TRANSPORTATION

Conrail, Union Reach Agreement: The Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees reached a contract agreement with Conrail Inc. less than 18 hours before a strike deadline. The union reached a tentative agreement with the rest of the nation’s major freight railroads last week, but approval was subject to the resolution of issues with Philadelphia-based Conrail. “It is resolved--there will not be a strike tonight,” said BMWE spokesman Paul Swanson. Rudy Husband, a spokesman for Conrail, declined to discuss details of the agreement before its formal ratification by union members but said Conrail management was “very pleased” to see the remaining issues resolved. The current round of negotiations is the result of a call June 23 for a 30-day cooling-off period.