling off period during which no strike will start while negotiations are completed.
“This tentative agreement will keep our trains moving, stations bustling, and employees proudly serving customers as we move them across this great country, stimulating local economies in more than 500 communities we serve," Gardner said. "Railroads play a vital role in the nation and we thank President Biden, Secretaries Buttigieg, Walsh and Vilsack, the major freight railroads and rail labor unions for their hard work and commitment to get this deal done. Thank you also to our customers for their patience and understanding, and we look forward to welcoming them back on the rails starting today and tomorrow.”
The strike would have disrupted passenger traffic as well as freight rail lines, because Amtrak and many commuter railroads operate on tracks owned by the freight railroads. Amtrak had already canceled a number of its long-distance trains this week, and said the rest of its long-distance trains would stop Thursday ahead of the strike deadline.
Following the tentative agreement, Amtrak said it was "working to quickly restore canceled trains and reaching out to impacted customers to accommodate on first available departures."
The five-year deal, retroactive to 2020, includes the 24% raises and $5,000 in bonuses that a Presidential Emergency Board recommended this summer. But railroads also agreed to ease their strict attendance policies to address some of the unions' concerns about working conditions.
Railroad workers will now be able to take unpaid days off for doctor's appointments without being penalized under railroad attendance rules. Previously, workers would lose points under the attendance systems that the BNSF and Union Pacific railways had adopted, and they could be disciplined if they lost all their points.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Amtrak resumes OKC Heartland Flyer service as railroad strike averted
