Phoenix — A new Arizona law is aimed at protecting railroad maintenance and repair workers, as well as enhancing public safety at rail crossings statewide.
Signed by Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) on May 13, S.B. 1074 expands the types of vehicles that can activate railroad safety signal devices to include on-track equipment.
Sen. Thomas Shope (R-Coolidge) sponsored the bill, which received bipartisan support in the Legislature. It passed in the Senate with a 24-4 vote on Feb. 12 and was approved by the House, 43-11, on May 6.
Teamsters Local 104, which represents workers throughout Arizona, and the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division both backed the legislation.
“This bill protects the very people who build, maintain and operate our rail infrastructure,” Dawn Schumann, Local 104’s statewide political coordinator, said in a press release. “Legislators from both sides of the aisle put safety first with this legislation.”
