The International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, Transportation Division (SMART-TD) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) scored a major victory for railroad safety today when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit upheld FRA’s federal two-person crew rule.
In a 2–1 decision, the three-judge panel rejected challenges brought by the Association of American Railroads (AAR), the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association, and six individual railroads seeking to overturn FRA’s 2024 Crew Size Rule. The majority denied the railroads’ petitions for review in their entirety.
The railroads and their trade associations challenged FRA, its administrator, and the U.S. Department of Transportation. SMART-TD was the only labor organization granted intervenor status, standing alongside the federal government to defend the rule.
When the case reached oral arguments before the Eleventh Circuit in June 2025, SMART-TD Associate General Counsel Shawn McKinley argued alongside FRA in defense of the rule.
“SMART-TD and our members didn’t watch this fight from the sidelines,” said SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson. “Our members have everything on the line. Our safety on the job, our jobs themselves, our pensions, and our families’ healthcare, just to name a few. When the railroads predictably took this fight to the courts, there was no way we were going to stand by and let the FRA fight our battle for us, or without us.
“I want to thank our Legal Department, led by Erika Diehl-Gibbons, and our Associate General Counsel, Shawn McKinley, for their amazing work on this case. Watching Shawn in that federal courtroom in 2025, refusing to let the railroads disregard the firsthand experiences of our brothers and sisters and holding them accountable, was a thing of beauty.
“This is history being made. And it is being made by SMART-TD.”
SMART-TD members built the record.
The victory began years before today’s decision.
When FRA requested public comments on the proposed rule in 2022, SMART-TD launched a coordinated nationwide effort through its local officers and State Safety and Legislative Boards to make sure railroad workers’ real-world experiences became part of the federal record.
FRA ultimately received approximately 13,500 comments, with more than 98.5% supporting the proposed rule.
“When FRA asked for public comments, SMART-TD went to work,” said SMART-TD National Safety and Legislative Director Jared Cassity. “We needed comments that were thoughtful, relevant and based on what our members actually experience on the railroad every day. Our State Safety and Legislative Boards and their directors did an incredible job coordinating that effort across the country.
“I would also be remiss if I didn’t recognize my predecessor, Greg Hynes in this moment. This issue is a passion for Greg.”
Those public comments became important when railroad attorneys attempted to dismiss firsthand accounts supporting two-person crews as mere “anecdotes.”
The Eleventh Circuit rejected that argument. The majority specifically cited accounts of “close calls and lives saved” by two crewmembers working together and found that public comments can provide a sound basis for federal agency action.
“The court’s decision reinforces what SMART-TD members and rail workers already know: having two qualified workers on a train crew is just common sense. It’s about safety, security and the well-being of workers and communities nationwide,” SMART General President Michael Coleman said. “The challenge to FRA’s two-person crew rule was a threat to our members’ safety. It was a threat to their lives. And it was a threat to the families who live and work near railroad tracks all over the country. That’s why TD members made their voices heard from day one, and why SMART-TD stood with the FRA and DOT in support of this rule. We applaud the court’s decision, and we will continue to advocate for the safety of our members, rail workers, and communities across the United States.”
SMART-TD Legal prepared for the fight
The railroad industry challenged FRA’s statutory authority, the evidentiary record supporting the rule, FRA’s estimates of costs, and other parts of the rulemaking process.
The majority rejected those challenges and found that FRA’s Crew Size Rule falls comfortably within the agency’s authority to regulate railroad safety.
“This decision reflects the tremendous advocacy that went into this case. I especially want to thank Shawn McKinley and the rest of our legal team, and the attorneys and staff at the FRA for their dedication and the long hours they put into defending this rule,” said SMART-TD General Counsel Erika Diehl-Gibbons.
“We anticipated the arguments the railroads would raise and were prepared to defend FRA’s authority, the administrative record, and the legal basis for the rule.
When the court requested supplemental briefing on an additional administrative-law issue just last month, our team was ready to respond. Shawn did an exceptional job advocating for our members throughout this case, and I’m extremely proud that today we get to see the result of that work and our members proven right yet again.”
The court also rejected the railroads’ argument that FRA needed definitive statistical proof that one-person operations are less safe before acting. The majority recognized that requiring such proof could force the safety agency to wait for accidents to occur before taking preventive action.
At the end of its 93-page decision, the court delivered the result plainly: “We DENY the petitions for review of the Final Rule.”
For SMART-TD, today’s victory belongs to the railroaders and their families who helped build the record, the officers who organized the effort, and the legal team that defended their experiences in federal court.
SMART-TD members spoke. SMART-TD showed up. SMART-TD fought. And today, the federal two-person crew rule stands.
