Rail Safety Megathread. Updated July 23, 2024

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Last edited Tue Jul 23, 2024, 03:18 PM - Edit history (83)

This thread is for rail safety in general, as opposed to oil trains or crude by rail.

Previous updates: April 2, 2024; March 13, 2024: November 24, 2023; November 16, 2023; November 2, 2023; October 18, 2023; September 19, 2023; August 31, 2023; August 24, 2023; August 23, 2023; August 19, 2023; August 10, 2023; August 4, 2023; August 3, 2023; July 30, 2023; July 3, 2023; June 28, 2023; June 26, 2023; April 28, 2023; April 24, 2023; March 10, 2023; March 8, 2023; March 6, 2023; March 5, 2023; March 4, 2023; March 3, 2023; March 2, 2023; February 24, 2023; February 15, 2023; February 12, 2023; February 2, 2023; January 9, 2022; November 16, 2021; October 2, 2021; September 29, 2021; May 10, 2021; September 16, 2020; August 19, 2020; May 18, 2020, September 30, 2019; September 14, 2019; April 18, 2019; April 12, 2019; April 11, 2019; April 10, 2019; March 28, 2019; March 25, 2019; March 22, 2019; December 20, 2018; October 20, 2018; October 9, 2018; September 10, 2018; August 29, 2018; July 31, 2018; May 20, 2018; April 14, 2018, February 22, 2018; November 30, 2016; February 7, 2017; July 5, 2017; July 27, 2017; August 8, 2017; September 22, 2017; November 10, 2017; November 20, 2017; December 5, 2017; December 14, 2017; December 19, 2017; December 21, 2017; December 22, 2017; December 28, 2017; January 2, 2018; January 25, 2018.

Keywords: rail, railroad, railway, rail safety, rail worker, Amtrak, CSX, Burlington Northern Santa Fe, BNSF, Norfolk Southern, NS, Canadian Pacific, CP, Canadian National, CN, Kansas City Southern, KCS, PanAm, crossing, grade crossing, derail, derailment, Federal Railroad Administration, FRA, Ted Mann, Josh Funk, positive train control, PTC, National Transportation Safety Board, NTSB, MBTA, commuter, commuter rail, Keolis, OLI, Operation Lifesaver, brake, electro-pneumatic brake, electronically controlled pneumatic brake, ECP, EP brake, Electronically Controlled Pneumatic (ECP) braking, VRE, Virginia Railway Express, liquid natural gas, LNG, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, PHMSA, tank car, Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, vinyl chloride, DOT 111, DOT 105, DOT 105J, wayside detector, wayside track detector, wayside machine vision detector, hot box detector, HBD, HBDs, in-train forces, train energy management system, (TEMS), distributed power unit, DPU, Precision Scheduled Railroading, (PSR), train makeup, train handling, very long train, (VLT), H503— Buffing or slack action excessive, train handling, FRA H504—Buffing or slack action excessive, train make-up, train handling, train makeup, buffing, slack action, Train Energy and Dynamics Simulator (TEDS), TOES™ and NUCARS® simulation, TOES™/STARCO™ modeling software, hazmat, hazardous material

[mahatmakanejeeves]

1. Federal Officials Order New Safety Measures to Help Protect Railroad Workers Near Tracks

Federal Officials Order New Safety Measures to Help Protect Railroad Workers Near Tracks

Federal Railroad Administration to expand alcohol- and drug-testing regulations to include track-maintenance workers

By Ted Mann
[e-mail]
@TMannWSJ

Updated May 27, 2016 3:21 p.m. ET

Federal railroad officials on Friday ordered new safety measures and expanded drug testing for work crews, following a spate of train accidents, such as one that killed two track workers nearly eight weeks ago.

The Federal Railroad Administration ordered additional protective measures for work crews on or near active railroad tracks, including requiring safeguards such as the use of equipment that can serve as a second line of defense to prevent collisions between workers and trains.

The agency also expanded its existing drug- and alcohol-testing program,—already in place for engineers and dispatchers—to include track maintenance workers such as those killed in an April 3 crash in Chester, Pa., when a train killed a worker and a supervisor when it struck them and a backhoe they were using on an adjacent track.

Some of Friday’s rule changes were first proposed years ago. The rules incorporate some updates mandated by Congress in the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008.

Let's go get more about that final rule right now.

Control of Alcohol and Drug Use: Coverage of Maintenance of Way (MOW)
27
May
2016

AUTHOR: Federal Railroad Administration

DOCKET NUMBER: Docket No. FRA-2009-0039, Notice No. 3

ABSTRACT: In response to Congress’ mandate in the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (RSIA), FRA is expanding the scope of its drug and alcohol regulation to cover MOW employees. This rule also codifies guidance from FRA compliance manuals, responds to National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommendations, and adopts substantive amendments based upon FRA’s regulatory review of 30 years of implementation of this part. The final rule contains two significant differences from FRA’s July 28, 2014 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) (79 FR 48380). First, it adopts part 214’s definition of “roadway worker” to define “MOW employee” under this part. Second, because FRA has withdrawn its proposed peer support requirements, subpart K contains a revised version of the troubled employee identification requirements previously in subpart E.

Control of Alcohol and Drug Use: Coverage of Maintenance of Way (MOW) Employees and Retrospective Regulatory Review-Based Amendments

[mahatmakanejeeves]

2. Colorado railroad crossing where 5 family members were killed was awaiting improvements

Colorado railroad crossing where 5 family members were killed was awaiting improvements

State transportation officials are in the process of improving the site near Trinidad

By Jesse Paul | [e-mail] and Natalie Munio | [e-mail]

June 27, 2016 | UPDATED: 3 hours ago

The southern Colorado railroad crossing where five family members — including three young girls — died after their minivan was struck by a train as they headed to church has been the site of at least six crashes, one of them fatal, since 1986 and been eyed for safety improvements for years. ... State transportation officials began examining the site north of Trinidad in late 2013 and subsequently targeted it for a significant safety overhaul.

A $271,000 contract has been signed for the work to install advanced signaling, and Las Animas County commissioners approved the project June 14. Amy Ford, spokeswoman for the Colorado Department of Transportation, said Monday the initiative is pending a review of the application by the Public Utilities Commission.

The project will add flashers, gates, bells and a constant warning system at the at-grade crossing, which currently is marked only with signs. An application calls the enhancements a “safety improvement project,” noting the roughly 180 vehicles that pass through each day.

“I don’t know what took so long,” said Leeann Fabec, Las Animas County’s administrator. “That crossing has been there for probably 80 years. It’s a rural road that’s heavily used. I’m surprised myself that it took so long to come to the forefront.”

[Eugene]

3. The Latest: DOT Head Urges Haste in Rail Safety Upgrades

Last edited Tue Aug 8, 2017, 06:37 AM - Edit history (1)

Source: Associated Press

The Latest: DOT Head Urges Haste in Rail Safety Upgrades

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS AMARILLO, Texas — Jun 29, 2016, 7:50 PM ET

The Latest on the head-on train collision in the Texas Panhandle (all times local):

6 p.m.

Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx is urging the railroad industry "to move as fast" as it possibly can to put new safety technology called positive train control systems into operation.

His comments Wednesday came a day after two BNSF Railway freight trains collided head-on when their crews found themselves on the same track in the Texas Panhandle. Two crew members were killed, another is missing and presumed dead, and another was injured in the crash.

Positive train control, or PTC, relies on GPS, wireless radio and computers to monitor train positions and automatically slow or stop trains that are in danger of colliding, derailing due to excessive speed or about to enter track where crews are working or that is otherwise off limits. BNSF has pledged to meet a 2018 federal deadline to adopt the technology, but least three freight railroads have said they'll need an extension to 2020.

Foxx told reporters in Washington said any collision is "a terrible event" and "ones that technology could have helped us avoid remind us how critical it is to get this technology in place."

-snip-

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/latest-remains-crew-members-found-missing-40231507

[mahatmakanejeeves]

4. Italy Vows to Improve Rail Safety After Deadly Crash

This didn't happen in North America, but it is on topic.

Italy Vows to Improve Rail Safety After Deadly Crash

Traffic on part of the line where the accident occurred is controlled by a system of telephone calls between station managers

By Manuela Mesco

July 13, 2016 12:25 p.m. ET

....
Although most of Italy’s rail network has modern safety systems in place, traffic on that part of the line in Puglia is controlled through a system of telephone calls between station managers. Trains can only proceed on their routes after a station manager has given verbal authorization to their counterpart at the next station.

Police officers and a Ferrotramviaria representative said that one of the two trains shouldn’t have been there at the time of the crash, suggesting that the telephone communication system had failed.

Between 2005 and 2015 Italy spent €4.5 billion on advanced traffic-control technology, said the Italian railway-safety agency. More funds will be invested to enhance safety technology on the national network, Mr. Delrio said. But remote sections still rely on an antiquated system of traffic control.

Ferrotramviaria’s Director General Massimo Nitti said 37 km of railway has already been modernized. On the section where the accident happened, a second track had been scheduled to be built, he said.

Write to Manuela Mesco at [e-mail]

[mahatmakanejeeves]

5. Report: Train didn't heed stop signal in deadly Panhandle wreck

Report: Train didn't heed stop signal in deadly Panhandle wreck

Report: Train didn't heed stop signal in deadly Panhandle wreck

Posted: July 14, 2016 - 10:25am

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DALLAS (AP) — A train failed to heed a stop signal before it barreled head-on into another freight train last month in the Texas Panhandle, killing three, according to a preliminary federal report released Thursday.

An eastbound BNSF Railway train failed to slow at a yellow warning signal on June 28 and then continued past a red stop signal before striking an oncoming BNSF train, inspectors for the National Transportation Safety Board said in the report.

The eastbound train, bound for Chicago, was supposed to stop and allow the Los Angeles-bound train to pass. It was traveling just over 60 mph when it passed the yellow signal, though trains are not supposed to travel any faster than 40 mph at a yellow signal so that they can stop in time at a red signal. The train was traveling about 65 mph when it passed the stop signal.

NTSB spokesman Terry Williams said it's not clear how far beyond the stop signal that the point of impact occurred. ... "We're still in the gathering phase of this investigation," he said, adding that a final NTSB report will be released at some point next year. He declined to comment further. ... The collision occurred outside the town of Panhandle, about 25 miles northeast of Amarillo. Each train was carrying two crew members. One jumped to safety, the other three died.

The NTSB report can be seen at the linked website.

Here is more about that "preliminary federal report released Thursday."

Please keep in mind as you read this and other articles that this is a preliminary report. There is still much to learn.

Thursday, July 14, 2016
NTSB releases preliminary report on BNSF Panhandle collision

Written by Mischa Wanek-Libman, Engineering Editor

One of the trains involved in the June 28 head-on collision between two BNSF intermodal trains outside of Panhandle, Texas passed a red signal before the accident. ... This comes from the National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSB) preliminary report of the incident, which was published July 13.

The report reads, "The signal system was lined to route the westbound train into the Panhandle control point siding at milepost 526.1 while holding the eastbound train on the main track before the east end of the siding.

"Preliminary review of signal event recorder data and tests of the signal system indicate the last signal the eastbound train passed before the collision was a stop (red) signal. The previous signal the eastbound train passed was an approach (yellow) signal.

"A preliminary review of locomotive event recorder data revealed that the eastbound train was traveling about 62 mph when it went by the approach signal at the west end of the Panhandle siding and about 65 mph when it went by the stop signal at the east end of the Panhandle siding.
....

NTSB said the investigation is ongoing and it will supplement or correct information during the course of its investigation. Full report HERE.

Collision of two BNSF trains Executive Summary

Western Railroad Discussion > NTSB preliminary report collision at Panhandle, Texas

[mahatmakanejeeves]

6. FRA issues final rule on identifying passenger railroad safety hazards

Monday, August 01, 2016

FRA issues final rule on identifying passenger railroad safety hazards

Written by Mischa Wanek-Libman, editor

The U.S. Department of Transportation's (USDOT) Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) issued a final rule on System Safety Programs (SSP).

The rule requires passenger railroads to proactively identify potential safety hazards across their operations and work to reduce and mitigate them. The rule will help prevent safety problems from escalating and resulting in incidents, injuries or deaths.

"Operating a railroad safely requires more than simply not having an incident – it demands looking for problems before they cause an injury or a fatality," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. "This new rule is a huge step in the right direction to make passenger rail service even safer."

The SSP rule requires passenger railroads to implement, among other items, a defined and measurable safety culture; identify potential safety hazards in their operations and work to reduce or eliminate those hazards and to document and demonstrate how they will achieve compliance with FRA regulations.

8/1/2016

Rail News: Federal Legislation & Regulation

FRA unveils final version of new rule governing passenger-rail safety

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) late last week issued a new final rule that requires passenger railroads to identify safety hazards and to work to reduce and mitigate them.

The rule is designed to prevent safety problems from escalating into incidents, injuries or deaths, FRA officials said in a press release.

The System Safety Program (SSP) requires passenger railroads to put into place a defined and measurable safety culture; identify potential safety hazards and reduce or eliminate them; and to document and demonstrate how they will achieve compliance with FRA regulations.

The rule aims to build on current regulations to help the industry move from a reactive to more proactive approach to safety, FRA officials said.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

7. Number of U.S. railroad workers testing positive for drug use skyrockets

Number of U.S. railroad workers testing positive for drug use skyrockets, DU, Thursday, September 15, 2016

Number of U.S. railroad workers testing positive for drug use skyrockets, Washington Post, Thursday, September 15, 2016

[mahatmakanejeeves]

8. N.J. Train Crash Raises Questions About Rail Safety

Audio file. Click to listen.

N.J. Train Crash Raises Questions About Rail Safety

September 29, 2016·4:33 PM ET

Heard on All Things Considered

NPR's Robert Siegel talks with Steven Ditmeyer, former director of research and development at the Federal Railroad Administration, about the New Jersey Transit train crash.

[Eugene]

9. Feds: Railroads Slow to Make Progress on Train Technology

Last edited Tue Aug 8, 2017, 06:34 AM - Edit history (1)

Source: Associated Press

Feds: Railroads Slow to Make Progress on Train Technology

By MICHAEL R. SISAK, ASSOCIATED PRESS PHILADELPHIA — Nov 28, 2016, 1:27 PM ET

The nation's three busiest commuter railroads - which together serve nearly 1 million riders in the New York City area each day - continue to lag behind their smaller West Coast counterparts in installing sophisticated train-control technology that's seen as an antidote to crashes involving speeding and other human factors, federal regulators said Monday.

The Long Island Rail Road, New Jersey Transit and Metro-North all made scant progress on implementing GPS-based positive-train control in the quarter ending Sept. 30, according to new Federal Railroad Administration data. Over the last three months, the LIRR and Metro-North have trained more employees on the system, the data shows, but neither they nor NJ Transit installed it on any tracks.

The railroads say the federal data doesn't fully reflect their progress and that they are still on track to meet a December 2018 deadline to install the technology, which is designed to automatically slow or stop trains that are going too fast.

-snip-

The LIRR and Metro-North say they've installed PTC equipment on more than 300 train cars and placed more than 2,000 transponders along their tracks. NJ Transit says it's awaiting federal approval to acquire a slice of required radio spectrum and has testing scheduled for next year on a 6-mile stretch of track.

-snip-

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/feds-railroads-slow-make-progress-train-technology-43821373

[mahatmakanejeeves]

10. FRA to railroad employers: Remember that OSHA regs may apply

FRA to railroad employers: Remember that OSHA regs may apply

November 29, 2016

Washington – A recent safety advisory from the Federal Railroad Administration reminds railroads, railroad contractors and their respective employees to remain cautious during work that falls outside the scope of the agency’s safety regulations but within the jurisdiction of OSHA.

From 2000 to 2015, more than 60 railroad workers have been killed while performing work not covered by FRA safety regulations, according to the agency. Factors and actions that may have contributed to the deaths include ascending or descending; falling objects; electrocution; slips, trips and falls; and highway vehicle collisions. The National Transportation Safety Board discussed fatalities in the industry in 2014 and emphasized that OSHA regulations may apply to railroads and railroad contractors.

FRA issued four recommendations in its safety advisory:

•Develop hazard-recognition strategies identifying and addressing existing conditions posing actual or potential safety hazards, emphasizing the contributing factors or actions involved in roadway worker-related fatalities occurring since 2000.
•Provide annual training to roadway workers on the use of hazard-recognition strategies developed by the railroad or the railroad contractor.
•Institute procedures for mandatory job safety briefings compliant with OSHA’s regulations prior to initiating any roadway worker activity.
•Develop and apply Good Faith Challenge Procedures for roadway workers who believe a task is unsafe or an identified hazard has not been mitigated.

“FRA encourages railroad and railroad contractor industry members to take actions consistent with the preceding recommendations and any other actions that may help ensure the safety of roadway workers,” the agency stated in a notice published in the Nov. 28 Federal Register. “Although the primary purpose of this Safety Advisory is for railroads and railroad contractors to apply these recommendations to activities that fall outside the scope of FRA’s safety regulations, FRA also encourages the industry to apply these recommendations to activities FRA’s regulations govern.”

[Eugene]

11. Defective axle blamed for 2013 fiery North Dakota derailment

Last edited Tue Aug 8, 2017, 06:37 AM - Edit history (1)

Source: Associated Press

Defective axle blamed for 2013 fiery North Dakota derailment

By DAVE KOLPACK
Feb. 7, 2017 6:22 PM EST

FARGO, N.D. (AP) — A defective axle broke and caused a 2013 train derailment that led to a series of explosions just a quarter-mile outside a small North Dakota town, the National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday.

A BNSF train carrying soybeans derailed and was struck by one carrying oil, setting off explosions near the small town of Casselton, about 20 miles west of Fargo. About 1,400 residents were evacuated from their homes. No one was hurt.

NTSB investigators said during a meeting in Washington that the axle made by Standard Steel in 2002 was on the 45th car of the grain train. Had the axle been subjected to more thorough testing when its bearings and wheels were remounted at a BNSF shop in 2010, investigators say the defect would likely have been discovered. Such testing is now required.

After the crash, the manufacturer worked with the industry to identify and remove similar axles that might have been defective. The agency said Tuesday that any remaining axles in question have likely been taken out of service and new manufacture testing should detect and prevent similar issues.

-snip-

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/4603184330c5410ebb4fa1ea0b352b94/ntsb-set-release-cause-fiery-north-dakota-train-crash

[mahatmakanejeeves]

12. NTSB releases witness interviews and documents related to deadly 2016 Panhandle, TX train collision

Posted May 27, 2017 04:01 am - Updated May 27, 2017 09:58 pm

By RICKY TREON [e-mail]

‘It looked like the Hindenburg’: NTSB releases witness interviews, other documents related to deadly Panhandle train collision

In documents recently released by the National Transportation Safety Board, witnesses described the deadly train collision near Panhandle that killed three people and talking to the crash’s only survivor.

The article has links to the NTSB.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

13. Wilmington News Journal - Delaware Online: Rail safety questioned as fuel shipments likely to go up

Warning: pop-ups galore, and annoying autoplay video.

Rail safety questioned as fuel shipments likely to go up

Karl Baker, The News Journal Published 12:13 p.m. ET May 26, 2017 | Updated 1:17 p.m. ET May 26, 2017

As more train cars carrying volatile fuel are likely to roll into Delaware over the next year, concerns are growing over how well the state's freight tracks are inspected for derailment-causing flaws.

Delaware is one of three states that are home to both a large oil refinery and also do not employ inspectors to oversee railroads, the News Journal has learned.

Instead, the job of regulating railroad safety is left to federal officials, whose resources are spread thin across the tens of thousands of miles of rail throughout the country. In 2016, those regulators conducted a handful of inspections on Delaware tracks.

While far fewer derailments occur today than a generation ago, freight trains are transporting more dangerous products than the foodstuffs that dominated rail shipments in previous decades, said Allen Zarembski, a railroad engineering professor at the University of Delaware.
....

Contact Karl Baker at [e-mail] or [phone]. Follow him on Twitter @kbaker6.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

14. North Dakota may halt rail inspections aimed at derailments

North Dakota may halt rail inspections aimed at derailments

JAMES MACPHERSON, ASSOCIATED PRESSJuly 3, 2017 Updated: July 3, 2017 2:17pm

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — The end of the line may be in sight for a North Dakota safety program aimed at lowering the risk of disastrous train derailments involving the state's crude oil.

The pilot program, which includes two rail safety inspectors and a manager to supplement inspections by the Federal Railroad Administration, or FRA, is halfway through its four-year run this month and likely will be scrapped in two years, said House Majority Leader Al Carlson and his Republican Senate counterpart, Rich Wardner.

They said the program duplicates federal and industry inspections programs and is not needed as the bulk of the state's crude oil is now moved by pipelines. ... "I think it will run its course, and when it's done, my gut feeling is we won't re-up it," Wardner said.

Carlson said the pilot program was an overreaction following a spate of accidents involving North Dakota crude in the U.S. and Canada, including one in Casselton, the hometown of then-Gov. Jack Dalrymple, who supported the idea. ... "Every other program — once you start them, everybody wants to keep them. That's government," Carlson said.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

15. NTSB: We can't know why SUV was on tracks before train crash

NTSB: We can’t know why SUV was on tracks before train crash

Originally published July 24, 2017 at 9:25 pm Updated July 25, 2017 at 5:51 pm

By COLLEEN LONG and JENNIFER PELTZ
The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Federal safety investigators said Tuesday they can’t determine why an SUV ended up in the path of an oncoming commuter train, causing a crash that killed six people at a rail crossing in suburban New York in 2015. ... Detailing the results of the nearly 2 1/2-year investigation, the National Transportation Safety Board suggested evaluating the safety risks at some rail crossings and said the design of the train’s power-providing third rail played a role in the toll of deaths and injuries in the crash in the community of Valhalla. The NTSB concluded the SUV driver’s actions were the probable cause of the wreck, but Chairman Robert Sumwalt said those actions remained a mystery.
....

Ellen Brody drove onto the tracks, and when the gate arm came down onto her SUV, she got out and inspected the vehicle before getting back in and driving further onto the tracks. The impact of the crash sparked an explosion, and flames blasted into the Metro-North train, burning out the first rail car and killing Brody and five people aboard the train. More than a dozen others were injured.

Brody wasn’t on the phone, impaired or fatigued, NTSB investigators found. They found all the signals were working properly; the train’s brakes worked and were pulled on time; the warning signs at the crossing worked and were properly marked; the train wasn’t speeding; the engineer wasn’t fatigued or distracted; the track wasn’t faulty; and the emergency exit windows worked. ... Sumwalt hypothesized that Brody wasn’t aware that she had driven into a railroad crossing while inching through traffic.
....

The power-providing rail stayed in one piece, like a 340-foot-long (104-meter) spear, when it was ripped from the ground, investigators said. The rail then sliced through the first passenger car, contributing to the death toll. ... NTSB investigators said the lack of a “controlled failure” mechanism that would split up third rails in such situations was a potential safety problem. The agency recommended that railways that use third rails evaluate the safety risks at ground-level crossings like the one where the crash happened, in the town of Mount Pleasant. The town was weighing whether to close the crossing altogether.
....

___

Associated Press writer Michael Balsamo contributed to this report from Los Angeles.

I've seen photographs of the incident. The SUV was shoved into the third rail (aka, the power-providing rail), which pierced the SUV near its fuel tank. Look at the rear door on the driver's side:

[Eugene]

16. US nixes sleep apnea test plan for truckers, train engineers

Source: Associated Press

US nixes sleep apnea test plan for truckers, train engineers

By MICHAEL BALSAMO and MICHAEL R. SISAK
32 minutes ago

U.S. officials are abandoning plans to require sleep apnea screening for truck drivers and train engineers, a decision that safety experts say puts millions of lives at risk.

The Federal Railroad Administration and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said late last week that they are no longer pursuing the regulation that would require testing for the fatigue-inducing disorder that’s been blamed for deadly rail crashes in New York City and New Jersey and several highway crashes.

The agencies argue that it should be up to railroads and trucking companies to decide whether to test employees. One railroad that does test, Metro-North in the New York City suburbs, found that 11.6 percent of its engineers have sleep apnea.

The decision to kill the sleep apnea regulation is the latest step in President Donald Trump’s campaign to drastically slash federal regulations. The Trump administration has withdrawn or delayed hundreds of proposed regulations since he took office in January — moves the president has said will help bolster economic growth.

-snip-

Read more: https://apnews.com/ac5ac5c34bf64a09af0a0678e0823ff6/US-nixes-sleep-apnea-test-plan-for-truckers,-train-engineers

[mahatmakanejeeves]

17. Thanks, Eugene. Here are links to the Federal Register:

.html:

Evaluation of Safety Sensitive Personnel for Moderate-to-Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea

.pdf:

Evaluation of Safety Sensitive Personnel for Moderate-to-Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea

[Eugene]

18. U.S. safety board says train crash engineers had undiagnosed sleep disorder

Source: Reuters

#HEALTH NEWSSEPTEMBER 21, 2017 / 1:00 PM / UPDATED 2 HOURS AGO

U.S. safety board says train crash engineers had undiagnosed sleep disorder

David Shepardson
4 MIN READ

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The engineers in two New York City area commuter train crashes suffered from sleep apnea that had not been diagnosed, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said on Thursday.

The NTSB released factual findings on Thursday regarding its investigations into the crashes and said it planned to hold a meeting next February about both incidents and safety recommendations.

A New Jersey Transit train crashed in Hoboken, New Jersey, in September 2016, killing one person and injuring more than 100.

In January, a Long Island Rail Road train crashed, injuring more than 100 people.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trains-crash/u-s-safety-board-says-train-crash-engineers-had-undiagnosed-sleep-disorder-idUSKCN1BW2H2

[mahatmakanejeeves]

19. Canada Proposing Fatigue Regulation for Rail Workers

Canada Proposing Fatigue Regulation for Rail Workers

Canada Proposing Fatigue Regulation for Rail Workers

A committee recommended last year that Transport Canada, in cooperation with the federal departments responsible for health and labor, take immediate action through a working group to develop options to improve the management of railway crew fatigue.

Nov 08, 2017

Saying Canadians deserve the safest transportation system possible and should be confident that railroad workers are ready for duty and well rested, Marc Garneau, the government's minister of Transport, on Nov. 7 announced what he described as a first step toward addressing fatigue management in the rail industry. Fatigue is common in the 24/7 railway transportation industry, where employees are subject to shiftwork, disruptive schedules, and long hours, according to his agency.

He said a Notice of Intent will be published in the Canada Gazette, Part I, to outline a proposed approach to incorporate up-to-date fatigue science in current requirements and further strengthen Canada's safety regime.

Garneau said Canadians, railway workers, and anyone else with a vested interest in rail safety are encouraged to provide comments following the publication of the notice. It follows Transport Canada's continued work to address rail fatigue and Garneau's commitment following the recommendations of the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in its June 2016 report, An Update on Rail Safety.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

20. Ignored Safety Procedures, Fractured Safety Program Led to Fatal Amtrak Derailment

Ignored Safety Procedures, Fractured Safety Program Led to Fatal Amtrak Derailment

11/14/2017

​WASHINGTON (Nov. 14, 2017) — The National Transportation Safety Board determined Tuesday the April 3, 2016, derailment of Amtrak train 89 near Chester, Pennsylvania was caused by deficient safety management across many levels of Amtrak and the resultant lack of a clear, consistent and accepted vision for safety.

A backhoe operator and a track supervisor were killed, and 39 people were injured when Amtrak train 89, traveling on the Northeast Corridor from Philadelphia to Washington on track 3, struck a backhoe at about 7:50 a.m. The train engineer saw equipment and people working on and near track 3 and initiated emergency braking that slowed the train from 106 mph to approximately 99 mph at the time of impact.

The NTSB also determined allowing a passenger train to travel at maximum authorized speed on unprotected track where workers were present, the absence of shunting devices, the foreman’s failure to conduct a job briefing at the start of the shift, all coupled with the numerous inconsistent views of safety and safety management throughout Amtrak, led to the accident.

“Amtrak’s safety culture is failing, and is primed to fail again, until and unless Amtrak changes the way it practices safety management,” said NTSB Chairman Robert L. Sumwalt. “Investigators found a labor-management relationship so adversarial that safety programs became contentious at the bargaining table, with the unions ultimately refusing to participate.”

The NTSB also noted the Federal Railroad Administration’s failure to require redundant signal protection, such as shunting, for maintenance-of-way work crews contributed to this accident.

Post-accident toxicology determined that the backhoe operator tested positive for cocaine, and the track supervisor and tested positive for codeine and morphine. The locomotive engineer tested positive for marijuana. The NTSB determined that while drug use was not a factor in this accident, it was symptomatic of a weak safety culture at Amtrak.

As a result of this investigation, the NTSB issued 14 safety recommendations including nine to Amtrak.

The NTSB also made two safety recommendations to the Federal Railroad Administration, and three safety recommendations were issued to the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division, American Railway and Airway Supervisors Association, Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, and Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen.

The abstract of the NTSB’s final report, that includes the findings, probable cause and safety recommendations is available online at https://go.usa.gov/xnWpg. The final report will be publicly released in the next several days.

The webcast of the board meeting for this investigation is available for 90 days at http://ntsb.capitolconnection.org/ .

Contact: NTSB Media Relations
490 L'Enfant Plaza, SW
Washington, DC 20594
Terry Williams
[phone]
[e-mail]

[mahatmakanejeeves]

21. USDOT opts to repeal ECP brake rulemaking

Last edited Wed Dec 6, 2017, 05:15 PM - Edit history (5)

Rail News: Federal Legislation & Regulation
12/5/2017

USDOT opts to repeal ECP brake rulemaking

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) repealed a May 2015 rulemaking that would have required the installation of electronically controlled pneumatic (ECP) brakes on certain tank cars, according to U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.). The USDOT had until Dec. 4 to publish a determination that the ECP rule either was justified or should be repealed.

The Federal Railroad Administration rulemaking had set a timetable for requiring ECP brakes on newer tank cars trains used to haul certain hazardous or flammable materials, such as ethanol and crude oil. ECP brakes issue electronic signals to simultaneously apply and release brakes throughout the length of a train instead of each car applying brakes individually — a system the government considers more effective in emergency situations.

A provision in the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act directed the National Academies of Sciences (NAS) to analyze the rule and reevaluate ECP braking results. In a report issued in October, NAS officials said the approach used to mandate ECP brakes over other technologies was incomplete and unconvincing, said Thune — who chairs the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation — in a press release. NAS officials also could not conclude that ECP brakes' emergency performance was superior to other braking systems, he said. ... Moreover, a Government Accountability Office (GAO) study released in October 2016 found the UDOT's justification for the rulemaking lacked transparency, said Thune. The FAST Act had required the GAO to conduct an independent evidence-based evaluation of ECP brakes.
....

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) had lobbied to repeal the rulemaking. AAR officials believe the widespread use of ECP brakes would not provide any meaningful safety benefits compared with existing braking systems, and that the brakes would impose very high costs on railroads for minimal safety benefits.

National Academies of Sciences ECP report:

Review of Department of Transportation Testing of Electronically Controlled Pneumatic Brakes

or

Committee on the Review of Department of Transportation Testing of Electronically Controlled Pneumatic Brakes

Official news release (from PHMSA, not FRA. Why?):

USDOT Announces Intent to Repeal Electronically Controlled Pneumatic Brake Mandate

December 4, 2017
Contact: DOT Press Office
Tel.: [phone]

WASHINGTON - In accordance with the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act (Public Law 114-94), the U.S. Department of Transportation today announced the final updated Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA) in regard to Electronically Controlled Pneumatic (ECP) brakes on certain trains. After careful review in accordance with the Congressional mandate contained in the FAST Act, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will rescind the ECP mandate.

This determination was made with congressionally-mandated input from the National Academy of Sciences’ Transportation Research Board, U.S. General Accountability Office (GAO) and studies by the FRA, which found that the cost-benefit analyses are not sufficient justification for mandating ECP brakes.

The National Academy of Sciences determined it was unable to make a conclusive statement regarding the emergency performance of ECP brakes relative to other braking systems. In addition, the updated RIA incorporated recommendations from audits conducted by the U.S. General Accountability Office and updated costs and benefits of the ECP brake provision based on current economic conditions. This review demonstrated that the costs of this mandate would exceed three-fold the benefits it would produce.

###

Contact Us
Office of Governmental, International, and Public Affairs
U.S. Department of Transportation, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
United States
[e-mail]

Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

[Eugene]

22. Growing length of U.S. freight trains in federal crosshairs after crashes: GAO

Source: Reuters

#BUSINESS NEWS DECEMBER 6, 2017 / 6:03 AM / UPDATED 5 HOURS AGO

Growing length of U.S. freight trains in federal crosshairs after crashes: GAO

Eric M. Johnson
5 MIN READ

SEATTLE (Reuters) - The investigative arm of the U.S. Congress is launching a probe into the safety of increasingly long freight trains being operated by CSX Corp (CSX.O), Union Pacific Corp (UNP.N) and other major U.S. railroads to boost profitability, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) said.

Train length is currently unregulated. Any push to add rules would likely face stiff industry opposition because railroads use longer trains to boost margins through the better use of fuel, locomotive power, and rail cars without having to add extra crew.

In addition to the GAO study, safety regulator the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has beefed up its presence at CSX rail yards, according to CSX employees and SMART Union Chairman Dale Barnett, citing conversations with FRA inspectors.

FRA spokesman Marc Willis declined to characterize concerns over CSX train length but said any appearance of increased inspections is due partly to safety complaints and a spike in railroad accidents or incidents.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-train-safety/growing-length-of-u-s-freight-trains-in-federal-crosshairs-after-crashes-gao-idUSKBN1E01B9

[mahatmakanejeeves]

23. 2016: CSX train derails in Northeast Washington, leaking hazardous chemicals and disrupting travel

Transportation

CSX train derails in Northeast Washington, leaking hazardous chemicals and disrupting travel

By Faiz Siddiqui, Luz Lazo and Michael Smith May 1, 2016

A CSX freight train derailed in Northeast Washington early Sunday, spilling hazardous chemicals along a busy rail corridor. The wreck stranded some residents away from their homes, forced the closure of a Metro station and snarled traffic as emergency personnel sought to contain the leaks and clear the wreckage.

Officials said 14 rail cars of the 175-car train left the tracks. A rail engineer and a conductor had been aboard the train but were accounted for, authorities said. No evacuations were ordered, and no one was injured.
....

Peter Hermann, Perry Stein and Ashley Halsey III contributed to this report.

Faiz Siddiqui is a metro reporter covering transportation and local issues. He has previously contributed to NPR, The Boston Globe and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Follow @faizsays

Luz Lazo writes about transportation and development. She has recently written about the challenges of bus commuting, Metro’s dark stations, and the impact of sequestration on air travel.
Follow @luzcita

Michael Smith covers breaking news on the weekends.

There was this question:

Rain-Snow Line
5/1/2016 8:01 PM EDT [Edited]

How do freights get thru Washington if they are coming from Cumberland?

ETA -- GreaterGreaterWashington to the rescue.

From that article:

[mahatmakanejeeves]

24. Metro-North likely to miss deadline for positive train control

Metro-North likely to miss deadline for positive train control

Matt Coyne, [e-mail] Published 6:00 a.m. ET Dec. 14, 2017 | Updated 12:01 p.m. ET Dec. 14, 2017

....
After being given nearly a decade to implement lifesaving technology, Metro-North is going to have to scramble to meet federal deadlines for positive train control.

Despite more than a billion dollars in loans and grants handed out since the system was first mandated in 2008, and a three-year extension in 2015, Metro-North and some of the country's other largest railroads are lagging as the Dec. 31, 2018, deadline looms.

A Journal News/lohud analysis of the reports that railroads are required to submit to the Federal Railroad Administration highlighting positive train control work shows that if current progress holds, the region's three commuter railroads — Metro-North, NJ Transit and the Long Island Rail Road — won't meet the deadline.

Additionally, it appears two of the next three busiest railroads, Metra in Chicago and Boston's Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, are behind, too. ... Only the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA), in the Philadelphia area, has been activating the system.

[Eugene]

25. Amtrak safety record already under scrutiny before fatal derailment

Source: Reuters

#BUSINESS NEWS DECEMBER 19, 2017 / 1:04 AM / UPDATED 28 MINUTES AGO

Amtrak safety record already under scrutiny before fatal derailment

David Shepardson, Daniel Trotta
5 MIN READ

(Reuters) - The deadly derailment of an Amtrak train south of Seattle is likely to intensify scrutiny of the national passenger railroad company’s safety record, which was already under the microscope following a series of fatal incidents.

-snip-

Amtrak’s co-chief executive, Richard Anderson, told reporters earlier on Monday he would not speculate on the cause of the derailment and said safety was the company’s top priority.

However, Anderson acknowledged that a working Positive Train Control (PTC), a system that automatically slows trains if they are going too fast, had not been installed on that stretch of track. PTC also prevents train-on-train collisions and stops a train from passing through misaligned tracks.

Moreover, NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt just last month issued a scathing critique of Amtrak’s culture, saying a future breakdown was likely.

“Amtrak’s safety culture is failing and is primed to fail again, until and unless Amtrak changes the way it practices safety management,” Sumwalt said on Nov. 14.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-washington-train-amtrak/amtrak-safety-record-already-under-scrutiny-before-fatal-derailment-idUSKBN1ED0FM

[Eugene]

26. Trump rail safety oversight in focus after Amtrak crash

Source: Reuters

#U.S. DECEMBER 21, 2017 / 1:04 PM / UPDATED 2 HOURS AGO

Trump rail safety oversight in focus after Amtrak crash

David Shepardson
6 MIN READ

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As investigators sift through the wreckage of this week’s Amtrak train crash in Washington state, critics have begun questioning President Donald Trump’s recent efforts to roll back or delay finalizing U.S. rail safety regulations.

Making American railroads safer drew renewed attention after the passenger train derailed on Monday morning while speeding onto a bridge, killing three passengers and sending about 100 people to hospitals.

The accident occurred as the U.S. Transportation Department is reviewing rail safety requirements or proposals set under prior administrations. The White House has promised a sweeping effort to eliminate regulations throughout government and cut at least two existing regulations for every new one.

Earlier this month, the department reversed a decision requiring crude oil rail tank cars to be fitted with an advanced braking system designed to prevent fiery derailments. The requirement to install electronically controlled pneumatic brakes had been included in a package of safety reforms the Obama administration unveiled in 2015 following a series of deadly derailments stemming from the U.S. shale boom.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-washington-train-safety/trump-rail-safety-oversight-in-focus-after-amtrak-crash-idUSKBN1EF2HX

[mahatmakanejeeves]

27. APNewsBreak: 298 die in rail crashes system could've stopped

I thought I posted this yesterday, but I can't find it now. Here we go again:

APNewsBreak: 298 die in rail crashes system could've stopped

Michael Balsamo and Michael Sisak, Associated Press Updated 12:55 am, Friday, December 22, 2017

Nearly 300 people have died in train crashes that could have been prevented if railroads across the U.S. implemented critical speed-control technology that federal safety investigators have been pushing for close to five decades, according to rail crash data obtained by The Associated Press.

But despite overwhelming evidence it could save lives, Congress extended the deadlines for railroads to implement so-called positive train control for years.

All the while, new high-speed train routes continue to spring into operation without the technology, including the new route involved in Monday's Amtrak crash south of Seattle that killed three people and one in Florida that's expected to start service in the coming weeks.

Data that the National Transportation Safety Board provided to AP on Wednesday shows the crashes that the agency says could have been prevented by positive train control have led to 298 deaths, 6,763 injuries and nearly $385 million in property damage. ... The records list crashes from 1969 through May 2015 — when an Amtrak train derailed in Philadelphia, killing eight people — and do not include Monday's wreck outside of Seattle, which experts say likely could have been prevented by the technology.
....

___
Follow Balsamo at https://twitter.com/mikebalsamo1 and Sisak at https://twitter.com/mikesisak .

___
For complete coverage of the deadly derailment, click here: https://www.apnews.com/tag/TrainDerailment .

[mahatmakanejeeves]

28. Could Amtrak catastrophe happen in Sacramento? It almost did, leaving some riders scared and angry

I had read about the incident, but I did not know until now that what had happened was that the train went through a turnout at too high a speed.

Could Amtrak catastrophe happen here? It almost did, leaving some riders scared and angry

BY TONY BIZJAK
[e-mail]

DECEMBER 26, 2017 03:55 AM

UPDATED DECEMBER 26, 2017 02:17 PM

Could last Monday’s Amtrak train crash in Washington happen here? It nearly did, a year ago this month.

The spectacular crash near Olympia this week that left at least three dead and dozens injured is eerily reminiscent of a dramatic near derailment outside Davis last December that injured five people, prompted Amtrak to discipline several employees and caused passengers and local officials to criticize Amtrak for lack of transparency about safety procedures.

In that case, an apparently distracted Amtrak engineer allowed a Capitol Corridor service train to run through a track switch at nearly double the allowable speed – 78 mph in a 40 mph zone – causing the train cars to lurch violently back and forth, sending people, coffees and laptops flying. A crew member told passengers she thought the train was going to “eat dirt.” Passengers said the train tilted so steeply they could see the ground outside the window rushing at them.

Federal investigators this week said the Cascades passenger train in Washington also was going too fast, 80 miles per hour on a 30 mph curve, sending train cars tumbling onto a freeway. Officials said they are looking into whether the engineer was distracted.
....

Tony Bizjak: 916-321-1059, @TonyBizjak

[Eugene]

29. U.S. urges railroads to quickly install anti-crash safety system

Source: Reuters

#U.S. JANUARY 2, 2018 / 3:11 PM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO

U.S. urges railroads to quickly install anti-crash safety system

David Shepardson
3 MIN READ

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao urged the nation’s railroads and transit agencies to take all possible measures to meet deadlines to install a safety system called positive train control (PTC) to prevent crashes.

Letters dated Dec. 27, which were made public on Tuesday, said Chao wanted railroads to “greatly accelerate” efforts to meet congressional deadlines. A deadly Amtrak crash last month near Seattle that killed three occurred on a section of track that did not have the PTC system operating.

The system is designed to prevent derailments caused by excessive speed. Investigators have said several deadly U.S. train crashes in recent years could have been prevented if the system was in place.

-snip-

The letters went to the chief executives of railroads, including Amtrak, BNSF Railway Co, Canadian National Railway (CNR.TO), CSX Corp (CSX.O), Norfolk Southern Corp (NSC.N), Union Pacific Corp (UNP.N) and transit systems in Chicago, Boston, New York, Boston, Newark, Seattle and Los Angeles.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-railroads-safety/u-s-urges-railroads-to-quickly-install-anti-crash-safety-system-idUSKBN1ER1O7

[Eugene]

30. Amtrak engineer misread signal before fatal crash near Seattle: U.S. agency

Source: Reuters

#U.S. JANUARY 25, 2018 / 1:05 PM / UPDATED 3 HOURS AGO

Amtrak engineer misread signal before fatal crash near Seattle: U.S. agency

Reuters Staff
3 MIN READ

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Amtrak engineer aboard a passenger train that derailed last month in Washington state has told the National Transportation Safety Board he misread a signal and tried to brake before the crash that killed three people, the agency said on Thursday.

All 12 cars and one of two engines jumped the tracks at a curve on Dec. 18, sending some cars tumbling from a bridge onto an interstate highway near Seattle.

The NTSB this month said the crash, which also injured 70 people, could have been prevented if a safety technology system known as positive train control had been operational. It said the train was traveling at 79 miles per hour (126 km per hour) when it derailed, far above the 30 mph speed limit.

-snip-

The engineer told investigators he was aware that the curve with a 30 mph (48 kph) speed restriction was at milepost 19.8 of the track, and that he had planned to start braking about one mile (1.6 km) prior to the curve, the agency said. The engineer said he did not recall seeing milepost 18 or the 30 mph advance speed sign that was posted two miles (3.2 km) ahead of the speed-restricted curve, the NTSB said.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-washington-train/amtrak-engineer-misread-signal-before-fatal-crash-near-seattle-u-s-agency-idUSKBN1FE2NH

[Eugene]

31. Witnesses report 'issues' at crossing in Amtrak accident, NTSB says

Source: ABC News

Witnesses report 'issues' at crossing in Amtrak accident, NTSB says

By ERIN DOOLEY • Feb 1, 2018, 6:10 PM ET

Witnesses interviewed by the NTSB reported "issues" at the grade crossing where an Amtrak train carrying GOP lawmakers slammed into a garbage truck near Charlottesville, Virginia, NTSB officials confirmed today.

In the days leading up to the crash -- which killed one person and injured at least six -- the gates "weren't working right," a neighbor told ABC News. The gates would sometimes block the crossing for hours, even when a train was nowhere in sight, he said.

Buckingham Branch Railroad, the company responsible for track and signal maintenance, declined to comment on alleged malfunctions.

The NTSB hopes information from the lead locomotive's forward-facing camera, which has been transported to Washington, D.C., for download and evaluation, will shed light on what occurred at the crossing Wednesday.

-snip-

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/US/witnesses-report-issues-crossing-amtrak-accident-ntsb/story?id=52767496

[Eugene]

32. South Carolina train crash: Amtrak 'on the wrong track'

Source: BBC

South Carolina train crash: Amtrak 'on the wrong track'

4 February 2018

An Amtrak train involved in a deadly crash with a stationary freight train in South Carolina appeared to be on the wrong track, the state governor says.

Officials will investigate whether points in the area misdirected the passenger train.

The Amtrak's engineer and conductor died and 116 people were injured in the crash early on Sunday.

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster said the incident should "begin a conversation" about rail safety.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42938148

[Eugene]

33. Locked switch blamed in fatal Amtrak crash

Source: Reuters

#U.S. FEBRUARY 5, 2018 / 6:41 AM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO

Locked switch blamed in fatal Amtrak crash

Reuters Staff
2 MIN READ

(Reuters) - A locked switch is being blamed for the collision between an Amtrak passenger train and a freight train that killed two people and injured more than 100 others in South Carolina early on Sunday.

The head of the National Transportation Safety Board said a switch on the tracks, which the freight hauler CSX Corp. owns and operates, was padlocked in a position that steered the Amtrak train onto a siding near Columbia, S.C., where it crashed into a parked, unoccupied CSX train.

“Key to this investigation is learning why the switch was lined that way,” Robert Sumwalt, the chairman of the NTSB, told reporters at a news conference on Sunday. NTSB officials were not immediately available to elaborate.

Amtrak President and Chief Executive Richard Anderson told reporters Sunday that CSX was responsible for the wreck because of the locked switch. CSX officials were not available for comment.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-train-investigation/locked-switch-blamed-in-fatal-amtrak-crash-idUSKBN1FP1HL

[Eugene]

34. U.S. safety board blames two commuter crashes on sleep disorders

Source: Reuters

#U.S. FEBRUARY 6, 2018 / 1:53 PM / UPDATED 3 HOURS AGO

U.S. safety board blames two commuter crashes on sleep disorders

David Shepardson
4 MIN READ

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. investigative agency said on Tuesday that two New York City area commuter train crashes were the result of engineers with undiagnosed sleep disorders.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) criticized the lack of safety systems in both crashes that could have prevented the incidents blamed on fatigued engineers.

The board said two recent crashes had almost identical probable causes. A New Jersey Transit train crashed in a terminal in Hoboken, New Jersey, in September 2016, killing one person and injuring 110. In January, a Long Island Rail Road train crashed at the Atlantic Terminal in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, injuring 108 people.

Both engineers suffered from severe sleep apnea, which is characterized by shallow or interrupted breathing during sleep and can leave sufferers fatigued.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-train-crashes/u-s-safety-board-blames-two-commuter-crashes-on-sleep-disorders-idUSKBN1FQ2QM


Source: NTSB

NTSB News Release

Nearly Identical Probable Causes for 2 Commuter Rail Accidents Drive Safety Recommendations

2/6/2018

​Fatigue from Undiagnosed Obstructive Sleep Apnea Caused Both Accidents

WASHINGTON (Feb. 6, 2018) — The National Transportation Safety Board Tuesday determined that two commuter railroad terminal accidents in the New York area were caused by engineer fatigue resulting from undiagnosed severe obstructive sleep apnea.

The Sept. 29, 2016, accident on the New Jersey Transit railroad at Hoboken, New Jersey, killed one person, injured 110, and resulted in major damage to the station. The Jan. 4, 2017, accident on the Long Island Rail Road at the Atlantic Terminal in Brooklyn, New York, injured 108 people. Both accidents involved trains that struck end-of-track bumping posts and crashed into stations.

The NTSB found the two accidents had “almost identical” probable causes and safety issues. The board also determined that these safety issues were not unique to these two properties, but exist throughout the country at many intercity passenger and commuter passenger train terminals.

In a statement issued in August 2017 the NTSB expressed its “disappointment” with the withdrawal of a Notice of Proposed Rule Making by the Federal Railroad Administration and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration stating, “Obstructive sleep apnea has been in the probable cause of 10 highway and rail accidents investigated by the NTSB in the past 17 years … Medical fitness and fatigue, two of the NTSB’s 10 Most Wanted List of Transportation Safety Improvements for 2017 – 2018, are tied to obstructive sleep apnea.”

“The traveling public deserves alert operators,” said NTSB Chairman Robert L. Sumwalt. “That is not too much to ask.”

When operating a train into a terminating track, the engineer’s actions, or lack thereof, solely determine whether the train stops before the end of the track. According to the FRA there are currently no mechanisms installed in the U.S. that will automatically stop a train at the end of the track if the engineer is incapacitated, inattentive or disengaged. Some railroads have overspeed capabilities, including New Jersey Transit and the LIRR. However, as shown in these two accidents, once the engineer slowed the train to the prescribed speed, the system did not stop the trains before they reached the end of the track.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.ntsb.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/MR20180206.aspx

[mahatmakanejeeves]

35. BNSF to {Continue Installation of PTC} as Part of Annual Capital Program

BNSF to Improve Flathead Tunnel as Part of Annual Capital Program

Railroad plans to spend $135 million on Montana network this year
BY JUSTIN FRANZ // FEB 13, 2018

BNSF Railway will invest $135 million on its Montana rail network this year, including a number of improvements to the 7-mile long Flathead Tunnel near Trego, the second longest railroad tunnel in the United States. ... The multi-million dollar investment in Montana is part of an overall $3.3 billion BNSF plans to spend in 2018 on its 32,500-mile network that stretches across 28 states and three provinces. The railroad operates on more than 1,900 miles of track in Montana.
....

The largest portion of the $135 million to be spent in Montana this year will go toward the replacement of rail, crossties and ballast, the main components of the tracks BNSF trains operate on. The railroad is also working on improvements to the ventilation system at Flathead Tunnel, a move that spokesperson Ross Lane said will help move trains through the area more efficiently.

The Flathead Tunnel was completed in 1970 after BNSF predecessor Burlington Northern had to reroute its rail line between Whitefish and Libby due to the construction of the Libby Dam and Lake Koocanusa. The Flathead Tunnel is second only in length to BNSF’s Cascade Tunnel in western Washington. Today, approximately 50 freight trains a day travel through the area, as well as Amtrak’s Empire Builder. ... Because of the extreme length of the tunnel, a ventilation system is used to clear out locomotive exhaust between each train. Lane said it can take anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes to clear the air to make it safe for both employees and passengers. If there is a power outage, the railroad relies on a generator but it can take twice as long to clear exhaust out of the tunnel, Lane said. ... “When the power goes out we can’t move as many trains,” Lane said.
....

The railroad also plans to upgrade its signal system on sections of track between Whitefish and Sandpoint, Idaho, known as the Kootenai River Subdivision. BNSF has invested approximately $850 million on its Montana network in the last five years. ... Elsewhere on the BNSF system, the railroad plans on spending $300 million on new freight cars and $100 million to continue installing positive train control, a technology system meant to prevent speed-related derailments and collisions. Lane said positive train control technology is already in use on BNSF’s main route across Montana and through the Flathead Valley. Congress mandated the installation of positive train control following a fatal passenger train head-on collision in California in 2008; railroads have until Dec. 31 of this year to install it on routes that host passenger trains or hazardous materials.

[Eugene]

36. Truck was on tracks despite gates when struck by Amtrak train: U.S. report

Source: Reuters

U.S. FEBRUARY 21, 2018 / 1:10 PM / UPDATED 14 HOURS AGO

Truck was on tracks despite gates when struck by Amtrak train: U.S. report

Reuters Staff
2 MIN READ

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A garbage truck was on the tracks despite lowered safety gates when it was struck by a train carrying Republican lawmakers in a fatal crash last month in rural Virginia, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said on Wednesday.

Data from a camera mounted on the front of the chartered Amtrak train showed the gates were down at the crossing at the time of the crash, according to a preliminary NTSB report on the Jan. 31 accident.

The report added that “witnesses to the crash reported that the refuse truck entered the crossing after the gates were down.”

A passenger on the garbage truck was killed and two others on the truck were injured. No lawmakers were seriously injured but one lawmaker was taken to a hospital as a precaution and released.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-congress-train/truck-was-on-tracks-despite-gates-when-struck-by-amtrak-train-u-s-report-idUSKCN1G52DD

[mahatmakanejeeves]

37. MBTA: A rail safety system gone badly off track

A rail safety system gone badly off track

By Andrea Estes Globe Staff April 14, 2018

Dean Walker’s license has been suspended 39 times for everything from driving to endanger to refusing a breathalyzer test. He’s been caught speeding 16 times and convicted of drunken driving twice. ... To fellow motorists, he’s a hazard. ... To the Registry of Motor Vehicles, he’s a chronic offender. ... But to Keolis, the MBTA’s commuter rail operator, Walker is something else entirely — an engineer. ... Despite his appalling driving history, Walker is entrusted with operating six-car trains, at speeds averaging 60 miles per hour, carrying hundreds of commuters to and from the city. ... Robert Ronquillo III, son of the chief justice of the Boston Municipal Court, was also penalized multiple times for safety violations on the job.

And he has plenty of company among his peers. About 110 commuter rail engineers, more than half of them, have driving records that experts described as poor considering the sensitive line of work they’re in — at least three infractions such as speeding, causing accidents, and failing to stop. ... Nearly 50 engineers have had their driver’s licenses suspended — 44 of them more than once, according to Registry of Motor Vehicle records reviewed by the Globe.

The engineers’ supervisors don’t set much of an example, either. Manager of engineer training Shawn Monahan, who teaches aspiring engineers what they need to know before they can operate a train, has received 11 speeding tickets and caused two accidents. ... Keolis’s head engineer, Mark Neverett, has 13 speeding tickets, eight accidents, and an operating under the influence on his driving record, though he’s had no recorded offenses since 2010.

The records obtained by the Globe, which span decades, raise serious concerns about safety on the commuter rail, experts say. Train operators aren’t required to have a driver’s license, and driving a 144-ton locomotive on fixed tracks is a very different discipline than driving a car. But a history of recklessness on the roads makes it much more likely someone will be reckless on the rails, they say.
....

Globe correspondent Matt Stout contributed to this report. Andrea Estes can be reached at [e-mail].

[mahatmakanejeeves]

38. FRA: We've got PTC funds available. Act now!

Wednesday, May 16, 2018

FRA: We’ve got PTC funds available. Act now!

Written by William Vantuono

The Federal Railroad Administration on May 15 issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for $250 million in Positive Train Control (PTC) Systems Grants.

The purpose of the NOFO is to solicit applications for $250 million in PTC Systems Grants to fund the deployment of PTC system technology for intercity passenger rail transportation, freight rail transportation and/or commuter rail passenger transportation. Eligible projects include back office systems; wayside, communications and onboard hardware equipment; software; equipment installation; spectrum; any component, testing and training for the implementation of PTC systems; and interoperability.

Applications for PTC systems deployment funding under this solicitation are due no later than 5:00 p.m. EDT, 45 days after the date of publication in the Federal Register. These grants form part of the funding available under the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Program.

In addition, the FRA released its 2018 Quarter 1 (Q1) status update on railroads' self-reported progress toward implementing PTC. "These reports were initiated by FRA to maintain transparency throughout the PTC implementation process," FRA said. ... Fourteen railroads report they have installed 100% of the hardware necessary for PTC system implementation, as of March 31, 2018. Railroads' self-reported data indicates that during Q1 2018, six other railroads—Altamont Corridor Express, Central Florida Rail Corridor (Sunrail), Conrail, Maryland Area Regional Commuter (MARC), MTA Metro-North Railroad, and South Florida Regional Transportation Authority (Tri-rail)—increased their percentage of hardware installation by more than 10%, compared to Q4 2017. ... The latest data, current as of March 31, shows PTC systems are in operation on approximately 60% of freight railroads route-miles required to be governed by PTC—up from 56% from Q4 2017 and 16% on Dec. 31, 2016. Passenger railroads have made less progress, with PTC systems in operation on 25% of required route miles, up 1% from the previous quarter.
....

PTC System Grants under the CRISI Program will be published in the Federal Register. To view the NOFO, visit https://www.fra.dot.gov/eLib/Details/L19510.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

39. Operation Lifesaver, Federal Railroad Administration award safety grants in 16 states

July 26, 2018 Class I, Commuter/Regional, Freight, High Performance, Intercity, Light Rail, M/W, News, Passenger, Rapid Transit, Regulatory, Safety, Short Lines & Regionals, Switching & Terminal

OLI, FRA award safety grants in 16 states

Written by Mischa Wanek-Libman, Editor, Railway Track & Structures; and Engineering Editor, Railway Age

Operation Lifesaver, Inc., organizations in 16 states have been awarded grants that will be used to fund a variety of crossing safety and trespass prevention education efforts. ... The grants, which were awarded in partnership with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), total more than $200,000 with individual awards ranging between $1,800 and $20,000. The grants will benefit OLI programs in Alabama, California, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, and South Dakota.

“We must continue to target grade-crossing and trespasser deaths with an unrelenting commitment toward zero tolerance,” says FRA Administrator Ronald L. Batory. “Educating the motoring and pedestrian public about how to be safe near railroad tracks is a never-ending task that will help reduce risk while enhancing safety.” ... OLI say the funds will support education projects being held in conjunction with Rail Safety Week, which will be observed in the U.S. and Canada from Sept. 23-29, 2018. The theme of this year’s Rail Safety Week is “Stop Track Tragedies.”

OLI Interim President Wende Corcoran said, “These grants, which fund innovative community outreach and education projects, are an important part of Operation Lifesaver’s ongoing rail safety efforts in 16 states across the U.S., in support of our mission to eliminate collisions, injuries and deaths at crossings and along rail property. We are grateful to our safety partners at the Federal Railroad Administration for their assistance, which will help raise public awareness of the need for safe behavior around tracks and trains.”

The state OLI recipients of the grants plan to use the funds for a variety of campaigns including television and radio advertising, geofencing campaigns, as well as various targeted campaigns based on geography, driving ability, occupation and other demographics. A full list of efforts can be found on OLI’s website. (1) ... Corcoran noted that the approved grants were awarded through a competitive process, with selection based on criteria such as successfully leveraging the federal funds with private partnerships, targeted messaging and the frequency of pedestrian-rail incidents and highway-rail collisions.

Categories: Class I, Commuter/Regional, Freight, High Performance, Intercity, Light Rail, M/W, News, Passenger, Rapid Transit, Regulatory, Safety, Short Lines & Regionals, Switching & Terminal
Tags: Breaking News, Federal Railroad Administration, Operation Lifesaver

(1) https://oli.org/

[mahatmakanejeeves]

40. FRA Awards More Than $200 Million for PTC Implementation

Passenger Trains > FRA awards PTC implementation grants

Date: 08/28/18 18:34
FRA awards PTC implementation grants
Author: illini73

Of interest to readers of this Board, the grants included $11 million to CALTRANS for design and installation of PTC at 30 control points and 111 intermediate signal locations on the Coast Line, Oakland to San Luis Obispo, CA; and $30 million to Rio Metro for PTC implementation on the New Mexico Rail Runner Express line betwee Belen and Santa Fe, NM.

Full list is here: FRA PTC Implementation Grants

The FRA finished the entire application/selection process for these grants in only 49 days. This round represents about $204 million out of the $250 million available; another round of applications for the remaining $46 million will be solicited by the FRA very soon.

FRA Awards More Than $200 Million for PTC Implementation

Friday, August 24, 2018

WASHINGTON – The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today awarded $203,698,298 in grant funding for 28 projects in 15 states to assist with the deployment of positive train control (PTC) systems.

“These $200 million in grants will help the railroads continue to implement positive train control, a technology that could help reduce accidents and save lives,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao.

FRA is making awards to 28 projects for a total of $203 million of the $250 million specifically appropriated under the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018 for the implementation of PTC systems, via the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) program. A Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for $250 million in PTC Systems Grants was issued in May, and applications under that solicitation were due on July 2.

In an effort to assist railroads as they work towards fulfilling the Congressional PTC mandate, the U.S. Department of Transportation focused its resources on releasing these important funds in an expeditious manner. The application review and selection process was completed in 49 days, in order to award these funds in advance of the December 31, 2018 deadline.

In addition, FRA expects in the coming days to issue a second NOFO soliciting applications for PTC systems deployment projects based on the balance of the $250 million that remained after today’s awards were announced. Applications for the $46,301,702 under this second solicitation will be due 30 days after the NOFO is published in the Federal Register.
....

More about PTC systems can be found at the following link: https://www.fra.dot.gov/Page/P0358.

Updated: Friday, August 24, 2018

[mahatmakanejeeves]

41. The State of Positive Train Control Implementation in the United States

This Thursday at 9 AM (ET), we will hear from a panel of govt and transportation officials on the status of PTC implementation. More info at https://buff.ly/2x7qzuL - witnesses, background memo, and livestream link.

Link to tweet

Hearing

The State of Positive Train Control Implementation in the United States

2167 Rayburn House Office Building

This Thursday at 9 AM (ET), we will hear from a panel of govt and transportation officials on the status of PTC implementation. More info at https://buff.ly/2x7qzuL - witnesses, background memo, and livestream link.

https://transportation.house.gov/calendar/eventsingle.aspx?EventID=402771

This is a hearing of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials

Background Information

Witnesses:
• The Honorable Ronald L. Batory, Administrator, Federal Railroad Administration
• The Honorable Robert Sumwalt, Chairman, National Transportation Safety Board
• Ms. Susan A. Fleming, Director, Physical Infrastructure Team, Government Accountability Office (GAO)
• Mr. Scot Naparstek, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Amtrak
• The Honorable Edward Hamberger, President and Chief Executive Officer, Association of American Railroads
• Mr. Jeffrey D. Knueppel, P.E., General Manager, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority; on behalf of American Public Transportation Association
• Ms. Stacey Mortensen, Executive Director, Altamont Corridor Express

[mahatmakanejeeves]

42. NTSB issues report on the Amtrak Chester PA crash

Passenger Trains > NTSB report on the Amtrak Chester PA crash

Date: 10/08/18 07:32
NTSB report on the Amtrak Chester PA crash
Author: Lackawanna484

Train 89 was routed down a previously closed track, killing two veteran MW employees.

Redundant and automatic protection for guys on the ground, including shunting devices is recommended


https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Pages/RSR1803.aspx

[mahatmakanejeeves]

43. 1 dead, 1 missing in Union Pacific train crash in Wyoming

This isn't new, but I don't think the story got posted at DU.

1 dead, 1 missing in Union Pacific train crash in Wyoming

Shane Sanderson [e-mail] Oct 5, 2018



Rail cars are strewn about Friday in a sparsely populated area about 18 miles west of Cheyenne, Wyo., after a freight train crashed into the back of another freight train the night before. The crashed killed at least one crew member with another missing and derailing more than 50 train cars.

Jacob Richard Byk, The Wyoming Tribune Eagle

A Union Pacific worker died Thursday evening in a train crash west of Cheyenne. A second worker remained missing Friday.

The crash happened at 7:45 p.m. when an eastbound train hit a second, stopped train 18 miles west of Wyoming's capital city, according to the Cheyenne Mayor's Office.

Union Pacific spokeswoman Raquel Espinoza said Friday that local emergency response agencies and Union Pacific workers were still looking for the missing person. She declined to offer details about the missing person. ... "It is a very sad day for Union Pacific," she said.

The spokeswoman said the wreck occurred when a moving train hit the rear of a stopped train, both of which were eastbound. Espinoza said an investigation would determine why the train had stopped, among other things.
....

Train Derailment In Laramie County – UPDATE

Kevin Knapp, Outliers News POSTED ON OCTOBER 9, 2018

UPDATE 10/9: The body of a railroad employee listed as missing after last week’s derailment in Laramie County has been recovered.

The Union Pacific Railroad released a written statement to KGAB-AM, which reads as follows:

“It is with great sadness that we confirm the loss of two Union Pacific employees involved in the tragic accident that occurred in Laramie County on Thursday, October 4. Employee Jason Martinez, originally reported as missing after the accident, was fatally injured. His body was recovered Saturday. Benjamin Brozovich was also fatally injured in the accident. Words cannot express our sorrow, and our thoughts and prayers are with their families during this difficult time.”

{The rest is the original story.}

According to the Associated Press, a “catastrophic” train derailment has occurred in Laramie County.

{snip}

[Eugene]

44. APNewsBreak: US miscalculated benefit of better train brakes

Source: Associated Press

APNewsBreak: US miscalculated benefit of better train brakes

By MATTHEW BROWN
December 20, 2018

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration miscalculated the potential benefits of putting better brakes on trains that haul explosive fuels when it scrapped an Obama-era rule over cost concerns, The Associated Press has found.

A government analysis used by the administration to justify the cancellation omitted up to $117 million in estimated future damages from train derailments that could be avoided by using electronic brakes. Revelation of the error stoked renewed criticism Thursday from the rule’s supporters who called the analysis biased.

Department of Transportation officials acknowledged the mistake after it was discovered by the AP during a review of federal documents but said it does not change their decision not to install the brakes.

Safety advocates, transportation union leaders and Democratic lawmakers oppose the administration’s decision to kill the brake rule, which was included in a package of rail safety measures enacted in 2015 under President Barack Obama following dozens of accidents by trains hauling oil and ethanol in the U.S. and Canada.

-snip-

Read more: https://apnews.com/2e91c7211b4947de8837ebeda53080b9

[Eugene]

45. Truck driver involved in crash with Amtrak train carrying GOP lawmakers had marijuana and a prescrip

Source: Washington Post

Truck driver involved in crash with Amtrak train carrying GOP lawmakers had marijuana and a prescription drug in his system, NTSB says

The trash truck went around safety barriers and into the path of the train, according to a preliminary report from investigators.

By Ashley Halsey III March 21 at 5:19 PM

The driver of a trash truck who authorities said went around the barrier at a railroad crossing and into the path of an Amtrak train carrying Republican lawmakers to a retreat had marijuana and a prescription drug in his system, the National Transportation Safety Board said this week.

The NTSB has not released its final report on January 2018 crash near Crozet, Va., but it posted a probable cause report on the agency’s website that said ​it was “the truck driver’s decision to enter an active grade crossing and his inaction when he encountered obstacles while attempting to cross the railroad tracks, most likely due to his impairment from the combined effects of the drugs marijuana and gabapentin.”

Gabapentin is a prescription drug used to treat mood an anxiety disorders.

A grand jury last year indicted the driver, Dana W. Naylor Jr., on one count of involuntary manslaughter and one count of maiming another while driving under the influence, A co-worker of Naylor’s who was riding in the truck was killed and several lawmakers were injured in the crash. A jury last month found Naylor not guilty of involuntary manslaughter.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2019/03/21/truck-driver-involved-crash-with-amtrak-train-carrying-gop-lawmakers-had-marijuana-prescription-drug-his-system-ntsb-says/

______________________________________________________________________

Source: National Transportation Safety Board

Highway Accident Brief: Collision Between Passenger Train and Refuse Truck at Active Grade Crossing, Crozet, Virginia

Executive Summary

​On Wednesday, January 31, 2018, about 11:16 a.m., a 2018 Freightliner refuse truck operated by Time Disposal, LLC, was traveling south on Lanetown Road near Crozet, Virginia. The truck was occupied by a 30-year-old driver and two passengers, who were en route to help another crew collect refuse. The truck’s route required traversing a highway–railroad grade crossing on Lanetown Road, at railroad milepost 195.85 of the Buckingham Branch Railroad (BBR). The grade crossing is located on a curved segment of the track and is equipped with an active warning system consisting of flashing warning lights, bells, and gate arms that lower at a train’s approach.


Probable Cause

​The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the crash in Crozet, Virginia, was the truck driver’s decision to enter an active grade crossing and his inaction when he encountered obstacles while attempting to cross the railroad tracks, most likely due to his impairment from the combined effects of the drugs marijuana and gabapentin. Contributing to the severity of the injuries was the lack of seat belt use by the truck occupants.

https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Pages/HAB1903.aspx

[mahatmakanejeeves]

46. Amtrak Struggles to Screen Workers for Drug, Alcohol Abuse, Report Finds

I'll see if I can get more than this.

Amtrak Struggles to Screen Workers for Drug, Alcohol Abuse, Report Finds
Inspector General’s report finds major flaws in substance-abuse testing system

By Ted Mann
Updated March 14, 2019 1:52 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON—Hundreds of Amtrak employees have slipped past the railroad’s drug and alcohol testing regime in recent years, a new report says, even as the railroad’s management has pledged to tighten screening in the wake of a fatal 2016 crash.

A review by Amtrak’s inspector general, released Thursday, found that the railroad had faulty databases for the more than 6,000 “safety-sensitive” employees it is required to screen for drug and alcohol use under federal rules. Its record-keeping system for testing data—a paper form—sometimes...

TO READ THE FULL STORY
SUBSCRIBE
SIGN IN

[mahatmakanejeeves]

47. Positive train control fully activated on Amtrak Cascades corridor, Washington State DOT says

Hat tip, Trainorders:

Passenger Trains > "Positive train control fully activated on Amtrak Cascades corri"

Positive train control fully activated on Amtrak Cascades corridor, WSDOT says
By: KIRO 7 News Staff

Updated: Mar 25, 2019 - 1:10 PM

The Washington State Department of Transportation announced Monday that positive train control (PTC) is fully active for the Amtrak Cascades corridor, which incorporates the Point Defiance Bypass.

The Point Defiance Bypass is the section of track where an Amtrak train derailed heading into a sharp curve on an overpass in Dupont. Train 501 was on its maiden run on December 18, 2017, leaving Tacoma.

PTC is the train speed-control technology that possibly could have prevented the derailment from happening along the Point Defiance Bypass. PTC automatically slows or stops trains that are making improper movements, speeding, or not where they are supposed to be, WSDOT said.

The Amtrak train was recorded going 78 mph, more than double the posted speed of 30 mph, when 12 cars and two engines jumped the tracks.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

48. New safety system launch causes some delays for Virginia Railway Express

Home » Transportation News » New safety system launch…
New safety system launch causes some delays for VRE
By Max Smith | @amaxsmith
April 10, 2019 4:14 am



Positive Train Control — a system that can slow or stop trains going too fast or approaching another train on the tracks ahead — expanded to all Fredericksburg Line trains last month. (Courtesy Virginia Railway Express via Twitter)

Virginia Railway Express partially blames the roll out of a new safety system for a number of recent delays. ... Positive Train Control — a system that can slow or stop trains going too fast or approaching another train on the tracks ahead — was first fully activated for a VRE train on the Federicksburg Line Feb. 14. Last month, it was expanded to all Fredericksburg Line trains. ... Last week, the first Manassas Line train activated the safety feature.

While staff was trained on the safety feature, it can still take several trips for train crews to get used to, VRE said. This has led to slower than usual operations, even with a help line. ... “We will continue to roll out PTC on the remaining Manassas line trains this week and work with our host railroads to minimize conditions in our service area that result in delays to VRE trains,” VRE said.

The delays are in addition to VRE mechanical issues that remain under investigation and other issues related to freight trains. VRE operates on tracks controlled by freight rail companies. The Manassas Line also runs on tracks owned by Norfolk Southern. ... State officials are talking with CSX, Amtrak and VRE about ways to improve schedules to provide better service for all three.

“We need to look at the schedules of Amtrak, VRE and the freight railroads to see if there are some efficiencies and time savings and things that could improve the customer service as well rather than just throwing a train out there just to sit behind another train,” said Michael McLaughlin, chief of rail transportation with the Department of Rail and Public Transportation. ... Just adding a single new Amtrak train from Norfolk to D.C. through Richmond took weeks of discussions, he told the Commonwealth Transportation Board Tuesday, because of the ripple effects on crowded tracks over the Potomac River and at Union Station.
....

Like WTOP on Facebook and follow @WTOP on Twitter to engage in conversation about this article and others.

© 2019 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

49. Trump proposes new FRA regulations on transport of LNG by rail

EXECUTIVE ORDERS

Executive Order on Promoting Energy Infrastructure and Economic Growth
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT

Issued on: April 10, 2019

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows:
....

Sec. 4. Safety Regulations. (a) The Department of Transportation’s safety regulations for Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facilities, found in 49 CFR Part 193 (Part 193), apply uniformly to small-scale peakshaving, satellite, temporary, and mobile facilities, as well as to large-scale import and export terminals. Driven by abundant supplies of domestic natural gas, new LNG export terminals are in various stages of development, and these modern, large-scale liquefaction facilities bear little resemblance to the small peakshaving facilities common during the original drafting of Part 193 nearly 40 years ago. To achieve the policies set forth in subsection 2(b) of this order, the Secretary of Transportation shall initiate a rulemaking to update Part 193 and shall finalize such rulemaking no later than 13 months after the date of this order. In developing the proposed regulations, the Secretary of Transportation shall use risk-based standards to the maximum extent practicable.

(b) In the United States, LNG may be transported by truck and, with approval by the Federal Railroad Administration, by rail in United Nations portable tanks, but Department of Transportation regulations do not authorize LNG transport in rail tank cars. The Secretary of Transportation shall propose for notice and comment a rule, no later than 100 days after the date of this order, that would treat LNG the same as other cryogenic liquids and permit LNG to be transported in approved rail tank cars. The Secretary shall finalize such rulemaking no later than 13 months after the date of this order.
....

[mahatmakanejeeves]

51. Federal Officials Order New Safety Measures to Help Protect Railroad Workers Near Tracks

Federal Officials Order New Safety Measures to Help Protect Railroad Workers Near Tracks

Federal Railroad Administration to expand alcohol- and drug-testing regulations to include track-maintenance workers

By Ted Mann
[e-mail]
@TMannWSJ

Updated May 27, 2016 3:21 p.m. ET

Federal railroad officials on Friday ordered new safety measures and expanded drug testing for work crews, following a spate of train accidents, such as one that killed two track workers nearly eight weeks ago.

The Federal Railroad Administration ordered additional protective measures for work crews on or near active railroad tracks, including requiring safeguards such as the use of equipment that can serve as a second line of defense to prevent collisions between workers and trains.

The agency also expanded its existing drug- and alcohol-testing program,—already in place for engineers and dispatchers—to include track maintenance workers such as those killed in an April 3 crash in Chester, Pa., when a train killed a worker and a supervisor when it struck them and a backhoe they were using on an adjacent track.

Some of Friday’s rule changes were first proposed years ago. The rules incorporate some updates mandated by Congress in the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008.

Let's go get more about that final rule right now.

Control of Alcohol and Drug Use: Coverage of Maintenance of Way (MOW)
27
May
2016

AUTHOR: Federal Railroad Administration

DOCKET NUMBER: Docket No. FRA-2009-0039, Notice No. 3

ABSTRACT: In response to Congress’ mandate in the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (RSIA), FRA is expanding the scope of its drug and alcohol regulation to cover MOW employees. This rule also codifies guidance from FRA compliance manuals, responds to National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommendations, and adopts substantive amendments based upon FRA’s regulatory review of 30 years of implementation of this part. The final rule contains two significant differences from FRA’s July 28, 2014 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) (79 FR 48380). First, it adopts part 214’s definition of “roadway worker” to define “MOW employee” under this part. Second, because FRA has withdrawn its proposed peer support requirements, subpart K contains a revised version of the troubled employee identification requirements previously in subpart E.

Control of Alcohol and Drug Use: Coverage of Maintenance of Way (MOW) Employees and Retrospective Regulatory Review-Based Amendments

[mahatmakanejeeves]

52. 50 years later, lifesaving technology that could have saved over 300 lives inches toward completion.

I might have some disagreements with the article. I haven't gone through it yet.

Hat tip, Greater Greater Washington:

This lifesaving train tech is a long time coming
Positive Train Control, or PTC, keeps trains from running into each other and guarantees they go around curves at a safe speed. Fifty years after a Connecticut train wreck that could have been prevented with the tech, PTC could finally be installed in many systems around the US by the end of 2020. (Ashley Halsey III / Post)

Transportation
Fifty years later, a lifesaving technology that could have saved over 300 lives inches toward completion

By Ashley Halsey III
April 17 at 7:04 PM

On an August evening in 1969, a Connecticut train wreck made history. A pair of passenger trains in Darien collided head-on, killing five people and injuring 35.

It was the first train wreck on record that could have been prevented by what now is known as positive train control, or PTC. Almost 50 years later, the system that might have saved the five people from death — and more than 300 people who have died in train wrecks since then — is in full operation by just four of the nation’s 41 railroads.

“In the course of 50 years we have investigated 150 PTC preventable accidents that have caused 303 fatalities and 6,800 injuries,” said Jennifer Homendy, a member of the National Transportation Safety Board. “I would have liked to have seen more progress, but at least we’re moving in the right direction.”

Complex in its design, PTC is simple in its intent. It keeps trains from running into each other. And it guarantees they round curves at a safe speed. ... Fifty years ago, PTC was a concept in search of a name, and after the Darien wreck the NTSB suggested that the Federal Railroad Administration “study the feasibility of requiring a form of automatic train control.”

In more recent years, the list of PTC-preventable train wrecks includes:

• 2013: The Metro-North crash in the Bronx killed four people and injured 61.

• 2015: An Amtrak wreck in Philadelphia left eight passengers dead and injured 185.

• 2017: An Amtrak derailment near Dupont, Wash., killed three people and injured 62.

• 2018: Another Amtrak train rammed a stationary freight train in Cayce, S.C., killed two crew members and injured 116 others.

....

Read more:

Untangling the train wrecks: Congress holds yet another hearing on its mandate to end what’s causing most of them

House plans hearing on progress of train safety device that could prevent hundreds of deaths

NTSB says train that wrecked was going 80 mph in a 30 mph zone
....

Ashley Halsey reports on national transportation, including infrastructure, aviation, autonomous cars and shipping. Follow https://twitter.com/ashleyhalsey3rd

This was the first comment (of four) as I posted:

Former College DJ 2 hours ago

Let me preface my comments by saying implementing PTC on the rail network is better than not having it. But PTC or PTC-like technologies, in addition to being very expensive to implement, are themselves are not a panacea; the technology can fail. Look at the June 2009 WMATA Red Line crash that killed nine people - a PTC-like technology was used on the rail line, yet that technology didn't work at a critical time. To this day, nearly 10 years later, WMATA is reluctant to operate trains in automatic mode because of their fears the automated train control technology will fail again. What if PTC fails at some point in the system? Are rail system operators or more accurately governments going to be reluctant to rely on PTC?

In addition to the above, it should be noted 300 fatalities over 50 years is not a large number of fatalities. Many, MANY more people have been killed by cars while crossing the street, or by being involved in motor vehicle accidents on U.S. roadways between two or more motor vehicles, or by intentional or accidental gun deaths. The benefits of implementing PTC have to be weighed against the costs, and the number of lives saved by implementing other accident prevention or reduction measures.

{edited to add this comment}

kurt topel 19 hours ago

Agreed. Under ANY reasonable cost-benefit analysis PTC is not justified, and yet the 2008 Chatsworth crash referred to above spurred Congress to pass the Rail Safety Improvement Act, which included the mandating of PTC. The 25 lost lives were a terrible loss, especially to those 25 families. However, 25 people die EVERY TWO WEEKS trespassing on rights-of-way.
The fatalities which PTC is designed to save amount to only 4% of total rail fatalities (employees and passengers). The OVERWHELMING number of rail fatalities happen to people trespassing on the right of way (72%). One cannot find how much either government or industry spends keeping people off the tracks, but it is very little. Of course, trespassers shouldn’t be on the rights-of-way, but neither should drivers and pedestrians who race the train, or stop on the tracks, or any other risky behavior at highway-rail crossings. Still, both Congress and the industry spend hundreds of millions of dollars every year making crossings safer for the remaining 16% of fatalities.
If one analyzes the effectiveness of railroad safety spending (especially at crossings) it is obvious that investment can reduce fatalities significantly. Yes, derailments are spectacular as well as tragic, but they are thankfully very rare. Let’s start focusing our attention and money where we can make a significant improvement in fatalities by targeting the installation of fencing, investing in detection technology, and subsidizing local law enforcement to prevent deaths to people on the railroad rights of way.

[Eugene]

53. Jury awards $17M to 3 plaintiffs in deadly Amtrak derailment

Source: Associated Press

Jury awards $17M to 3 plaintiffs in deadly Amtrak derailment

September 13, 2019

TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — A federal jury has awarded three people who sued over a deadly Amtrak derailment in Washington state nearly $17 million for their pain and suffering.

An eight-person jury in U.S. District Court in Tacoma decided Friday to award $7.75 million to Dale Skyllingstad, $7 million to Blaine Wilmotte and $2 million to his wife, Madison Wilmotte.

On Dec. 18, 2017, Amtrak’s first paid passenger run on a new route from Tacoma to Portland, Oregon, plunged onto Interstate 5 near DuPont, killing three people and injuring more than 60 others. Amtrak admitted liability before trial, and the jury heard evidence for two weeks on the damages and effect on the plaintiffs.

Skyllingstad was a passenger on the train when his railcar left the tracks after the train approached a 30-mph (48-kph) curve going 78 mph (126 kph). His attorneys said he broke his back, fractured his hip and suffered a traumatic brain injury that Skyllingstad said has changed his personality.

-snip-

In June, the National Transportation Safety Board published its final report on the crash, with the agency’s vice chairman blasting what he described as a “Titanic-like complacency” among those charged with ensuring safe train operations.

-snip-

Read more: https://apnews.com/89170e31e8f742e88b4b783fc36306c8

[mahatmakanejeeves]

54. NTSB releases accident report on February 2018 Amtrak -- CSX head-on collision in South Carolina

I'm on the NTSB listserv.

The National Transportation Safety Board released a Railroad Accident Report ​on the February 4, 2018, head-on collision between an Amtrak (National Railroad Passenger Corporation) train and a stationary CSX Transportation Corporation local freight train in Cayce, South Carolina.

Amtrak Passenger Train Head-on Collision With Stationary CSX Freight Train

Executive Summary

​On February 4, 2018, about 2:27 a.m. local time, southbound Amtrak (National Railroad Passenger Corporation) train P91, operating on a track warrant, was diverted from the main track through a reversed hand-throw switch into a track and collided head-on with a stationary CSX Transportation Corporation (CSX) local freight train F777. The accident occurred on CSX’s Florence Division, Columbia Subdivision in Cayce, South Carolina.

The engineer and conductor of the Amtrak train died because of the collision. Ninety-one passengers and crewmembers on the Amtrak train were transported to medical facilities. The engineer of the stopped CSX train had exited the lead locomotive before the Amtrak train entered the track. When he saw that it was entering the track, he ran to safety and was not injured. The conductor on the CSX lead locomotive saw the Amtrak train approaching on the track and ran to the back of the locomotive. The conductor was thrown off the locomotive and sustained minor injuries. Damage was estimated at $25.4 million.

The normal method of operation on this segment of track was by wayside signal indications of a traffic control system. On the day prior to the accident, CSX signal personnel began upgrading signal system components to implement positive train control on the subdivision. Signal personnel ceased work for the day at 7:00 p.m., prior to completing planned work. The signal suspension remained in place resulting in the continued use of track warrants to move trains through the affected area of signal suspension.

At the time of the accident, it was dark, and the sky was cloudy. The temperature was 40°F, and there was light wind from the east.

Probable Cause

​The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause of this collision of trains was the failure of the CSX Transportation Corporation to assess and mitigate the risk associated with operating through a signal suspension, which eliminated system redundancy for detecting a switch in the wrong position. The CSX Transportation Corporation conductor failed to properly reposition the switch for the main track, which allowed National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) train P91 to be routed onto the Silica Storage track where the standing CSX train F777 was located. Contributing to the accident was the Federal Railroad Administration’s failure to implement effective regulation to mitigate the risk of misaligned switch accidents. Also contributing to the accident was National Railroad Passenger Corporation’s (Amtrak) failure to conduct a risk assessment prior to operating during a signal suspension.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

55. Brake Defects Plague Canada's Aging Grain Cars

May 15, 2020 Class I, Freight, Freight Cars, Mechanical, News, Regulatory, Safety

Brake Defects Plague Canada’s Aging Grain Cars

Written by David Thomas, Canadian Contributing Editor

Hard-to-detect braking system defects have rendered Canada’s aging fleet of grain hoppers a safety hazard, says a former director of derailment investigations for the country’s Transportation Safety Board (TSB), the Canadian equivalent of the U.S. NTSB. Ian Naish, who retired from the TSB in 2009, in a CBC interview posted May 15, declared, “The grain car fleet overall is quite defective.”

Naish’s warning followed his former employer’s Rail Safety Advisory Letter dated April 20, 2020, which said that the standard visual inspection of brake pipe connections and piston applications—the so-called “Number 1 Test” performed by car inspectors prior to trains departing originating yards—is unreliable and does not reveal a high percentage of malfunctioning railcar brakes.

The TSB advisory emerged from the agency’s continuing investigation into a Feb. 4 , 2019 runaway and triple-fatality derailment of a Canadian Pacific grain train descending the steep grade connecting the Spiral Tunnels near Field, B.C. The investigation found that the train had passed the Number 1 test at Calgary’s Alyth Yard the day before, indicating that at least 95% of the train’s 112 grain cars had intact rigging and normal piston travel under the application and release of brake pipe air pressure.

As TSB noted, “The actual brake force or its effect is not physically measured.” In other words, the Number 1 brake test verifies connectivity and piston travel, but says nothing about the actual braking power of shoes against wheel treads. The brake may visually appear to be functioning when it is in fact applying little stopping pressure.

The discrepancy between a passing grade on physical inspection and true brake performance was spotlighted back in 2016 in joint research by the TSB, CP and the National Research Council. The tests measured the temperature of each wheel in a train after a long descending grade requiring prolonged brake applications. Warm wheels indicated properly functioning brakes; cold wheels the opposite. There was a wide variation between visual inspection passes and actual brake energy conversion, as measured by trackside sensors in ATBE (Automated Train Brake Effectiveness) testing. CP has been involved in implementation and testing of ATBE since 2011, according to a report from the International Railway Safety Council.

In a comparison of inspection methods comprising 44 grain trains, the automated temperature checks “identified 695 cars with ineffective brakes, while the No. 1 brake test identified 5 cars; a 139:1 ratio.”

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

56. FRA "Highly Pleased" With 98.8% PTC Implementation

August 12, 2020

FRA “Highly Pleased” With 98.8% PTC Implementation

Written by Andrew Corselli, Managing Editor



The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)’s second-quarter 2020 update on railroads’ self-reported progress on fully implementing Positive Train Control (PTC) by the Dec. 31, 2020 deadline shows that, as of June 30, 2020, the job is 98.8% complete. Nearly all railroads subject to the statutory mandate are operating their systems in revenue service or in advanced field testing, known as revenue service demonstration (RSD), with PTC technology remaining to be activated on only approximately 700 required route-miles.

As of June 30, PTC systems were in RSD or in operation on approximately 56,846 of the 57,537 route-miles subject to the mandate. This represents a 0.7% point increase since 1Q20 and indicates that PTC technology was activated on an additional 305 miles during 2Q. As previously reported, PTC systems are currently governing operations on all PTC-mandated main lines owned or controlled by Class I railroads and other freight host railroads. As of June 30, 76.1% of commuter railroads’ mandated route miles were governed by PTC technology—a 12.9% point increase since the last quarter.

In addition, as of June 30, host railroads reported that interoperability has been achieved by 65.5% of the 220 applicable, host-tenant railroad relationships—a 17% point increase since 1Q20.



{snip}

Infographics depicting railroads’ progress toward fully implementing PTC systems as of June 30 can be found here. The public version of each railroad’s Quarterly PTC Progress Report for 2Q20 can be found here.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

57. Amtrak Completes PTC Implementation

August 13, 2020

Amtrak Completes PTC Implementation

Written by Andrew Corselli, Managing Editor

Following installation on approximately one mile of slow-speed track in the Chicago terminal, Amtrak has now implemented Positive Train Control (PTC) on all of its owned or controlled tracks and locomotives.

Amtrak said it’s “continuing to work with partners throughout the industry to advance this system on host infrastructure. Amtrak is also working with tenant railroads (such as NJ Transit) that operate over Amtrak’s infrastructure to complete interoperability testing and says it “is on target for all tenant trains to be operating with PTC before the federal mandate.”



Amtrak PTC Implementation by the Numbers

To date, Amtrak has made progress implementing PTC across the routes and equipment it controls for the following:

• All 550 Amtrak-owned locomotives are fully equipped and PTC operable.
• All 11 installation/track segments completed.
• All 160 radio towers fully installed and equipped.
• All employees who require training to support PTC operations have completed training.
• 898 of 898 route-miles are in PTC operation.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

58. Department of Transportation issues new rules on shipping liquefied natural gas (LNG) by rail

Last edited Fri Aug 21, 2020, 06:18 AM - Edit history (1)

Hat tip, Joe.My.God. A little bit sensationalistic by my standards, but it's what I have.

16 States Warn Of “Bomb Trains” In Lawsuit To Stop Proposed Shipping Of Liquefied Natural Gas By Rail

August 19, 2020

AGs, enviros warn of 'bomb trains' in new lawsuits over shipping LNG by rail

8/18/20 REUTERS LEGAL 19:43:48 • Copyright (c) 2020 Thomson Reuters • Sebastien Malo

REUTERS LEGAL • August 18, 2020

(Reuters) - Sixteen attorneys general and a coalition of six environmental groups separately sued the Trump administration on Tuesday in Washington D.C. federal appeals court over a rule that would allow the transportation by rail of explosive liquefied natural gas, arguing that the measure would be dangerous and could destroy cities.

In this first lawsuit, the Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity and other groups petitioned the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit over the U.S. Department of Transportation rule scheduled to take effect next week, alleging that it violates the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act.

A lawsuit filed shortly thereafter by Democratic attorneys general from Maryland, California, New York and 13 other states also alleges violations of the Administrative Procedure Act and the National Environmental Policy Act.

The DOT's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) published on July 24 a finalized version of the new measure, an amendment of the Hazardous Materials Regulations that allows for the bulk nationwide transportation of liquefied natural gas in rail tank cars for first time ever, said Earthjustice attorney Jordan Luebkemann. The rule is slated to take effect on Aug. 24.

To transport natural gas, the substance must be converted to liquid form. Liquefied natural gas is flammable, odorless, and highly hazardous. Derailments of less explosive substances like crude oil have caused serious explosions, the environmental groups say.

{snip}

Hazardous Materials: Liquefied Natural Gas by Rail

A Rule by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration on 07/24/2020

AGENCY:

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION:

Final rule.

SUMMARY:

PHMSA, in coordination with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), is amending the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) to allow for the bulk transport of “Methane, refrigerated liquid,” commonly known as liquefied natural gas (LNG), in rail tank cars. This rulemaking authorizes the transportation of LNG by rail in DOT-113C120W specification rail tank cars with enhanced outer tank requirements, subject to all applicable requirements and certain additional operational controls. The enhancements to the outer tank are indicated by the new specification suffix “9” (DOT-113C120W9).

DATES:

Effective date: This rule is effective August 24, 2020.

Voluntary compliance date: Voluntary compliance is authorized July 24, 2020.

{snip}

I. Overview

In this final rule, PHMSA is authorizing the transportation of LNG by rail tank car, pursuant to Federal Hazardous Materials Transportation law (Federal hazmat law; 49 U.S.C. 5101 et seq.), because we have determined that bulk rail transport is a safe alternative for this energy product. The final rule authorizes the transportation of LNG by rail in DOT-113 tank cars, which have an established track record of safety in transporting other cryogenic flammable materials. The DOT-113 tank car authorized for LNG service will be enhanced with an outer tank that is thicker and made of steel with a greater puncture resistance to provide an added measure of safety and crashworthiness. Additionally, there will be operational controls in the form of enhanced braking requirements, remote Start Printed Page 44995monitoring, and route analysis, which are intended to exceed current safety requirements for other flammable cryogenic materials.

PHMSA's mission is to protect people and the environment by advancing the safe transportation of energy products and other hazardous materials that are essential to our daily lives. To do this, the agency establishes national policy, sets and enforces standards, conducts research to prevent incidents, and prepares the public and first responders to reduce consequences if an incident does occur. PHMSA and FRA share responsibility for regulating the transportation of hazardous materials by rail and take a system-wide, comprehensive approach that focuses on prevention, mitigation, and response to manage and reduce the risk posed to people and the environment. In line with PHMSA's mission and shared responsibility with FRA for oversight of the rail transport of hazardous materials, PHMSA is issuing this final rule to authorize the transportation of LNG by rail in DOT-113C120W specification rail tank cars with enhanced outer tank material and thickness (those enhancements to be indicated by the specification suffix “9”), subject to operational controls for braking, monitoring, and route analysis.

This authorization conforms to the intent and purpose of the HMR (49 CFR parts 171-180), which are designed to ensure the safe transportation of all hazardous materials packagings (including tank cars). Collectively, the HMR combine packaging design and maintenance, operational controls, package handling, employee training, hazard communication, emergency response information, and security plan requirements to safeguard transportation. These measures help ensure that hazardous contents safely remain within a package during the course of transportation while also providing for public awareness and appropriate response mechanisms. Supplemental to the HMR, PHMSA oversees a Hazardous Materials Emergency Preparedness (HMEP) grant program that provides funding to the emergency response community for training and planning purposes, furthering appropriate response efforts.

The United States leverages domestic technology improvements to transform American life through increased natural gas production and energy independence. As a result, the United States is today the world's largest natural gas producer through economical production from shale and other unconventional formations. Transportation of natural gas, however, can be constrained by the capacity of existing transportation infrastructure, which negatively affects regions with insufficient access to pipelines or ports. This constraint on capacity, coupled with increased natural gas production in the United States, has resulted in the consideration of using rail transport to help efficiently deliver natural gas to domestic U.S. and international markets.

Authorizing the use of proven DOT-113C120W-specification tank cars to transport LNG will allow the rail industry to play a role in the safe, efficient transport of this important energy product for the 21st century. LNG—referred to as “Methane, refrigerated liquid”  within the HMR—has been transported safely by trucks on highways and by marine vessels for over 40 years in the United States, and over 50 years internationally. However, the HMR did not authorize the bulk transport of LNG in rail tank cars prior to this rulemaking action, instead permitting rail transport of LNG only on an ad hoc basis as authorized by the conditions of a PHMSA special permit (49 CFR 107.105) or in a portable tank secured to a rail car pursuant to the conditions of an FRA approval. The recent expansion in U.S. natural gas production has increased interest in a programmatic approach to using appropriately the nation's rail infrastructure to facilitate efficient transportation of LNG. In response to that interest, PHMSA, in coordination with the FRA, issues this final rule to amend the HMR to permit the bulk transport of LNG in DOT-113C120W specification rail tank cars with enhanced outer tank requirements (those enhancements to be indicated by the specification suffix “9”), subject to operational controls for braking, monitoring, and routing.

In addition, this final rule satisfies the directive in Executive Order (E.O.) 13868 [84 FR 15495, April 19, 2019] to propose, consistent with applicable law, regulations that “treat LNG the same as other cryogenic liquids and permit LNG to be transported in approved rail tank cars.”  E.O. 13868 recognizes the leading role that the United States plays in producing natural gas, the importance of improving the United States' capacity to supply natural gas, including LNG, to domestic and international markets, and the need to continue to transport this energy product in a safe and efficient manner. In issuing this final rule, PHMSA furthers the purposes and policies set forth in E.O. 13868 by enabling an additional safe, reliable, and efficient transportation alternative for bringing domestically produced natural gas to existing, and potentially new, markets.

The present action is based on a longstanding understanding of the properties of LNG and an evidence-based approach to the safety of the DOT-113 tank cars designed and used to transport flammable cryogenic materials. At the same time, in promulgating this final rule, and as it does with other hazardous materials, PHMSA recognizes that there is ongoing and potential future research related to the transportation of LNG by all modes. The Agency will continue to use this research to inform potential future regulatory activity, as appropriate.

In the following table, PHMSA provides an overview of: (1) The requirements for LNG transportation in tank cars pursuant to DOT Special Permit 20534 (DOT-SP 20534), issued to Energy Transport Solutions, LLC (ETS) during the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM)  comment period to authorize ETS's rail transportation of LNG along specific routes; (2) the requirements proposed in the October 24, 2019 NPRM; and (3) the requirements adopted in this final rule. Requirements related to the thermal performance of the DOT-113C120W tank car are unchanged from the NPRM (75 psig maximum start to discharge pressure; maximum pressure when offered; and design service temperature). But this final rule, after consideration of comments received in the docket and to provide additional operational controls and crashworthiness for LNG tank cars, adopts supplemental requirements to those initially proposed in the NPRM: Remote monitoring of pressure and location for LNG tank cars in Start Printed Page 44996transportation; two-way end-of-train (EOT) or distributed power (DP) system for trains transporting 20 or more loaded tank cars of LNG in a continuous block, or 35 or more loaded tank cars of LNG throughout the train; and a requirement that railroads comply with § 172.820 route planning requirements. In addition, to account properly for the properties of LNG, this final rule raises the maximal filling density limit to 37.3% from the proposed 32.5%. Finally, in this final rule PHMSA is also adopting enhanced outer tank requirements compared with the requirements that apply to other DOT-113C120W-specification tank cars, including a thicker 9/16th inch outer tank made from high quality TC-128B normalized steel. Compliance with these enhanced outer tank requirements will be indicated by the new specification suffix “9” (DOT-113C120W9).

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

59. NTSB: Engineer in 2019 CSX collision in Ohio was intoxicated (updated)

Hat tip, Trainorders

Home/News/News Wire/NTSB: Engineer in 2019 CSX collision in Ohio was intoxicated (updated)

NTSB: Engineer in 2019 CSX collision in Ohio was intoxicated (updated)
Safety board critical of railroad's drug and alcohol testing, issues recommendations for PTC design flaw

By Bill Stephens | September 15, 2020

RELATED TOPICS: NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD | CSX | DERAILMENTS/WRECKS | FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION | SAFETY | POSITIVE TRAIN CONTROL

WASHINGTON — The CSX Transportation engineer whose train ran through a stop signal and sideswiped an oncoming train near Carey, Ohio, last year had a blood alcohol level five times the legal limit, and also had traces of marijuana in his system at the time of the crash, the National Transportation Safety Board said today. ... The probable cause of the Aug. 12 collision, the board found, was the engineer’s alcohol impairment. A contributing factor: The design of the positive train control system, which does not prevent collisions when it is set in the restricted mode that permits switching moves.

Westbound local train H702, which rammed into eastbound 110-car frac sand train W314 at a control point, was operating with its PTC system in restricted mode at the time of the 5:08 a.m. collision in Carey, which is between Columbus and Fostoria. ... Prior to the crash, which caused minor injuries to both engineers, H702’s crew had stopped at Carey to set out 30 empty cars. To accomplish the shove moves in active PTC territory, the engineer put the locomotive’s PTC into restricted mode, which protects against overspeed events but does not automatically stop a train before it can violate a red signal.

After switching was completed, the conductor remained on the ground and planned to ride a railroad shuttle van to a nearby grade crossing to reboard the train. The engineer proceeded ahead alone with restricted mode still engaged. Two miles later, the train passed through the red signal and collided with the oncoming frac sand train, which was diverging from the single main to the second main track.

The collision would have been prevented, the safety board said, had PTC been returned to active mode after the crew finished switching. The board found no fault with CSX dispatching or the crew of the frac sand train.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

60. Federal Railroad Administration modernizes brake safety standards

Home » News » Federal Railroad Administration modernizes brake safety standards

Federal Railroad Administration modernizes brake safety standards

BY LIZ CAREY | DECEMBER 15, 2020 | FEATURED

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced Friday that it has issued a final rule modernizing brake safety standards.

The new rule would extend the amount of time freight rail equipment can be left off-air (parked with its air brake system depressurized) before requiring a new brake inspection. The rule is expected to reduce the number of idling locomotives. Additionally, the final rule incorporates longstanding waivers for brake inspections, tests, and equipment while removing outdated provisions and clarifying existing regulations.

Officials said the new final rule modernizes brake system safety by incorporating new technologies, reducing unnecessary costs, and increasing consistency between the U.S. and Canada’s regulations.

{snip}

Since 2008, Canada has allowed trains to be off air for 24 hours, the same time the new final rule allows American trains to be off air. Canada’s operation safety data supports FRA’s actions.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

61. Amtrak train that derailed was going just under speed limit

There are eleven photographs with the article. They provide views of the repair operations. They are worth a look.

Amtrak train that derailed was going just under speed limit

By AMY BETH HANSON, MARTHA BELLISLE and DAVID KOENIG
September 27, 2021

JOPLIN, Mont. (AP) — An Amtrak train that derailed in rural Montana over the weekend was going just under the speed limit at about 75 mph (121 kph) when it went off the track along a gradual curve, killing three people and possibly ejecting passengers, U.S. investigators said Monday.

Investigators do not know the cause of the accident, but they are studying video from the train and another locomotive that went over the same track a little over an hour earlier, National Transportation Safety Board Vice Chairman Bruce Landsberg said. The derailed train also had a black box that records everything happening in the train, he said. ... “We have experts that are studying the camera footage frame by frame to make sure that we see exactly what the engineer saw — or maybe didn’t see,” Landsberg said.

The train derailed before a switch in the line, where one set of tracks turned into two, on a stretch of track that had been inspected just two days before, he said. ... The westbound Empire Builder was traveling from Chicago to Seattle when it left the tracks Saturday afternoon near Joplin, a town of about 200. The train, carrying 141 passengers and 16 crew members, had two locomotives and 10 cars, eight of which derailed, with some tipping onto their sides.

When asked about wooden ties that were seen along the side of the tracks, and whether there was recent maintenance on that section, Landsberg did not answer directly. ... “That will be one of the questions that we look at,” he said. “Maintenance will be a really big concern for us. We don’t know, at this point, exactly what happened, whether it was a track issue, whether it was a mechanical issue with the train. So all of these things are open.” ... He said a preliminary report on the derailment is expected within 30 days.

{snip}

Investigators will look at “everything,” including the switch, wheels, axles and suspension systems, as well as the track geometry and condition, including any cracks, said Steven Ditmeyer, a rail consultant and former senior official at the Federal Railroad Administration. He said a switch like the one in Joplin would be controlled by the BNSF Railway control center in Fort Worth, Texas. ... Sometimes rail lines can become deformed by heat, creating buckles in the tracks known as sun kinks, Ditmeyer said. That was the cause of a derailment in northern Montana in August 1988, when an Empire Builder train veered off the tracks about 170 miles (274 kilometers) east in the tiny town of Saco. ... The NTSB concluded that an inspection failed to catch a problem in the track, and officials did not warn trains to slow down on that stretch. The crew saw the track had shifted, but the train was going full speed and could not stop before derailing.

Temperatures were in the high 80s Saturday near Joplin, according to the National Weather Service. ... Russ Quimby, a former rail-accident investigator for the NTSB, said heat is the most likely explanation. He is convinced because the locomotives in front did not derail, but eight lighter coach cars behind them did. ... “This has all the earmarks of a track buckle also,” Quimby said. “Sometimes a locomotive, which is heavier, will make it through” a buckled track, “but the cars following won’t. You saw that in this accident,” he said. ... A malfunction of the switch seems less likely, Quimby said, because the switch would have been inspected when the track was checked last week.

Another possibility was a defect in the rail, said railroad safety expert David Clarke, director of the Center for Transportation Research at the University of Tennessee. He noted that regular testing does not always catch such problems.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

62. Train derailments like the Montana incident are rare, but other rail-related deaths are on the rise

Last edited Sun Oct 3, 2021, 05:45 AM - Edit history (1)

Train derailments like the Montana incident are rare, but other railroad-related deaths are on the rise

Link to tweet

Transportation

Train derailments like the Montana incident are rare, but other railroad-related deaths are on the rise

Over the past decade, three Amtrak derailments have resulted in 14 passenger deaths, including last Saturday’s crash in Montana

By Luz Lazo
Yesterday at 5:05 p.m. EDT

It’s been a week since an Amtrak train derailed in rural Montana, killing three people and injuring dozens more. Federal investigators are working to determine what caused the derailment, which halted freight and passenger service for days. ... Images showing train cars decoupled as others landed on their side raised a question for unsettled travelers: How often does this happen?

According to experts and federal rail incident data, such occurrences — already rare — are becoming even less frequent. ... “Derailments that involve passenger injuries or fatalities are extremely rare,” said Allan Zarembski, director of the Railroad Engineering and Safety Program at the University of Delaware. “But does the very rare one happen? Yes. But again, it’s a very, very low probability event.”

Industry-wide, derailments themselves aren’t uncommon, but most don’t result in injuries. Amtrak derailments make up about 2 percent of all train derailment involving major railroads across country — a small share partly because the passenger operation accounts for a fraction of train traffic nationwide. ... In the last decade, Amtrak has averaged 24 derailments annually, according to data reported to the Federal Railroad Administration. That number is down from about 43 derailments that occurred annually over the previous decade.

The vast majority cause no injury or death, according to the FRA’s Office of Safety Analysis. Most are the result of track, mechanical or human factors, such as improperly lined switches, track problems, speeding and issues related to snow, ice or mud on tracks. ... In his book “Train Wreck: The Forensics of Rail Disasters,” University of North Dakota mechanical engineering professor George Bibel describes most derailments as “relatively benign, and can be compared to a person walking down the street, tripping, getting back up, and continuing on her or his way.”

{snip}

[NTSB urges railroads to boost safety measures for workers on the rails]

Other incidents, including crashes in work zones and those involving railroad workers, also have drawn attention. The NTSB this week urged railroads to boost safety measures for rail workers. The agency investigated eight accidents involving railroad and transit worker fatalities last year.

{snip}

By Luz Lazo
Luz Lazo is a transportation reporter at The Washington Post covering passenger and freight transportation, buses, taxis and ride-sharing services. She also writes about traffic, road infrastructure and air travel in the Washington region and beyond. She joined The Post in 2011. Twitter https://twitter.com/luzcita

[mahatmakanejeeves]

63. NTSB urges railroads to boost safety measures for workers on the rails

Transportation

NTSB urges railroads to boost safety measures for workers on the rails

By Luz Lazo
September 30, 2021 at 1:47 p.m. EDT

Federal officials Thursday reiterated their call for the Federal Railroad Administration and Amtrak to implement new safety measures along work zones in rail corridors to safely manage train traffic. ... The National Transportation Safety Board said Amtrak must stop relying solely on lookouts to protect those working on rails, and instead make use of crash prevention technology known as positive train control (PTC) to prevent work zone fatalities.

Investigators are calling on the railroad to end the use of the “train approach warning” (TAW) system as the only method of on-track safety in corridors where PTC is available. ... TAW is an older method that requires designated workers to look out for approaching trains in a work zone, according to the NTSB. But it has proved ineffective in some cases, such as April 24, 2018, when a passenger train struck and killed an Amtrak rail watchman in a work zone in Bowie, Md.

Investigators determined that Amtrak’s safety work plan in Bowie did not take into account the challenges of multiple main tracks in a high-noise environment. ... “As the watchman was focused on his work crew and a southbound Maryland Area [Regional] Commuter (MARC) train servicing one adjacent track, he was unaware of northbound Amtrak train 86 approaching from behind him on the other adjacent track. He was struck and killed,” NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy wrote in a letter to Amtrak Chief Executive William J. Flynn on Thursday.

{snip}

In the 2018 case, investigators concluded that Amtrak’s decision to use the lookout system in a high-risk area allowed roadway workers to be exposed to the dangers of bidirectional trains traveling at speeds up to 125 mph. ... The incident, which led to the NTSB recommendation, was preventable, investigators said. The recommendation issued Thursday addresses failures in assessing site safety risks, safe train speeds in work zones and adequate protections for workers.

{snip}

By Luz Lazo
Luz Lazo is a transportation reporter at The Washington Post covering passenger and freight transportation, buses, taxis and ride-sharing services. She also writes about traffic, road infrastructure and air travel in the Washington region and beyond. She joined The Post in 2011. Twitter https://twitter.com/luzcita

[Eugene]

64. Regulators seek to suspend Trump rule on railway natural gas

Source: Associated Press

Regulators seek to suspend Trump rule on railway natural gas

By JOSH FUNK
November 16, 2021

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Federal regulators have proposed suspending a Trump administration rule that would have allowed railroads to haul liquefied natural gas while they take a closer look at the potential safety risks.

The rule, which was backed by both the natural gas and freight rail industries, had already been on hold because several environmental groups and 14 states filed lawsuits challenging it.

The federal Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration said the uncertainty about the rule also kept companies from investing in the specialized rail tank cars that were required, so railroads haven’t actually handled any shipments of the flammable and odorless liquid known as LNG since the rule was issued last summer.

The rule would have required enhancements — including a thicker outer tank made of steel with a greater puncture resistance — to the approved tank car design that, for decades, has been approved for shipments of other flammable cryogenic materials, such as liquid ethylene and liquid ethane.

But in their lawsuit, environmental groups argued that those new railcars, which have yet to be built, were untested and might not withstand high-speed impacts, increasing the threat of an explosive train derailment along rail lines that cross directly through the heart of most cities.

-snip-

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/business-lawsuits-environment-4dcd036f9745bf627553cba1fd1c1df9

[mahatmakanejeeves]

65. PHMSA, FRA Capping LNG By Rail?

This is a late addition, but activity on this regulation might be kicking up again.

November 09, 2021 | Class I, Freight, Freight Cars, Mechanical, News, Regulatory, Short Lines & Regionals, Switching & Terminal

PHMSA, FRA Capping LNG By Rail?

Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-Chief



DOT-113C120W9 LNG tank car. Chart Industries photo

On Nov. 8, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration (PHMSA) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would suspend the transportation of liquefied natural gas by rail “until more research and testing can be done to ensure the safety of moving this commodity by rail.” The NPRM would presumably negate a Final Rule issued in 2019.

On June 19, 2019, PHMSA and FRA issued a final rule authorizing the bulk transportation of LNG by rail. Specifically, the rule permitted the bulk transportation of LNG in DOT-113C120W9 (DOT-113) specification tank cars with enhanced outer tank requirements and additional operational controls. The rule complied with Executive Order 13868, “Promoting Energy Infrastructure and Economic Growth,” issued in April 2019.

Now it appears PHMSA and FRA are seeking to reverse course on a regulation issued during the Trump Administration. A summary of the NPRM, [49 CFR Part 172, Docket No. PHMSA–2021–0058 (HM–264A)] RIN 2137–AF55; Hazardous Materials: Suspension of HMR Amendments Authorizing Transportation of Liquefied Natural Gas by Rail, reads as follows:

{snip}

Download the complete NPRM in the Federal Register:

2021-23132 Download

RT&S Managing Editor David C. Lester Contributed to this story.

[DemReadingDU]

66. Bump and a question

Last edited Tue Sep 13, 2022, 06:25 PM - Edit history (1)

There used to be a mega thread that someone was keeping track of freight train accidents. I am unable to find it now, although I recall bumping it up a number of times throughout the years.

Is this the mega thread perhaps someone deleted/hidden a bunch of postings?
Or could someone bump up the thread that I originally posted in.

Thanks!

Edit:
Never mind. I found my old bookmark
https://www.democraticunderground.com/111665400

[mahatmakanejeeves]

67. Fiery Ohio derailment raises railroad safety questions

Last edited Thu Feb 9, 2023, 07:43 AM - Edit history (1)

Officials are asking about railroad safety after a fiery derailment in Ohio generated a huge plume of smoke and forced evacuations in a small town because of concerns about the toxic chemicals the train was carrying.

apnews.com
Fiery Ohio derailment raises railroad safety questions
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The fiery derailment of a train carrying toxic chemicals when it went off the tracks — sending a huge plume of smoke in the air and forcing residents of a small Ohio town to...

Link to tweet

Fiery Ohio derailment raises railroad safety questions

By JOSH FUNK
6 minutes ago

Josh covers railroads & Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway
Funkwrite
[e-mail]

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The fiery derailment of a train carrying toxic chemicals — sending a huge plume of smoke in the air and forcing residents of a small Ohio town to evacuate — has highlighted the potentially disastrous consequences of train accidents and raised questions about railroad safety.

The railroad industry is generally regarded as the safest option for most goods and federal data show accidents involving hazardous materials are exceedingly rare. But with rails crossing through the heart of nearly every city and town nationwide, even one hazardous materials accident could be disastrous, especially in a populated area.

Rail unions believe the industry has gotten riskier in recent years after widespread job cuts left workers spread thin. ... “It raises all kinds of questions,” Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine told “Fox & Friends” this week when he was asked whether hazardous materials are too dangerous to transport by rail.

{snip}

Ian Jefferies, head of the Association of American Railroads trade group, said 99.9% of all hazardous materials shipments reach their destinations safely. ... Federal Railroad Administration data showed hazardous chemicals were released during 11 train accidents nationwide last year, out of roughly 535 million miles (861 million kilometers), with only two injuries reported. In the past decade, releases of hazardous materials peaked at 20 in both 2018 and 2020. ... “Railroads are the safest form of moving goods across land in the country without question,” Jefferies said. “But railroads are also working to drive toward zero incidents. Until we reach that goal, we haven’t got to where we want to be.”

{snip}

Associated Press reporter Kantele Franko in Columbus, Ohio, contributed to this report.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

68. Goodbye Cab Signals Technology, Hello Positive Train Control

INSIGHTS 02 • 06 • 2023

Goodbye Cab Signals Technology, Hello Positive Train Control

By Greg Richardson, general director-Operating Technologies

{Images at the UP website won't post, as they contain the @ symbol.}

https://www.up.com/cs/groups/public/@uprr/@corprel/documents/digitalmedia/img_up_230206_greg_ulises_mr.jpg

The cab signal aspect display located inside the locomotive cab, left, has been replaced with PTC computer technology seen in this modern locomotive cab.

Dec. 21, 2022, marked a technological milestone – the last of Union Pacific’s locomotive cab signal systems were discontinued, marking the end of the use by UP of a technology that served us for nearly 100 years.

https://www.up.com/cs/groups/public/@uprr/@corprel/documents/digitalmedia/img_up_230206_greg_richard_s.jpg

Greg Richardson, general director-Operating Technologies

What exactly are cab signals? No doubt you’ve seen wayside signal systems in use alongside train tracks. They’re like “traffic lights” that tell a train crew how to proceed, slow down or stop. Locomotive cab signals serve the same purpose. From wayside devices, electronic signals are transmitted through the rails and received and displayed via colored lights mounted inside the locomotive cab. This signal technology emerged in the early 20th century, promoted as “a superhuman engineer” and “an invisible guardian.”

By 1922, federal regulators ordered most Class I railroads, including Union Pacific, to install the nascent cab signal technology. Union Pacific installed cab systems on over 2,000 miles of its railroad, generally on the east-west main line between Chicago/Kansas City and Ogden Utah.

Cab signal systems remained a safety standard until the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 mandated Positive Train Control (PTC) systems be installed on high-traffic Class I railroad main lines. Using computer technology, PTC provides the same cab signal information inside the locomotive cab but communicated directly from the wayside to the lead locomotive by data radio or cellular communications. In addition to exceeding cab signal systems performance, PTC provides train crews with current location, speed limit in effect, speed limits at locations ahead, and information about work zones, mileposts and switches.

With the ongoing expansion of PTC and thanks to a federal waiver that allowed trains to operate with PTC in lieu of cab signals, Union Pacific began to phase out the use of cab signals in 2016. However, regulators still required cab signal systems remain active and that a cab-signal-equipped locomotive be in the lead on every train just in case of a PTC failure.

By the end of 2019, PTC had been installed on all cab signal lines – an even more significant milestone achieved by unprecedented cross-functional department coordination. And in 2021, PTC reliability warranted regulators to approve the full discontinuance of cab signals in mid-2022. And now Union Pacific Mechanical and Signal departments have begun decommissioning cab signal systems altogether.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

69. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) On-Site Coordinator, East Palestine Train Derailment

Wed Feb 15, 2023: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) On-Site Coordinator, East Palestine Train Derailment

This document is being constantly updated.

I've included a link to the train's consist. The vinyl chloride was being transported in DOT 105J300W tanks cars. I don't know if those cars were built by Greenbrier, but I've added a link to the specification sheet from Greenbrier. The cars can be pressurized up to 600 psi.

"CL service" means that the cars are for transporting gases that have been compressed to a liquid form.

The UN ID for the vinyl chloride was UN1086, and the cars were required to be placarded as 2.1, flammable gas.

East Palestine Train Derailment

Site Contact:
Rachel Bassler
Public Information Officer
([e-mail])

Site Location:
East Palestine, OH 44413
response.epa.gov/EastPalestineTrainDerailment
NRC#: 1359227

{snip}

Feb. 12, 2023 Update

EPA has posted a document from Norfolk Southern listing the cars that were involved in the derailment and the products they were carrying.

EPA was initially informed orally of the contents of derailed cars in order to develop a plan for air monitoring. Upon request, Norfolk Southern provided the attached list detailing the rail cars that may have derailed in the incident. This was created by Norfolk Southern and EPA cannot speak to the design or creation of this document.

{snip}

The Greenbrier Companies 18,000 Gallon DOT 105 Tank Car for CL Service

This 18,000 gallon tank car is built to meet DOT 105J600W specifications and to operate at a 286,000 lbs gross rail load for the transportation of chlorine with a 90 ton limit. The car is equipped with a 20-inch manway nozzle and an internal tank test pressure of 600 psi. The car is insulated with 2-inch thick fiberglass covered with 2-inch thick ceramic fiber blanket. Top fittings may consist of two 1-inch angle valves for vapor, two 1-inch angle valves for liquid, and a pressure relief valve.

{snip}

Tank Car 101
LEARN BASIC FACTS ABOUT TANK CARS

{snip}

Types of Tank Cars
THERE ARE GENERALLY TWO BASIC TYPES OF TANK CARS: GENERAL PURPOSE AND PRESSURE

General Purpose tank cars are non-pressure cars that can be used to carry almost any type of material. These materials can be regulated or non-regulated commodities. The DOT-111 is the most commonly known general purpose tank car. In flammable liquids service, the DOT-111 is being replaced by the new DOT-117 standard cars. AAR-211s are the AAR equivalent of the DOT-111 standard and are typically used in non-regulated service.

Pressure tank cars–designated by the DOT-105 and DOT-112 standard specifications–are used to transport liquefied compressed gases under pressure, as well as some low-pressure, high-hazard materials.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

70. Wayside detectors in spotlight after Norfolk Southern derailment in Ohio

Wayside detectors in spotlight after Norfolk Southern derailment in Ohio

By Bill Stephens | February 23, 2023

As a precautionary move, CSX inspects and calibrates all detectors systemwide

Norfolk Southern is inspecting all of its nearly 1,000 wayside hotbox detectors in the wake of the Feb. 3 derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, that safety investigators say was caused by a wheel bearing failure. ... NS also has confirmed that detectors in the East Palestine area were all operating properly when merchandise train 32N rolled past them prior to the 8:54 p.m. derailment.

“Under the supervision of the Federal Railroad Administration, the company has inspected all wayside detectors in the area of the incident and found they were operating as designed,” NS said. “Out of an abundance of caution, Norfolk Southern is now inspecting all of the nearly 1,000 wayside heat detectors on its system — on top of the regular inspection of the detectors every 30 days.”

CSX Transportation has completed a week-long inspection and calibration of its network of more than 1,000 wayside detectors as a precaution.

The Federal Railroad Administration has not issued a safety advisory regarding hotbox detectors after the NS wreck, which spilled toxic chemicals, forced the evacuation of East Palestine, and prompted a firestorm of criticism of NS and the other Class I railroads.

{snip}

In Norfolk Southern’s case, alarm thresholds are set at three levels:

• An axle temperature between 170 and 200 degrees Fahrenheit indicates a warm bearing that the crew must stop and inspect.
• Crews must also stop and inspect when a temperature difference of 115 or more degrees is detected between bearings on the same axle.
• At temperatures above 200 degrees, the problem is considered critical and the crew must set out the affected car.

NS says its wayside detectors “trigger an alarm at a temperature threshold that is among the lowest in the rail industry.”

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

71. Norfolk Southern: Developing 'intelligent' wayside track detectors

BizNS

Developing ‘intelligent’ wayside track detectors

December 2020



>> Jamie Williams, senior director mechanical operations and support, has led his team in collaborations with NS’ advanced analytics group to develop technology-driven rail car inspections.

NS’ USE OF AI TO INSPECT RAIL CARS ENHANCES SAFETY AND REDUCES BUSINESS COSTS

At around 6 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 14, Mabby Amouie got out of bed and checked his overnight email. Scanning a series of messages, he learned that his team’s work very likely had helped prevent a train derailment earlier that morning on our busy Chicago Line, just west of Elkhart, Indiana. ... “It was fantastic. I was really happy,” said Amouie, Norfolk Southern’s director of advanced analytics and chief data scientist. ... Even while they’re sleeping, Amouie and his team of data scientists produce results. Call it the power of artificial intelligence.

In close collaboration with NS’ mechanical operations forces, Amouie’s analytics team has been developing deep learning algorithms that enable wayside detectors to intelligently inspect passing rail cars for defects that could derail a train. Having started with a focus on car coupler systems, the team now is making progress on algorithms to identify defects in air hoses, wheels, bearings, and trucks. ... “With our deep-learning algorithms, we are embedding human intelligence into machines,” Amouie said. “Essentially, we’re training the machine to look for certain things, and the machine learns as it applies this knowledge to the world.”



>> Mabby Amouie, director advanced analytics and chief data scientist, is leading the effort to develop intelligent wayside detectors to inspect passing rail cars.

Advancing toward technology-driven inspections

Combining cameras and artificial intelligence, these wayside machine vision detectors capture images and data, analyze them in real time, and send alerts when potential defects are identified. The email alerts are issued automatically, without human involvement, going to the mechanical wayside desk in Atlanta’s Network Operations Center – no matter the time of day or night. ... As work advances, the goal in the years ahead is to develop a series of detectors capable of performing automated train inspections at track speed, with no need to slow or stop the train.

“With the work that Mabby and his team are doing, we’re setting the stage and pushing this dynamic train inspection in the right way, both for NS and the entire industry,” said Jamie Williams, senior director mechanical operations and support, whose team provides the business intelligence that our advanced analytics group uses to develop the algorithms.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

72. Ohio train derailment spurs rail safety advisory on hot box detectors

Ohio train derailment spurs rail safety advisory on hot box detectors

FRA says at least 5 derailments since 2021 may have involved burnt journal bearings

Joanna Marsh · Wednesday, March 01, 2023

The Federal Railroad Administration has put out a safety advisory urging the railroads to look at their policies and procedures for using and maintaining hot bearing wayside detectors, also known as hot box detectors.

Hot box detectors (HBDs) gauge the temperature of the wheel bearings of passing trains. Federal investigators are looking at how an overheated bearing might have contributed or led to the Feb. 3 derailment of a Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC) train in East Palestine, Ohio.

“Preliminary investigation of recent train derailments indicates the cause of, or contributing factor to, the incidents was a mechanical failure, specifically burnt journal bearings,” FRA’s safety advisory said. “Accordingly, FRA is issuing this Safety Advisory to make recommendations to enhance the mechanical reliability of rolling stock and the safety of railroad operations.”

Tuesday’s safety advisory, which has been submitted for publication to the Federal Register, calls for the railroads to do the following:

• Use HBD data to evaluate the thresholds for inspections.
• As part of the inspection process, factor in real-time trend analyses of HBD data.
• Ensure that those who calibrate, inspect and maintain HBDs are properly trained and qualified.
• Use HBD alerts when inspecting rolling stock.
• Seek to improve the safety culture of the organization, particularly when it comes to operational decisions based on HBD data.

FRA noted that burnt journal bearings may have been the cause of at least five derailments since 2021, including three that involved NS. The two other derailments involved Kansas City Southern. ... In all those situations, HBDs were able to flag a suspect bearing, but either the crews were not able to act in time to prevent the derailment or they were directed to keep the train going.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

73. A Veteran Railroader's Perspective on East Palestine and the Rail Industry's Future

Commentary

February 26, 2023 | Freight

A Veteran Railroader’s Perspective on East Palestine and the Rail Industry’s Future

Written by Richard L. Beadles



Fire fighters receive instruction on a safety train tank car. Norfolk Southern photo

As a long-retired railroad president and current rail and transportation aficionado—but certainly not an expert—I was encouraged by a friend to offer my perspective on the Norfolk Southern freight train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. ... Much criticism has been directed at Norfolk Southern. While it is understandable that the locals are very concerned, the media has had a field day quoting misinformed and agenda-advancing “experts” on rail safety, “corporate greed” and environmental degradation.

Let me say from the outset that I have never been to East Palestine, nor am I familiar with NS operations at that location, But I do know a little bit about the rail industry and its recent history, including train operations. While my days of hands-on rail operations are long gone, some principles are timeless. Here in Richmond, Va., I observe NS operations and maintenance, and I have every reason to believe that the quality of maintenance and operation on that Ohio line segment was exceptionally high.

First, I shall speculate on the origins of the suspected ill-fated railcar bearing/wheelset assembly that apparently failed on Feb. 3. The loads of vinyl chloride originated a long distance from where NS picked up the train at interchange, destined undoubtedly to a PVC or other plastics manufacturer in the Northeast for ultimate consumption and conversion into a finished product for U.S. consumers. Thus, we all have a stake in the process of transporting vinyl chloride and other related chemical products classified as hazardous materials (hazmat). Such chemical products are used in the manufacture of thousands of products eagerly purchased and consumed by the general public.

Because rail freight is usually the least-expensive, safest and most convenient mode of transportation, storage, and consumption by consignees of chemical shippers’ products, producers and users tend to utilize high-capacity rail tank cars for hazmat movement (not all are so classified). While railroads such as NS will tell you they are legally obligated to accept and move such shipments because of their common carrier status (an antiquated regulatory term more honored in theory than practice), the U.S. rail industry covets this business because it commands high freight transportation charges, and thus tends to be quite profitable.

The carloads of vinyl chloride in the accident did not move in a railroad-owned car. Almost all such cars are owned by shippers, or more commonly, by equipment leasing companies. This will be a very important issue in the case of claims for loss, damage and other accident-related costs. It was not an NS-owned freight car that caused the problem.

{snip}

The alternative is to divert vinyl chloride and hazmat to our Interstate highways. Anybody in favor of that?



Richard L. Beadles was formerly President and CEO of CSX predecessor Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac Railroad. Now 86, He has served as director, board member and fellow at the Virginia Rail Policy Institute. Beadles considers himself to be an independent rail and transportation analyst, and an advocate of rail and transit development. He believes that a major shift in national transportation infrastructure funding and development policies and priorities will be necessary in order to effectively address current and future energy, environmental, quality of life, and global economic competitiveness challenges. Originally a hands-on railroader, up from the ranks, Beadles had a wide variety of operating, marketing and executive experience from the 1950s until retirement. As a former President and CEO of the RF&P and later of CSX Realty, the former real estate and development unit of CSX Corp., he went on to lead Richmond-based real estate advisory firm MGT Realty Advisors, until a second retirement several years ago. Immersed in land use and transportation issues of Northern Virginia between 1965 and 1995, Beadles came to appreciate the linkage between urban development and transportation challenges, and to see the opportunities for better utilization of rail corridors. He was directly involved in the development of Crystal City as RF&P’s principal officer in charge of the railroad’s land redevelopment effort at the former Potomac Yard in Arlington and Alexandria, Va. Later, with CSX, he was similarly engaged in urban real estate and transportation in various cities in the eastern half of the U.S., including Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Atlanta, Chicago, and elsewhere, including James Center in downtown Richmond. As a member of for Virginia Governor Mark Warner’s 2004 Rail Study Commission, Beadles played a supporting role in the creation of the Virginia Rail Enhancement Fund and its companion facility, the State Rail Advisory Board. Subsequently, Governor Warner appointed Beadles to the Rail Advisory Board. An alumnus of the Business School at Virginia Commonwealth University, Beadles has i served on the VCU Board of Visitors, and was a charter member of the VCU Real Estate Foundation. At one time he chaired the VCU real estate program’s external support group. More also served as chairman of the Port of Richmond Commission. He delights in opportunities to combine involvement in urban planning and transportation, but his current passion is preservation of the best of rural America and the protection of Virginia’s environment. The opinions expressed here are his own.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

74. FRA Safety Advisory 2023-01; Evaluation of Policies and Procedures of Hot Bearing Wayside Detectors

This was linked to in an article in Freightwaves, that is the subject of a post in this thread earlier this morning.

Federal Railroad Administration Safety Advisory 2023-01; Evaluation of Policies and Procedures Related to the Use and Maintenance of Hot Bearing Wayside Detectors.

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

Safety Advisory 2023-01; Evaluation of Policies and Procedures Related to the Use and Maintenance of Hot Bearing Wayside Detectors.

AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of Safety Advisory.

SUMMARY: Preliminary investigation of recent train derailments indicates the cause of, or contributing factor to, the incidents was a mechanical failure, specifically burnt journal bearings. Accordingly, FRA is issuing this Safety Advisory to make recommendations to enhance the mechanical reliability of rolling stock and the safety of railroad operations. This Safety Advisory recommends that railroads: evaluate the thresholds for inspections based on hot bearing detector (HBD) data; consider the use of real-time trend analyses of HBD data as a criterion for inspection; ensure the proper training and qualification of personnel responsible for the calibration, inspection, and maintenance of HBDs; ensure proper inspection of rolling stock with HBD alerts; and improve the safety culture of their organization, particularly as it pertains to operational decisions based on HBD data.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karl Alexy, Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety and Chief Safety Officer, Office of Railroad Safety, FRA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, Washington, DC 20590, (202)-493-6282.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

75. FRA Announces New Hazmat Safety Initiative (Updated)

March 02, 2023 | Regulatory

FRA Announces New Hazmat Safety Initiative (Updated)

Written by Carolina Worrell, Senior Editor

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) on March 1 announced a national initiative for focused inspections on routes that carry high-hazard flammable trains (HHFTs) and other trains carrying large volumes of hazardous material (hazmat) commodities.

The FRA said it will work with the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to identify these routes, beginning in East Palestine, Ohio, where a Norfolk Southern (NS) freight train carrying hazmat derailed on Feb. 3, and prioritize them for inspection, beginning immediately.

According to the FRA, inspectors will use a combination of human visual inspections and technology to “assess the overall condition of rail infrastructure, as well as railroads’ compliance with FRA regulatory requirements governing track.” Information, the agency says, will be shared with railroads, as well as labor organizations and will be periodically published for the public to “increase transparency.” ... FRA’s Automated Track Inspection Program (ATIP) inspection vehicles, which are paired with human inspections, surveyed approximately 180,000 miles of track last year and help remediate around 10,000 track safety defects annually, according to the agency.

This kick-off, the FRA says, makes good on one of the key USDOT actions to “ensure freight rail accountability and improve safety following the NS derailment.” In addition to the initiative launched in East Palestine, USDOT says it “continues to pursue several other safety-related actions,” including:

• “Targeting legacy tank cars–especially those carrying hazmat–for inspections and safety reviews.
• “Deploying resources made available by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to upgrade and modernize rail infrastructure and to make safety improvements over the long-term.
• “Evaluating [reinstating an abandoned proposed rule] that would require electronically controlled pneumatic (ECP) brakes on HHFTs and other trains transporting large quantities of hazardous materials.
• “Advancing [an abandoned proposed rule] requiring two-person train crews.“

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

76. East Palestine: NTSB Examining Tank Car Hatch Covers

March 03, 2023 | Regulatory

East Palestine: NTSB Examining Tank Car Hatch Covers

Written by Carolina Worrell, Senior Editor

Following the completion of damage assessment inspections of the 11 Norfolk Southern (NS) hazardous materials (hazmat) tank cars, including the five carrying vinyl chloride, that derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, on Feb. 3, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) says it is “concerned that aluminum protective housing covers on some tank cars melted or were consumed when pressure relief devices (PRDs) vented burning gas while functioning as designed to relieve tank pressure.”

The five derailed railcars carrying vinyl chloride were DOT-105J300W tank cars. Preliminary examination, which was completed Feb. 22 and released Feb. 23, suggests that melted aluminum may have dripped into some PRDs, possibly degrading their performance (see Figure 1, below), according to NTSB. The tank car wreckage was released to NS on Feb 24.



Figure 1. Tank car OCPX80235 with missing aluminum protective housing cover and metallic debris contained within the protective housing (left), and OCPX80370 with open steel protective housing cover (right) in East Palestine, Ohio. (Source: NTSB)

According to NTSB, when a tank car is exposed to fire conditions and its contents are heated, the pressure inside the tank rises. This, NTSB says, “can lead to loss of tank shell strength and eventually a breach. To protect emergency responders and the public from the possibility of catastrophic tank failure under fire conditions, the pressure inside tank cars must be controlled. PRDs are intended to regulate internal pressure by releasing small quantities of material and reclosing after normal conditions are restored. This reduces the probability of a breach in the tank shell and limits the amount of energy a breach can release if one occurs. Properly functioning PRDs thus reduce the potential for catastrophic tank failure.” Figure 2 (below) illustrates PRD function during the East Palestine derailment.​



Figure 2. Energetic pressure relief from a vinyl chloride tank car, East Palestine, Ohio, on Feb. 4. After releasing material, the PRD closed and remained closed. (Source: NTSB)

According to the preliminary investigation, NTSB discovered that three of the examined derailed vinyl chloride tank cars were manufactured in the 1990s with aluminum protective housing covers. Although the number of tank cars in flammable gas service with aluminum protective housing covers is presently unknown, NTSB has requested industry data to determine the size of the potentially affected fleet.

{snip}

PHMSA Safety Advisory Notice: Tank Cars Equipped with Aluminum Manway Covers

Thursday, March 2, 2023

PHMSA Safety Advisory - Tank Car Aluminum Manway Covers.pdf (197.92 KB)

This Safety Advisory alerts hazardous materials tank car owners and offerors of the potential harm to certain manway assemblies with aluminum protective housing covers when exposed to extreme heat. See Safety Advisory for more details.

DOT is committed to ensuring that information is available in appropriate alternative formats to meet the requirements of persons who have a disability. If you require an alternative version of files provided on this page, please contact [e-mail]

[mahatmakanejeeves]

77. States hold little power on railroads. They're still trying to tighten rules.

TRANSPORTATION

States hold little power on railroads. They’re still trying to tighten rules.

At least 15 states have introduced rail safety bills this year that tackle crew sizes, train lengths, inspections and the use of trackside safety detectors

By Luz Lazo and Ian Duncan
March 3, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. EST

In the month after a train derailment unleashed toxic chemicals in northeastern Ohio, state legislators across the country have been looking to tighten rules for railroads while pressuring federal regulators responsible for oversight of the industry to take more action. ... Fueled by the images of black plumes of burning vinyl chloride in East Palestine, the efforts in state capitals are putting a new focus on rail safety, even as states hold limited power over the nation’s railways. ... At least 15 states have introduced rail-safety bills this year to target issues such as onboard crew sizes, train length and the use of trackside safety detectors that are key in the Ohio investigation. Most of the proposals were introduced before the Feb. 3 derailment — often coinciding with state legislatures convening in January — but have gained momentum in its aftermath.

Most regulations for railroads exist at the federal level, but safety concerns have increasingly prompted states to establish their own rules where no federal regulation exists. Lawmakers say they hope the bipartisan efforts moving through statehouses will build pressure on Washington to take more action. ... In Ohio, the state House passed sweeping legislation Wednesday aimed at reducing railroad incidents, forging ahead on rail safety for the first time in at least a decade. {snip} Railroads are critical to interstate commerce and are subject to federal regulation, meaning state legislation can have relatively little practical effect other than to exert federal pressure. State lawmakers have still faced resistance from railroad executives, who argue they have no role in regulating the industry.

{snip}

A proliferation of local rules has sparked safety concerns in the past. In the 1990s, federal rail regulators examined some 2,000 local bans on train horns and concluded they were contributing to crashes at grade crossings. Congress directed the federal government to set a national rule that overrode the local bans, requiring trains to sound their horns as they approached. The rule also recognized the interest of communities in minimizing noise, creating a process for “quiet zones” if crossings had other safety measures in place. ... Some state officials, however, say federal law grants them the right to adopt or enforce a law or regulation pertaining to rail safety or security until the federal government steps in.

{snip}

In East Palestine, investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board have indicated the train passed three detectors along about 30 miles, with the third triggering an emergency temperature threshold. The FRA this week recommended railroads improve their use of the detectors. In Ohio, the House voted to direct two state agencies to work with railroads to improve how system warnings are communicated.

{snip}

Gift Article
https://wapo.st/3muUUQ4

By Luz Lazo
Luz Lazo is a transportation reporter at The Washington Post covering passenger and freight transportation, buses, taxis and ride-sharing services. She also writes about traffic, road infrastructure and air travel in the Washington region and beyond. She joined The Post in 2011. Twitter https://twitter.com/luzcita

By Ian Duncan
Ian Duncan is a reporter covering federal transportation agencies and the politics of transportation. He previously worked at the Baltimore Sun for seven years, covering city hall, the military and criminal justice. He was part of the Sun's team covering Freddie Gray's death in 2015 and then-Mayor Catherine Pugh's Healthy Holly books scandal. Twitter https://twitter.com/iduncan

[mahatmakanejeeves]

78. Federal advisory urges railroads to improve use of safety detectors

TRANSPORTATION

Federal advisory urges railroads to improve use of safety detectors

The Federal Railroad Administration issued recommendations after the derailment in East Palestine, Ohio

By Ian Duncan and Luz Lazo
Updated February 28, 2023 at 4:08 p.m. EST | Published February 28, 2023 at 3:00 p.m. EST

The Federal Railroad Administration issued a formal safety advisory Tuesday urging railroads to improve their use of trackside safety detectors, which failed to provide enough warning about a dangerously hot bearing before an Ohio derailment in early February.

Norfolk Southern’s system of detectors alerted the crew of the derailed train moments before it came off the tracks, according to preliminary findings from the National Transportation Safety Board. The detectors are not subject to federal regulation, but in its advisory, the FRA recommended that railroads review their thresholds for when the detectors sound an alarm and how crews and railroad employees respond to warnings.

“Personnel should be encouraged and empowered to develop procedures that may temporarily impact operations, but maximize safety, just as those executing the procedures should be empowered to strictly adhere to those procedures, even if it delays a train,” according to the advisory, signed by Federal Railroad Administrator Amit Bose.

The advisory cites two other recent Norfolk Southern derailments in making the case for a review of the detectors. The railroad said it could not immediately comment on the advisory but referred to a statement last week noting that it had inspected detectors near the derailment site and found they were operating as designed.

Responding to the FRA’s recommendations, the Association of American Railroads said the industry has a “long history” of pushing safety measures and has “adopted voluntary practices” such as the deployment of wayside detectors and automated track inspection technologies.

{snip}

Gift Article
https://wapo.st/41Me8Be

By Ian Duncan
Ian Duncan is a reporter covering federal transportation agencies and the politics of transportation. He previously worked at the Baltimore Sun for seven years, covering city hall, the military and criminal justice. He was part of the Sun's team covering Freddie Gray's death in 2015 and then-Mayor Catherine Pugh's Healthy Holly books scandal. Twitter https://twitter.com/iduncan

By Luz Lazo
Luz Lazo is a transportation reporter at The Washington Post covering passenger and freight transportation, buses, taxis and ride-sharing services. She also writes about traffic, road infrastructure and air travel in the Washington region and beyond. She joined The Post in 2011. Twitter https://twitter.com/luzcita

Safety Advisory 2023-01; Evaluation of Policies and Procedures Related to the Use and Maintenance of Hot Bearing Wayside Detectors

Document Series: Safety Advisories
Author: Federal Railroad Administration
Safety Advisory Number: 2023-01
Subject: Safety Advisories
Keywords: Safety Advisory, wayside detector, hot bearing
Safety Advisory 2023-01.pdf (204.7 KB)

DOT is committed to ensuring that information is available in appropriate alternative formats to meet the requirements of persons who have a disability. If you require an alternative version of files provided on this page, please contact [e-mail].

Last updated: Friday, March 3, 2023

[mahatmakanejeeves]

79. Feds urge railroads to review sharing of hazardous shipment information

TRANSPORTATION

Feds urge railroads to review sharing of hazardous shipment information

A Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration advisory seeks to address a concern after the East Palestine derailment

By Ian Duncan
March 3, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. EST

The federal hazardous materials safety agency called on railroads Friday to review how they share information about dangerous shipments with local communities, saying it was concerned that some crews responding to the derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, might not have had access to a key data sharing app.

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration laid out the steps it wants railroads to take in a formal safety advisory, the third that federal transportation agencies have issued this week. The advisories do not have the force of law, but are part of an effort by the government to improve safety in response to the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern derailment and subsequent chemical spill.

Since 2014, railroads have shared information with emergency responders through an app called AskRail. It is designed to quickly provide information about hazardous shipments so fire departments and other agencies can respond safely. The advisory calls on railroads to review access to the app to ensure adequate availability, publicize the app’s existence and provide training on how to use it.

{snip}

The new federal safety advisory urges railroads to review their existing emergency response plans. It calls on them to share the plans with local officials, including information on what sorts of chemicals are being shipped through their communities, and to take part in drills. ... “Plans are most effective when they are shared with communities and exercised,” the advisory says.

The advisory follows another Thursday that called on tank car owners to examine their fleets for models fitted with aluminum covers protecting pressure relief valves and consider upgrading to steel. The NTSB has found that aluminum covers on some of the cars involved in the Ohio derailment melted, potentially compromising the valves.

The Federal Railroad Administration also issued an advisory asking railroads to review their use of detectors designed to provide train crews with warnings about overheating bearings, which can cause derailments. The crew on the derailed train did receive a warning but it came to late for them to stop the train safely, according to the NTSB.

{snip}

By Ian Duncan
Ian Duncan is a reporter covering federal transportation agencies and the politics of transportation. He previously worked at the Baltimore Sun for seven years, covering city hall, the military and criminal justice. He was part of the Sun's team covering Freddie Gray's death in 2015 and then-Mayor Catherine Pugh's Healthy Holly books scandal. Twitter https://twitter.com/iduncan

PHMSA Safety Advisory Notice: Railroad Emergency Preparedness

Friday, March 3, 2023

PHMSA Safety Advisory - Railroad Emergency Preparedness.pdf (205.57 KB)

This Safety Advisory alerts those engaged in the rail transportation of hazardous materials of their obligation to appropriately plan for emergencies and share information about available emergency response resources, as well as urges actions to ensure emergency responders are adequately equipped to respond to rail transportation incidents involving hazmat.

DOT is committed to ensuring that information is available in appropriate alternative formats to meet the requirements of persons who have a disability. If you require an alternative version of files provided on this page, please contact [e-mail].

[mahatmakanejeeves]

80. Norfolk Southern rolls out new safety plan

Rail News Home >> Norfolk Southern Railway

3/6/2023
Rail News: Norfolk Southern Railway

Norfolk Southern rolls out new safety plan

Norfolk Southern Railway today announced a six-point plan to improve the safety of its operations based on the National Transportation Safety Board’s preliminary findings following the Feb. 3 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.

"Reading the NTSB report makes it clear that meaningful safety improvements require a comprehensive industry effort that brings together rail car and tank car manufacturers, rail-car owners and lessors and the railroad companies," said NS President and CEO Alan Shaw in a press release. "We are eager to help drive that effort and we are not waiting to take action."

The Class I announced its actions following another NS train derailment in Ohio, which occurred March 4 near Springfield. No hazardous materials leaked from derailed cars, unlike the Feb. 3 accident in East Palestine.

NS officials said the company will immediately begin the following steps:

• Enhance the hot bearing detector network. NS is evaluating the distance between hot bearing detectors, which currently averages 13.9 miles on its core network. NS will examine every location on its core network where the distance is more than 15 miles and develop a plan to deploy 200 more detectors where practical, with the first installed on the western approach to East Palestine.

• Pilot next-generation hot bearing detectors. NS is working with manufacturers to accelerate the testing and deployment of safety technology on its network that can scan a greater cross-section of a rail car's bearings and wheels. These so-called “multi-scan" hot bearing detectors may offer the potential to catch overheated bearings more effectively.

• Work with the industry on practices for hot bearing detectors. NS intends to work with the industry on a comprehensive review of standards and practices for the use of hot bearing detectors.

• Deploy more acoustic bearing detectors. The railroad will immediately accelerate the use of acoustic bearing detectors that analyze the vibration inside the axle and can identify potential problems that a visual inspection could not. NS will add 13 new detectors to the five already in service, stationing these devices on high-traffic routes.

• Accelerate the NS digital train inspection program. NS is partnering with the Georgia Tech Research Institute to develop a next generation of its most advanced safety inspection technology, which uses machine vision and algorithms powered by artificial intelligence to identify defects and needed repairs much more effectively than traditional human inspection. The company is accelerating the installation of the next phase of this new technology on its corridor that connects the Midwest and Northeast, the same line that runs through East Palestine.

{and, not in the article, but reported on by Progressive Railroading in an earlier article,}

Support a strong safety culture. Norfolk Southern has agreed to join the Federal Railroad Administration's Confidential Close Call Reporting System (C3RS). By joining the program, Norfolk Southern is building upon its own long-standing Close Call Experience Program, which encourages railroaders to speak up if they see something that is unsafe.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

81. NTSB, FRA intensify safety reviews of Norfolk Southern operations

Rail News Home >> Norfolk Southern Railway

3/8/2023
Rail News: Norfolk Southern Railway

NTSB, FRA intensify safety reviews of Norfolk Southern operations

The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Railroad Administration have announced they will pursue special reviews of Norfolk Southern Railway's safety practices following a series of recent train derailments and yesterday's death of an NS conductor. ... The NTSB yesterday said it will open a "special investigation" into NS and urged the company to immediately review its safety practices and make changes that will improve the safety of its operations and employees.

Since December 2021, NTSB has launched investigations into five significant accidents involving NS, including the Feb. 3 derailment in East Palestine, Ohio; the March 4 derailment of an NS train near Springfield, Ohio; and yesterday, the death of an NS conductor who was killed in an incident between a dump truck and an NS train in Cleveland, Ohio.

{snip}

Meanwhile, the FRA announced late yesterday it will conduct a 60-day supplemental safety assessment of NS operations. ... "After a series of derailments and the death of one of its workers, we are initiating this further supplemental safety review of Norfolk Southern, while also calling on Norfolk Southern to act urgently to improve its focus on safety so the company can begin earning back the trust of the public and its employees,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a press release. ... The FRA's safety team will review the findings of a 2022 NS system audit and revisit FRA’s recommendations and the scope of the railroad’s responses.

In a prepared statement issued after the NS conductor was killed in Cleveland, NS President and CEO Alan Shaw said he called together the NS management team to "emphasize the urgency of finding new solutions" to the railroad's safety issues. Starting today, NS "will hold safety stand-down briefings reaching every employee" across the NS network, he said.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

82. Class Is agree to join FRA's close-call system; CSX highlights record safety performance

Rail News Home >> Federal Legislation & Regulation

3/8/2023
Rail News: Federal Legislation & Regulation

Class Is agree to join FRA's close-call system; CSX highlights record safety performance

All seven Class Is have agreed to join the Federal Railroad Administration's voluntary Confidential Close-Call Reporting System (C3RS), according to the Association of American Railroads.

The railroads said they'd enroll in the system after U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg last week called on them to do so in the aftermath of the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern Railway train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. ... "The industry absolutely shares your commitment to establishing effective mechanisms to help prevent future accidents like the derailment in East Palestine," AAR President and CEO Ian Jefferies said in a March 2 letter to Buttigieg.

All Class Is have programs in place that allow employees to provide confidential information on safety concerns, Jefferies said. ... "These programs range from establishing and using anonymous reporting hotlines to processes that incorporate peer review teams and root cause analysis, much like C3RS," Jefferies wrote.

The railroads will continue their own internal programs while also participating in the FRA's C3RS, he said.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

83. Freight railroads agree on safety measures after Ohio derailment

TRANSPORTATION

Freight railroads agree on safety measures after Ohio derailment

Industry is promising improvements to a network of hot bearing detectors and information-sharing with emergency responders

By Ian Duncan
Updated March 8, 2023 at 3:02 p.m. EST | Published March 8, 2023 at 2:45 p.m. EST

Major freight railroads have agreed among themselves to adopt new safety measures, pledging to expand a network of sensors designed to catch overheating bearings and setting a common standard for when those sensors warn train crews to stop and look for danger. ... The Association of American Railroads announced the steps Wednesday, saying the measures demonstrated the industry’s commitment to acting swiftly on safety as the National Transportation Safety Board continues to probe last month’s derailment and chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio.

{snip}

The steps the industry announced Wednesday — which include aid for emergency responders to better manage derailments — tackle safety issues raised by the FRA and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration in advisories last week.

{snip}

The Association of American Railroads said freight lines would aim to install 1,000 new hotbox detectors on their networks, seeking to have the devices spaced, on average, 15 miles apart. That addition to the existing 6,000 detectors across the United States and Canada is expected to cost railroads at least $150 million, said Mike Rush, the association’s senior vice president for safety and operations. ... Norfolk Southern said Monday it would add 200 detectors. The devices measure the temperature of bearings on passing trains, sending a warning to crews if any are dangerously hot — a sign of an impending failure that can lead to a derailment.

The NTSB has said thresholds at which those warnings are issued vary among railroads. The association said the industry has agreed to a single standard, committing to stopping trains and inspecting bearings that read 170 degrees higher than the surrounding air. ... Norfolk Southern already used that standard, but on the route into East Palestine there are two detectors 10 miles apart, followed by a gap of 20 miles. The first two recorded elevated temperatures, but not above the 170-degree threshold. By the time the train passed the third, the temperature had spiked to 253 degrees above the ambient temperature, triggering a warning that came too late for the crew to safely stop the train.

{snip}

Gift Article
https://wapo.st/41ZehBh

By Ian Duncan
Ian Duncan is a reporter covering federal transportation agencies and the politics of transportation. He previously worked at the Baltimore Sun for seven years, covering city hall, the military and criminal justice. He was part of the Sun's team covering Freddie Gray's death in 2015 and then-Mayor Catherine Pugh's Healthy Holly books scandal. Twitter https://twitter.com/iduncan

[mahatmakanejeeves]

84. FRA Announces Supplemental Safety Assessment of Norfolk Southern Railway's Operations

USDOT’s Federal Railroad Administration Announces a Supplemental Safety Assessment of Norfolk Southern Railway’s Operations

Wednesday, March 8, 2023

Secretary Buttigieg Directs Additional Action while Calling on Norfolk Southern to Reinforce Safety Culture with Management and Workers

WASHINGTON, D.C.— The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today announced its plan to conduct a 60-day supplemental safety assessment of Norfolk Southern Railway following multiple safety incidents. This in-depth assessment of Norfolk Southern is in addition to a number of actions taken by the U.S. Department of Transportation over the past several weeks to improve freight rail safety and accountability to protect workers and communities.

"After a series of derailments and the death of one of its workers, we are initiating this further supplemental safety review of Norfolk Southern, while also calling on Norfolk Southern to act urgently to improve its focus on safety so the company can begin earning back the trust of the public and its employees,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “This comes as USDOT continues its own urgent actions to further improve freight rail safety and accountability.”

FRA’s safety team will review the findings and recommendations of the 2022 Norfolk Southern system audit and revisit FRA’s recommendations and the scope of the railroad’s responses. In addition, FRA will assess the following operational elements:

• Track, signal, and rolling stock maintenance, inspection, and repair practices;
• Protection for employees working on rail infrastructure, locomotives, and rail cars;
• Communication between transportation departments and mechanical and engineering staff;
• Operation control center procedures and dispatcher training;
• Compliance with federal Hours of Service regulations;
• Evaluating results of operational testing of employees’ execution and comprehension of all applicable operating rules and federal regulations;
• Training and qualification programs available to all railroad employees, including engineer and conductor training and certification;
• Maintenance, inspection, and calibration policies and procedures for wayside defect detectors;
• Procedures related to all wayside defect detector alerts;
• Measures implemented to prevent employee fatigue, including the development and implementation of fatigue management programs required as part of FRA’s Risk Reduction Program (RRP) rule;
• Current status of the hazard and risk analysis required by the RRP rule.

Information collected through the supplemental safety assessment will exceed the scope of existing FRA audits, providing a more expansive look at Norfolk Southern’s overall safety culture and operations. The information gathered will be used to target specific areas for FRA’s oversight and enforcement efforts and help identify risks beyond the reach of current federal regulations. Finally, FRA will use the information collected to push the Norfolk Southern to develop measures to mitigate risks while identifying appropriate enforcement actions.

FRA will issue a public report on its findings.

Concurrently, the U.S. Department of Transportation is calling on Norfolk Southern to engage its employees and management around safety in order to protect workers and communities following Norfolk Southern incidents in Reed, PA, Bessemer, AL, Sandusky, OH, East Palestine, OH, Springfield, OH, and Cleveland, OH. Restoring public confidence, especially in the communities in which Norfolk Southern operates, requires action beyond the six-point safety plan introduced on March 6. Given recent events, Norfolk Southern and all major freight railroads must be taking immediate steps to prioritize safety training and culture along with operational actions that match the severity of recent incidents. Norfolk Southern must prioritize the safety and well-being of its workers as well as the millions of individuals living near routes on which they operate.

Read more about USDOT’s recent actions to improve freight rail safety and accountability here.

Background:

Investigators from DOT’s FRA and PHMSA were on the ground within hours of the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, on February 3, 2023. The agencies are supporting the investigation being led by the National Transportation Safety Board, an independent agency. For more on the federal response and jurisdiction, see here.

To get the latest information on the investigation, please visit NTSB’s website.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

85. WHITE PAPER: Management of In-Train Forces - Challenges and Directions, First Addendum

Commentary

April 23, 2023 | Freight

WHITE PAPER: Management of In-Train Forces – Challenges and Directions, First Addendum

Written by Grady C. Cothen Jr., Federal Railroad Administration (ret.)



BNSF derailment at Ludlow, Calif., March 21, 2021. Cause: FRA H504, buffing or slack action excessive, train makeup

The June 2022 White Paper supplemented here was devoted to “management of in-train forces.” This is an issue for trains of virtually all lengths and tonnages, but longer trains present special challenges. Both train makeup and train handling are critical. These challenges can be mitigated with use of DPUs (distributed power units), properly networked using radio telemetry. However, DPUS are still not being employed consistently some seven years into Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR). Further, as the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) committee on very long trains (VLTs) was advised in March of 2023, not all railroads are even using the most advanced radio communications features available for distributed power, let alone fully mastering the use of repeaters.

However, what has happened is that, even if DPUs are fully employed (e.g., mid-train and rear) there is still the temptation to build trains with segments that exceed prudent length and are not properly blocked. In grade or undulating territory, this can result in train air brakes showing off their faults—the reason the writer has described them as the “limiting factor” in responsible train marshalling and, particularly, automated train operations. Partial automated operations, using train energy management systems (TEMS), have not yet mastered air brakes, so they are normally cut out in grade territory.

Issues with TEMS and other on-board train technology continue to confound our understanding of accident outcomes. During the period the White Paper has been in revision, TEMS, and positive train control (PTC), have been integrated on some locomotives—but not all. Transitions from TEMS operation to manual operation seem to present challenges. De-skilling of locomotive engineers may be occurring in many circumstances, given reliance on TEMS and dynamic braking (to the exclusion of air brakes) and due to the limited time available for training in an industry barely able to handle the remaining traffic. Major railroads engaged in extensive interchange of full consists and use of various interline arrangements still show no outward sign of cooperating with respect to train marshalling principles.

This Addendum (downloadable below): Version 3.0 of the White Paper was completed in June 2022, using the latest published accident reports as of that time, which brought us through February 2022. ... As the research for this update was concluded, reports were available through the end of 2022; in the meantime, FRA has published some accident investigation reports of interest. Accordingly, this Addendum provides revisions and additions to Appendix B of the White Paper. This addendum has been circulated for review to a wide range of industry experts. Only a few responded, but those who did contributed significantly to this publication.

Being a single individual, the writer has continued to focus on events involving the four largest Class I railroads. You will note that two of those railroads are featured prominently in the Appendix. I have necessarily applied some judgment in the selection of events, because my focus has been management of in-train forces, a problem writ large in this era of PSR (or whatever alternate moniker may have, by now, been selected).

DOWNLOAD THE WHITE PAPER FIRST ADDENDUM:

Management-of-In-Train-Forces-Challenges-and-Directions-FIRST-ADDENDUM Download

Retired rail transportation consultant Grady C. Cothen Jr. retired in 2010 from the Federal Railroad Administration after 36 years in various positions: Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety Standards and Program Development (1994-2010); Associate Administrator for Safety (1991-1994); and Special Assistant to the Chief Counsel for rail safety, labor protection and asset sale projects (1975-1991). Prior to that, he served as a trial attorney in the Enforcement Division of the FRA Office of Chief Counsel. Cothen was also Acting Associate Administrator for Policy from 1986-1988, where he provided executive direction for economic, financial and traffic analysis and freight policy studies, including recommendations for Departmental positions in rail proceedings before the Interstate Commerce Commission. Cothen holds a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and a B.A. in Government and History from Oklahoma Baptist University. The opinions expressed here and in the attached paper are his own.

Tags: Federal Railroad Administration, Opinion

[Eugene]

86. Railroads warned about the problems long trains can cause

Regulatory

Railroads warned about the problems long trains can cause

By JOSH FUNK
April 27, 2023

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Federal regulators are warning railroads that the long trains they favor can cause all kinds of problems and contribute to derailments, so they want the railroads to ensure their training and operating procedures account for that.

The Federal Railroad Administration stopped short of recommending in its latest safety advisory issued Thursday that railroads limit the size of their trains, which can routinely stretch more than 2 miles long. However, they did suggest a number of precautions including making sure engineers know how to handle them and that locomotives don’t lose communication with devices at the end of trains that can help trigger the brakes in an emergency.

Currently, there aren’t any restrictions on train length but members of Congress and state lawmakers in at least six states have proposed establishing limits particularly in the wake of the fiery Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern derailment in Ohio. ...

-snip-

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/railroad-safety-derailments-long-trains-fra-ceaf4f56fedbdba6ce9374166b41b895

[Waterguy]

88. The Rails...

A lot of stuff, commerce, big things, travel on these heavy metal cars on down the rails,
filled with cargo - I'm just saying.

Oh the rails, if they could only speak.
A Buster Keaton, would be the silent actor
who with the aid of moving pictures
indicated, these rails, these trains,
man oh man, this stuff could be dangerous.

Well, quite frequently I visit the old town
where every Saturday they run the old
Steam Engine that puffs and groans
And could never reach all the towns
no matter its force, it was too slow,
A oneway track on which it traveled
that meant so much to that old town's
creation.

Buster Keaton on top of the old train
building up speed, the train sputtering
spitting out all the coal that could burn from it's engine
it had for speed as it
approached a tunnel built within a mountain
made of rock

You duck, you feel firsthand the vibrations
of steel against steel

And yet, it's a silent movie

And you think, what holds that train to the track
through curves in the rail, how quickly could it stop

What did it take to build those rails
laid into the ground with perpendicular
wood planks

nailed down with steel ties
and widths in their curvature
that match the trains wheels
so that the train stays safely
upon its track

Isn't that important
it goes without saying

One might suppose

[mahatmakanejeeves]

87. Federal Railroad Administration Safety Advisory 2023-03; Accident Mitigation and Train Length

Hat tip, Eugene, in the post just above this one

Additional hat tip, Omaha Steve, who linked to the story in LBN

Safety Advisory 2023-03; Accident Mitigation and Train Length

This version of the Safety Advisory posted on FRA’s website is not intended to constitute the official published notice. This version was submitted for publication on April 27, 2023, and the official notice will be published in the Federal Register in the near future. The published version may appear slightly different than this website posting, due to formatting requirements and non-substantive editorial changes.

4910-06-P

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration Safety Advisory 2023-03;

Accident Mitigation and Train Length

AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of Safety Advisory.

SUMMARY: Freight train length has increased in recent years, and while research is ongoing related to operational aspects of long trains, including brake system performance, it is known that the in-train forces longer trains experience are generally stronger and more complex than those in shorter train consists. FRA is issuing this Safety Advisory to ensure railroads and railroad employees are aware of the potential complexities associated with operating longer trains and to ensure they take appropriate measures to address those complexities to ensure the safe operation of such trains. Among other things, this Safety Advisory recommends that railroads review their operating rules and existing locomotive engineer certification programs to address operational complexities of train length, take appropriate action to prevent the loss of communications between end-of-train devices, and mitigate the impacts of long trains on blocked crossings.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christian Holt, Staff Director, Operating Practices Division, Office of Railroad Safety, FRA, 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE, Washington, DC 20590, telephone [phone].

Disclaimer: This Safety Advisory is considered guidance pursuant to DOT Order 2100.6A (June 7, 2021). Except when referencing laws, regulations, policies, or orders, the information in this Safety Advisory does not have the force and effect of law and is not binding in any way. This document does not review or replace any previously issued guidance.

{snip}

In the Federal Register:

I don't think it's been published yet. I couldn't find it. Here's an earlier safety advisory on the same subject:

Safety Advisory 2023-02; Train Makeup and Operational Safety Concerns

April 27, 2023 | Regulatory

FRA Safety Advisory: ‘Train Length a Critical Factor’

Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-Chief

{snip the picture of Amit Bose}

The Federal Railroad Administration on April 27 issued Safety Advisory 2023-03, Accident Mitigation and Train Length, “to increase awareness of the potential complexities associated with operating longer trains, and push railroads to take appropriate measures to address those complexities to ensure safety.” Building on FRA Safety Advisory 2023-02 (issued April 10), which was focused primarily on train makeup, the new notice “also makes clear that train length, just like train makeup, is a critical factor to consider when building any train,” FRA said.

Safety Advisory 2023-03 cites three incidents involving trains with more than 200 cars, a length of 12,250 feet or more, and a weight of more than 17,000 trailing tons—Springfield, Ohio, March 4, 2023 (Norfolk Southern); Ravenna, Ohio, Nov. 1, 2022 (NS); and Rockwell, Iowa, March 24, 2022 (Union Pacific). Its eight recommendations include “proactive steps to prevent future accidents, such as identifying changes to crew training; train handling procedures; train makeup; distributed power unit (DPU) requirements; limitations to length or tonnage; speed restrictions; track, mechanical, and brake inspection; and maintenance requirements necessary to ensure safe operations of longer trains. Also included are recommendations that railroads use due diligence and provide complete data and detailed information after an incident occurs to understand the factors leading to and the consequences of an accident.”

Additionally, FRA highlighted “numerous potential safety risks associated with blocked crossings, particularly how a stopped train or long train can impede the ability of first responders to assist individuals in need.”

FRA noted this version of the Safety Advisory (downloadable below) “is not intended to constitute the official published notice. This version was submitted for publication on April 27, 2023, and the official notice will be published in the Federal Register in the near future. The published version may appear slightly different than this one, due to formatting requirements and non-substantive editorial changes.”

Editor’s Comment: Interestingly, while FRA Associate Administrator for Safety and Chief Safety Officer Karl Alexy signed Safety Advisory 2023-02, Federal Railroad Administrator Amit Bose signed 2023-03. According to one experienced railroader well-versed in Safety Advisories, it is highly unusual for the Administrator, rather than a member of FRA’s professional staff, to sign and issue one. – William C. Vantuono

Safety-Advisory-2023-03 Download

Tags: Breaking News, Federal Railroad Administration, FRA

[mahatmakanejeeves]

89. USDOT Proposes Requirements for Real-time Hazmat Information for Firefighters and First Responders

USDOT Proposes Requirements for Real-time Hazmat Information for Firefighters and First Responders to Improve Freight Rail Safety

Wednesday, June 21, 2023
PHMSA 05-23
Contact: [e-mail]

Proposal Adds to Several Actions USDOT Has Taken to Improve Freight Rail Safety

WASHINGTON –The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) today announced it is proposing a new rule aimed at improving public safety and preventing environmental impacts by strengthening requirements governing railroads’ provision of hazardous materials information to responders during a hazmat incident. The proposal would require railroads to always maintain — and update in real-time — accurate, electronic information about rail hazmat shipments in a train consist that would be accessible to authorized emergency response personnel. Railroads would also be required to proactively “push” that information to authorized local first response personnel as soon as the railroad is aware of an accident involving any hazardous materials.

“When railroads transport hazardous materials, they must do so safely and responsibly,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “Our proposal would improve rail safety and help protect communities across the country by requiring railroads to maintain detailed, real-time information about trains carrying hazardous materials.”

“On-demand access to key information about hazmat shipments coupled with proactive information sharing will enable first responders to better prepare for the risks present at the scene of an incident BEFORE they arrive on scene,” said PHMSA Deputy Administrator Tristan Brown. “This will improve safety for firefighters and first responders, and the communities they so courageously serve.”

“Fire fighters are often first to show up at many emergencies, including train derailments and HazMat incidents. Accurate, up-to-date information about train contents is critical to keep first responders and the communities they serve safe. The IAFF strongly supports the Department of Transportation’s new rule that would give fire fighters real-time data allowing for safer responses. We applaud the DOT for prioritizing fire fighter and public safety,” according to Edward A. Kelly, General President, International Association of Fire Fighters.

PHMSA and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) have taken several additional actions to improve freight rail safety. That includes making more than $25 million in funding available to help train first responders and strengthen safety programs and issuing safety advisories to railroad companies about replacing tank car covers and urging a faster transition from DOT-111s to DOT 117s rail cars.

The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) would require all railroads to generate, in hard copy and electronic versions, real-time train consist information for shipments containing hazardous materials. Required information would include the quantity and position of the shipment on the train, the shipment’s origin and destination, and a designated emergency point of contact at the railroad.

The proposal responds to congressional mandates in the FAST Act, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommendation providing electronic train consist information to emergency officials and personnel that respond to hazmat incidents for railroads, as well as lessons learned from firefighters responding to the February 2023 Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, OH. Consistent with the broad scope of the NTSB recommendation, PHMSA’s proposal goes beyond the FAST Act mandate that had been limited to Class 1 railroads and extends these new proposed requirements to all railroad classes and requires proactive notification to local first responders in the case of an accident or an incident involving a release or suspected release of a hazardous material.

The proposed rule has been transmitted to the Federal Register. A publication date will be provided when it becomes available along with an opportunity to provide public comment.

###

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration develops and enforces regulations for the safe, reliable, and environmentally sound operation of the nation's 3.4-million-mile pipeline transportation system and the nearly 1.2 million daily shipments of hazardous materials by land, sea, and air. Please visit https://www.phmsa.dot.gov for more information.

HM-263 NPRM: Hazardous Materials - FAST Act Requirements for Real-Time Train Consist Information
HM-263 NPRM - Real Time Train Consist June 2023.pdf (695.6 KB)
DOT is committed to ensuring that information is available in appropriate alternative formats to meet the requirements of persons who have a disability. If you require an alternative version of files provided on this page, please contact [e-mail].
Last updated: Wednesday, June 21, 2023

Note to the above:

PHMSA issued this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on June 21, 2023, and it has been submitted to the Office of the Federal Register
for publication. Although PHMSA has taken steps to ensure the accuracy of this version of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking posted on the PHMSA website, and will post it in the docket (PHMSA-2016-0015) on the Regulations.gov website (www.regulations.gov), it is not the official version. Please refer to the official version in a forthcoming Federal Register publication, which will appear on the websites of each of the Federal Register (www.federalregister.gov) and the Government Printing Office (www.govinfo.gov). After publication in the Federal Register, this unofficial version will be removed from PHMSA’s website and replaced with a link to the official version. PHMSA will also post the official version in the docket.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

90. Miles-long trains are blocking first responders when every minute counts

NATIONAL

Miles-long trains are blocking first responders when every minute counts

Nationwide, longer and longer trains are obstructing rural intersections, preventing paramedics from getting to emergencies, including a baby who died after his mom waited and waited.

By Andrea Salcedo, Luz Lazo and Lee Powell
May 25 at 7:05 a.m.

Gift Article
https://wapo.st/46sXo4k

{snip}

Over the past decade, rail corporations have been running more lengthy freight trains — some as long as three miles — partly to save fuel and labor costs. As they do, they are blocking rural and urban intersections, stoking anger and contributing to tragedies and calamities.

Much of the nation’s focus has been on a long Norfolk Southern train that derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, in February, sparking a toxic fireball and prompting state and federal investigations. But while Congress has shown some renewed concern about rail safety, there has been little focus on an everyday safety threat — long trains blocking first responders from getting to emergencies.

It is happening across the country. In Tennessee, a man died of a medical emergency after an ambulance crew was held up at a train crossing. In Oklahoma, a man perished from a heart attack after first responders were stuck behind a train at the only entrance to their street.

Since 2019, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has operated a digital portal where citizens can report obstructions caused by trains. So far this year, there have been more than 1,400 reports of first responders blocked by trains. There have also been documented cases of frustrated pedestrians crawling under stopped trains, only to be injured or killed when the train starts moving.

{snip}

Lazo reported from Washington.

About this story
Reporting by Andrea Salcedo, Luz Lazo and Lee Powell. Photography and videos by Lee Powell. Design and development by Allison Mann. Editing by Stuart Leavenworth, Amanda Voisard and Joe Moore. Copy editing by Colleen Neely.

By Andrea Salcedo
Andrea Salcedo is a general assignment reporter for The Washington Post. She joined The Post in 2020 as an overnight reporter on the Morning Mix team. Previously, she covered breaking news and features for the New York Times metro desk. Twitter https://twitter.com/andreapsalcedo

By Luz Lazo
Luz Lazo is a transportation reporter at The Washington Post covering passenger and freight transportation, buses, taxis and ride-sharing services. She also writes about traffic, road infrastructure and air travel in the Washington region and beyond. She joined The Post in 2011. Twitter https://twitter.com/luzcita

By Lee Powell
Lee Powell is a senior video reporter at The Washington Post. He shoots, produces, writes and edits his own stories that appear on washingtonpost.com. Previously, he was based in the Washington bureau of the Associated Press and before that, he reported for the Dallas Morning News. Twitter https://twitter.com/leepowelltv

[mahatmakanejeeves]

91. Witness testifies freight car involved in NS train derailment was not inspected

Hat tip, a mailing list I'm on.

Witness testifies freight car involved in NS train derailment was not inspected

East Palestine fire chief tells NTSB he made the call for controlled burn of tank cars containing vinyl chloride

Joanna Marsh · Friday, June 23, 2023

Jason Cox, national representative of the Transportation Communications Union, testified at the National Transportation Safety Board’s hearing Friday on the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, that a suspect freight car had not been inspected as it traveled through the state on Feb. 3. ... A wheel bearing on that freight car is believed to have caused the derailment. Cox said it was his understanding that no inspection had been performed on the car as it went into Decatur, Illinois, and then traveled through the Ohio cities of Toledo, Cleveland and Bellevue. ... “There are qualified mechanical inspectors at all these points, and they were not allowed to inspect this car at any of those locations,” Cox said.

‘The final yes was given by me’

NTSB’s hearing, conducted Thursday and Friday in East Palestine, focused on four main areas: ​hazard communications and emergency responder preparedness for the initial emergency response; circumstances that led to the decision to vent and burn five vinyl chloride tank cars; freight car bearing failure modes and wayside detection systems; and tank car derailment damage, crashworthiness and hazardous materials package information.

According to one of the reports presented, an eastbound, general merchandise NS train experienced a derailment at about 8:54 p.m. Feb. 3. Thirty-eight rail cars derailed and a fire ensued, damaging an additional 12 cars. No fatalities or injuries were reported, although there was a 1-mile evacuation zone due to the release of hazardous materials. ... The decision to vent and burn the vinyl chloride tank cars occurred on Feb. 6 because of concerns that one of the cars could pose an explosion hazard because the inside temperature was still rising, according to NTSB’s initial report on the incident.

The first day of the hearing included discussions about communications that occurred between various emergency responders and NS, as well as the circumstances and decisions that led up to NS conducting the controlled burn of the tank cars containing vinyl chloride. ... Local responders, NS and the railroad’s contractors eventually reached a consensus to conduct the controlled burn and it was East Palestine Fire Chief Keith Drabick who made the final call. He had 13 minutes to decide when conditions — among them, weather factors and the transition from day to night — proved favorable. ... “The final yes was given by me based on there were no other options,” Drabick testified at the NTSB hearing. ... Robert Wood, NS systems manager for hazardous materials, said the railroad backed that decision. Other options after conducting a damage assessment, such as rerouting, weren’t possible because of mechanical damage and fire damage to the cars. ... “The very last alternative was vent and burn. When you get to that point, there are no other options. And that was the case here,” Wood said.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

92. Norfolk Southern staffer, working solo, missed danger signs of impending Ohio crash

Typically, Associated Press analyses and follow-up stories (i.e., not breaking news) of events involving railroads are written by Josh Funk. This story came from a reporter at a TV station in Columbus, Ohio. It has an AP tag, but it doesn't show up at the Associated Press website.

Here it is anyway.

Norfolk Southern staffer, working solo, missed danger signs of impending Ohio crash

by Darrel Rowland | Sat, July 29th 2023, 2:08 PM EDT

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (AP) — The best chance for heading off the February derailment in eastern Ohio depended on a Norfolk Southern employee working hundreds of miles away noticing a rapidly heating wheel bearing.

But he wasn’t even looking at the readings from defect detectors along the tracks on the bearing, suspected by the National Transportation Safety Board of causing the fiery crash in East Palestine.

Why? ... Gary Rambo, automatic train control analyst for the Atlanta-based railroad, told NTSB investigators he was monitoring other Norfolk Southern trains at the same time. Thus he didn’t notice a “trending alert” from the wayside defect detector showing a spike of 103 degrees in the bearing of doomed train 32N in Ohio. ... “Honestly, I didn't see it when it first came in,” he said. “There were three other trains I was working on.”



Norfolk Southern wayside defect detector locations, (NTSB)

Such alerts are not transmitted directly to the train crew. ... Norfolk Southern defended the setup. ... “The Wayside Help Desk functioned as it was supposed to with respect to Train 32N,” the company said in a statement to ABC 6. “Norfolk Southern has been clear that we will be the gold standard for safety in our industry.”

{snip}

[e-mail]

@darreldrowland

[BumRushDaShow]

93. 6 months after the East Palestine train derailment, Congress is deadlocked on new rules for safety

6 months after the East Palestine train derailment, Congress is deadlocked on new rules for safety


FILE - Cleanup of portions of a Norfolk Southern freight train that derailed Friday night in East Palestine, Ohio, continues on Feb. 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

By STEPHEN GROVES and JOSH FUNK
Updated 6:50 AM EDT, August 3, 2023


WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress responded to the fiery train derailment in eastern Ohio earlier this year with bipartisan alarm, holding a flurry of hearings about the potential for railroad crashes to trigger even larger disasters. Both parties agreed that a legislative response was needed. Yet six months after life was upended in East Palestine, little has changed.

While President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have praised a railroad safety bill from Ohio Sens. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, and JD Vance, a Republican, the Senate proposal has also encountered resistance. Top GOP leaders in Congress have been hesitant to support it, and the bill has faced some opposition from the railroad industry, which holds significant sway in Washington.

As a result, it remains an open question whether the derailment that shattered life in East Palestine will become a catalyst for action. And for Republicans, the fight poses a larger test of political identity, caught between their traditional support for industry and their desire to champion voters in rural America.

“These rail lines pass frequently through Republican areas, small towns with a lot of Republican voters,” Vance told The Associated Press. “How can we look them in the eye and say, we’re doing a good job by you? If we choose the railroads over their own interests, we can’t.”

(snip)

[Eugene]

94. Missouri budgets $50M for railroad crossings in response to fatal 2022 Amtrak derailment

Missouri budgets $50M for railroad crossings in response to fatal 2022 Amtrak derailment

BY SUMMER BALLENTINE
Updated 5:28 PM EDT, August 3, 2023

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Gov. Mike Parson and state transportation officials on Thursday outlined options for spending the first chunk of $50 million budgeted for railroad crossing improvements in an effort to prevent tragedies like last year’s fatal Amtrak derailment.

The National Transportation Safety Board said Wednesday that poor design contributed to the derailment in the north-central Missouri town of Mendon , which killed four people and injured 146 others.

Recommendations from a $750,000 study unveiled Thursday suggest changes at 47 public rail crossings on three tracks that carry passenger trains throughout Missouri for a total cost of about $18.5 million. Total closure is recommended at 17 crossings, including the Mendon site where the crash occurred.

-snip-

The 27 crossings slated for improvements do not have lights, barriers or other alerts to warn drivers when a train is approaching. There are more than 1,400 such crossings throughout Missouri, according to the state Transportation Department.

-snip-

[Eugene]

95. Norfolk Southern content with minimum safety too often, regulators say after fiery Ohio derailment

Norfolk Southern content with minimum safety too often, regulators say after fiery Ohio derailment

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Norfolk Southern made improvements after one of its trains derailed, caught fire and spilled toxic chemicals near an Ohio town, but the company is nowhere near the “gold standard for safety” it is striving to be, according to federal regulators. Instead, the railroad is too often only willing to meet minimum safety requirements.

The Federal Railroad Administration released its 143-page report on the Atlanta-based railroad’s safety culture Wednesday. The agency has been working on the report for months since thousands of people had to evacuate their homes after the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment.

Poor communication and mistrust between employees and managers are hindering Norfolk Southern’s efforts to improve safety, the report also said. The agency questioned whether the company’s training for employees and managers is adequate.

“At a time when so many people working on and living near train tracks are asking legitimate questions about how major freight railroads operate, railroads must have a culture and operations that are focused on safety,” agency administrator Amit Bose said. “This first-of-its-kind assessment — conducted immediately after the Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine — shows in too many instances the railroad should be doing more to ensure the safety people deserve.”

______________________________________________________________________

Related: Norfolk Southern Safety Assessment (Federal Railroad Administration)

[mahatmakanejeeves]

96. OSHA announces citations, agreements in connection to train derailment

EAST PALESTINE TRAIN DERAILMENT

OSHA announces citations, agreements in connection to train derailment

by: Patty Coller
Posted: Aug 10, 2023 / 11:44 AM EDT
Updated: Aug 10, 2023 / 12:48 PM EDT

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (WKBN) – The U.S. Occupational and Health Administration has been on-site in East Palestine investigating worker complaints about the cleanup there. Citations have been issued and agreements have been made to do better. ... Enforcement inspections of the cleanup work from the derailment began in March. The agency looked at complaints leveled by workers on the track, those cleaning up the waterways and some workers who went into homes and tested air quality.

Members of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division-International Brotherhood of Teamsters along with private firms that were brought in for cleanup as well as workers from the Centers for Disease Control were part of the investigation into worker complaints. ... Complaints ranged from chemical exposure at the derailment site where new train tracks were installed to personal and area air sampling for workers involved in the site and water cleanup.

In connection with the investigations, Norfolk Southern has entered into an agreement with OSHA the Teamsters union to do the following:

• Implement a medical surveillance program for all affected employees who worked at the derailment site.
• Provide union employees with 40 hours of Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response training for future derailments.
• Create a training program on lessons learned from the Ohio derailment.
• Pay penalties assessed by OSHA for four safety and health violations.

In addition, three out-of-state companies, CTEH, Specialized Professional Services of Washington, Pennsylvania and Hepaco Inc. of Charlotte, North Carolina were investigated for workers exposed to chemicals they cleaned up in nearby creeks where spills killed fish.

{snip}

Regulators recently reported that Norfolk Southern has made improvements since the derailment but is nowhere near the “gold standard for safety” it is striving to be.

{snip}

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

97. Rail whistleblowers fired for voicing safety concerns despite efforts to end practice of retaliation

U.S. NEWS

Rail whistleblowers fired for voicing safety concerns despite efforts to end practice of retaliation

BY JOSH FUNK
Updated 12:08 AM EDT, August 19, 2023

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Hours before a Norfolk Southern train derailed in Ohio and erupted in fire in February, a judge ruled a former railroad employee could proceed with a lawsuit claiming he had been harassed for years by managers who said he reported too many flaws in rail cars he inspected and had his job changed after reporting an injury.

Richard Singleton’s case against Norfolk Southern was settled for an undisclosed amount after the judge said he had enough evidence to go to trial over whether he was disciplined for reporting safety violations that slowed trains passing through a Macon, Georgia, railyard.

The settlement provided relief for Singleton, but does little for residents near East Palestine, Ohio, who worry about possible health effects from the accident’s toxic blaze. That derailment and others since inspired nationwide fears about railroad safety.

Lawyers and unions representing rail workers say there is an industry-wide pattern of retaliation against workers like Singleton who report safety violations or injuries. They contend workers often run afoul of managers who don’t want to jeopardize their bonuses, and retaliation discourages other workers from speaking up. ... Rail safety has been in the spotlight since the Feb. 3 Ohio derailment, with Congress and regulators proposing reforms. But little has changed, apart from railroads promising to install 1,000 more trackside detectors to spot mechanical problems and reevaluate their responses to alerts from those devices.

{snip}

JOSH FUNK
Josh covers railroads & Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway

[Eugene]

98. Rail union wants new rules to improve conductor training in the wake of 2 trainee deaths

Rail union wants new rules to improve conductor training in the wake of 2 trainee deaths

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The nation’s largest railroad union wants federal regulators to do more to ensure conductors are properly trained in the wake of two recent trainee deaths.

The Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers union that represents conductors wants the Federal Railroad Administration to establish clear standards for how long new employees are trained and who mentors them to teach them the craft after they finish their formal training.

The union said the recent deaths of two CSX trainees on different occasions in Maryland over the past two months highlight the need for better training. The FRA did put out a safety advisory earlier this month about conductor training after the latest death, but the union wants regulators to take firm action. Earlier this year, a third conductor — this time one with 18 years experience on Norfolk Southern — was killed in an accident at a steel plant in Ohio.

FRA officials didn’t immediately respond to the union’s statement Wednesday, but the head of the agency sent a letter to all the CEOs of the major freight railroads earlier this week expressing similar concerns. Administrator Amit Bose is urging the railroads to improve their training but the agency isn’t requiring changes with formal rules.

-snip-

[Eugene]

99. Railroads resist joining safety hotline because they want to be able to discipline workers

Railroads resist joining safety hotline because they want to be able to discipline workers

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The major freight railroads say a disagreement over whether they will be allowed to discipline some workers who use a government hotline to report safety concerns has kept them from following through on the promise they made back in March to join the program after a fiery Ohio derailment prompted calls for reforms.

Unions and workplace safety experts say the idea of disciplining workers who report safety concerns undermines the purpose of creating such a hotline because workers won’t use it if they fear retribution. Programs like this one overseen by the Federal Railroad Administration are especially important in an industry like railroads where there is a long history of workers being fired for reporting safety violations or injuries, experts say.

“Their opposition to this hotline — which only increases protection for public and workers — is just part of a decades-old effort to suppress reporting of injury and hazards so that they can appear to the public and regulators as safer than they are,” said Debbie Berkowitz, who used to be a top-ranking official at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration during the Obama administration. “I mean, that’s what this is all about.”

But the head of the Association of American Railroads trade group, Ian Jefferies, said Thursday in a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg that the railroads’ concern is that the system could be abused by workers who try to avoid discipline by reporting situations a railroad already knows about to the hotline.

[Eugene]

100. Rule allowing rail shipments of LNG will be put on hold to allow more study of safety concerns

Rule allowing rail shipments of LNG will be put on hold to allow more study of safety concerns

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A Trump-era rule allowing railroads to haul highly flammable liquefied natural gas will now be formally put on hold to allow more time to study the safety concerns related to transporting that fuel and other substances like hydrogen that must be kept at extremely low temperatures when they are shipped, regulators announced Thursday.

Right after it was announced in the summer of 2020, the rule was challenged in court by a number of environmental groups and 14 states. The uncertainty about the rule on transporting the fuel known as LNG kept railroads from shipping it. The Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration says no one has ever even ordered one of the specially fortified rail cars that would have been required to ship LNG, and several hundred of those cars that would each take at least 18 months to build would likely be needed to make the idea viable.

“We need to do more safety investigative work,” said Tristan Brown, the deputy administrator who is leading the agency. “Until we do that work, we don’t want someone to, you know, make investments and deploy something where we haven’t fully done the process we normally do need to do.”

Brown acknowledged that the rule was rushed under a directive from former President Donald Trump, so it needs to be refined.

-snip-

[Eugene]

101. Explosion in Union Pacific's massive railyard in Nebraska appears accidental, investigators say

Explosion in Union Pacific’s massive railyard in Nebraska appears accidental, investigators say

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Investigators say the blast that prompted evacuations near Union Pacific’s massive railyard in western Nebraska last week appears to be accidental, but it’s not yet clear what caused it.

The Nebraska State Fire Marshal’s office is working with the railroad and experts from the Federal Railroad Administration to determine what caused a stationary container carrying perchloric acid that can be used to make explosives as well as a variety of food and drug products to explode last Thursday in North Platte.

The chief investigator for the fire marshal’s office, Adam Matzner, said Tuesday that investigators haven’t found any sign of a criminal act connected with the explosion, so the incident appears accidental. But the investigation is ongoing.

A spokesman for the Federal Railroad Administration said Tuesday that he couldn’t provide any additional details about the agency’s investigation.

______________________________________________________________________

Sept. 14, 2023: Explosion at world’s largest railyard in Nebraska prompts evacuations because of heavy toxic smoke (Associated Press)

[Eugene]

102. Broken rail caused fatal Colorado train derailment that collapsed bridge, early findings show

Broken rail caused fatal Colorado train derailment that collapsed bridge, early findings show

A broken rail caused a train derailment that collapsed a bridge over an interstate highway in Colorado, killing a truck driver and blocking the road for days, federal authorities said Tuesday based on their preliminary findings.

Investigators are examining how the rail broke and why warning systems did not alert crews to the condition of the track, the National Transportation Safety Board said. An agency spokesperson said officials had no reason to believe sabotage caused the derailment.

Built in 1958, the steel bridge collapsed Sunday when 30 cars from a BNSF Railway train hauling coal derailed while crossing over Interstate 25. The main north-south highway through Colorado is expected to remain closed for several more days, and hundreds of tons of coal and mangled railcars should be cleared from the road by Wednesday afternoon, officials said. After that, crews will assess the damage.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

103. Railroad automatic braking system needs improvement to prevent more derailments, safety board says

This is what the FRA calls PTC, for positive train control. The NTSB has long been an advocate of PTC. That train that was the impetus for the installation of PTC happened in Chatsworth, California.

Tue Sep 12, 2023: On this day, September 12, 2008, 25 died when two trains collided in Chatsworth, California.

U.S. NEWS

Railroad automatic braking system needs improvement to prevent more derailments, safety board says

BY JOSH FUNK
Updated 7:30 PM EDT, November 1, 2023

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The automatic braking system railroads were required to install several years ago needs improvement to better prevent collisions, federal safety investigators said in a report Wednesday. ... The National Transportation Safety Board’s report urged the Federal Railroad Administration and the industry to keep developing new technology that can be used to improve Positive Train Control systems. Their recommendations included at least one practical idea that railroads could likely implement relatively quickly.

Railroads spent 12 years and roughly $15 billion to develop and install the automatic braking system after Congress required it in 2008 in the wake of a collision between a commuter and freight train in California that killed 25 and injured more than 100. ... The system, in place on about 58,000 miles (93,000 kilometers) of track nationwide since 2020, is designed to reduce human error by automatically stopping trains in certain situations, such as when they’re in danger of colliding, derailing because of excessive speed, entering tracks under maintenance or traveling the wrong direction.

The National Transportation Safety Board has said more than 150 train crashes since 1969 could have been prevented by Positive Train Control. The agency had recommended the automatic braking system for years before it was mandated by Congress, which extended the original 2015 deadline twice and gave railroads until the end of 2020 to complete the system.

{snip}

The National Transportation Safety Board said that too often the system just imposes a low speed limit and relies on engineers to stop their trains in time, which doesn’t always work. ... The system also has a hard time preventing rear-end collisions, partly because it isn’t set up to track how long a train is and doesn’t know where the back of a train is. The board recommended that the Federal Railroad Administration and railroads keep looking for a solution to this using a GPS sensor at the end of a train. ... The braking system also doesn’t have the ability to stop a train if there is an object like a car or person on the tracks, so the safety board also recommended developing a set of sensors that could help with that.

{snip}

JOSH FUNK
Josh covers railroads & Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway
https://twitter.com/Funkwrite
[e-mail]

[Eugene]

104. Chicago commuter train crashes into rail equipment, injures at least 19, 3 seriously, official says

Chicago commuter train crashes into rail equipment, injures at least 19, 3 seriously, official says

CHICAGO (AP) — A Chicago commuter train collided with rail equipment Thursday morning, injuring at least 19 people, three of them seriously, a fire official said.

The Chicago Fire Department said a Chicago Transit Authority train crashed into a piece of equipment that was on the rails just before 11 a.m. on the city’s North Side.

Three people suffered serious injuries while 16 others had non-life-threatening injuries, fire department spokesman Larry Langford, told the Chicago Sun-Times.

“That’s probably going to go up,” Langford said of the injured.

[Eugene]

105. Railyard explosion, inspections raise safety questions about Union Pacific's hazmat shipping

Railyard explosion, inspections raise safety questions about Union Pacific’s hazmat shipping

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Federal inspectors have twice found hundreds of defects in the locomotives and railcars Union Pacific uses at the world’s largest railyard in Nebraska, but none of those seem to explain why a shipping container filled with toxic acid exploded there this fall.

Investigators haven’t confirmed the cause of the Sept. 14 blast in a remote corner of the railroad’s Bailey Yard in North Platte, Nebraska, about 250 miles west of Omaha. The explosion didn’t spread far, but investigators appear to be delving into the questionable decision to load dozens of plastic barrels of perchloric acid inside a shipping container with a wood floor and possibly atop wooden pallets, even though that acid is known to react with wood or any other organic material.

“I don’t know if you’ve ever read about perchloric acid, but when it comes in contact with organic material, it becomes highly volatile. So that car was doomed from the day it was loaded,” said Andy Foust, a Nebraska leader of the largest rail union that represents the workers who were switching those railcars just before the explosion.

The explosion highlighted not only potential problems at the sprawling railyard but also the national rail network’s reliance on everyone involved in shipping hazardous materials taking proper precautions. As the Nebraska explosion made clear, there can be problems that are hard to spot before potentially disastrous accidents occur.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

106. What's Missing From Railroad Safety Data? Dead Workers and Severed Limbs.

The picture is deceptive. It does not show railroad employees, but people cutting across a train stopped at a grade crossing. I don't know why they chose it to accompany the article.

Regulation

What’s Missing From Railroad Safety Data? Dead Workers and Severed Limbs.

by Topher Sanders, Dan Schwartz, Danelle Morton and Gabriel Sandoval
March 13, 5 a.m. EDT

Thanks to government loopholes, rail companies haven’t been scrutinized by the Federal Railroad Administration for scores of alleged worker injuries and at least two deaths.


Train Country: Investigating Railroad Safety in America

As powerful railroad companies race to maximize profits through efficiency, safety is left behind.

ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they’re published.

On a hot July afternoon in 2018, Gregory West found himself trudging through the mountains of northern Tennessee on what would be the last walk of his life.

The engineer and his conductor had been stuck behind a stalled train that had not budged by the end of their shift, and rail company officials told them to walk out to a road where a vehicle could meet them. It would be an hour’s journey up and down steep hills in 88-degree heat. And West, 57, had to lug two large bags of his belongings the entire way. Just as he reached the rendezvous point, he collapsed. The Campbell County medical examiner said West had pneumonia and hypertension, which decreased his oxygen supply before he died. His sister sued the railroad company, CSX, which settled with her for an undisclosed amount.

But none of that is reflected in CSX’s worker injury statistics. ProPublica only found out about it while reviewing lawsuits levied against the nation’s largest freight carriers in the past 15 years. West’s was one of at least 130 worker deaths and other injuries that were alleged to have happened on the job but that railroad companies never reported to regulators.

Among the others, according to the lawsuits, were a CSX conductor who suffered a fatal heart attack after doing physical labor on a subfreezing overnight shift and a contractor who lost three fingers rigging equipment in a Norfolk Southern rail yard.

{snip}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

107. Pennsylvania train crash highlights shortcomings of automated railroad braking system

The "automated braking system" is what the NTSB calls positive train control.

U.S. NEWS
Pennsylvania train crash highlights shortcomings of automated railroad braking system



FILE - This photo provided by Nancy Run Fire Company shows a train derailment along a riverbank in Saucon Township, Pa., March 2, 2024. The collision highlights the shortcomings of the automated braking system that was created to prevent such crashes. None of the circumstances the National Transportation Safety Board described Tuesday, March 26, in its preliminary report on the derailment would have triggered the automated positive train control system to stop the trains. (Nancy Run Fire Company via AP, File)

BY JOSH FUNK
Updated 7:02 PM EDT, March 26, 2024

The collision of three Norfolk Southern trains in Pennsylvania early this month highlights the shortcomings of the automated braking system that was created to prevent such crashes. ... None of the circumstances the National Transportation Safety Board described Tuesday in its preliminary report on the March 2 derailment would have triggered the automated positive train control system to stop the trains.

Not only was the system incapable of stopping the second train before it smashed into the back of a stopped train, but it also couldn’t stop the third train. It ran into the derailed cars blockings its track when it arrived less than a minute later. ... “PTC today has not generally been designed to protect them in that situation,” railroad safety expert Chris Barkan said.

Congress required railroads to develop the positive train control system after a deadly 2008 collision between a Metrolink commuter train and a Union Pacific freight train in Chatsworth, California. That crash killed 25 people, including the Metrolink engineer, and injured more than 100. It took more than a decade and roughly $15 billion for the railroads to design and complete the system, but it only works in certain circumstances.

In this Pennsylvania crash, the eastbound train that smashed into a stopped train in Lower Saucon Township along the Lehigh River had slowed to 13 mph (21 kph) after passing a restricted speed signal. But without a stop signal, the braking system would not have been triggered. ... The three railcars that derailed after that first collision blocked the adjacent track, and the third train smashed into them at about 22 mph (35 kph). The braking system relies on information from the railroad’s signals to stop a train, and it can’t detect when something is blocking the tracks. But given that the third train arrived less than a minute later, there wouldn’t have been enough time to stop it anyway.

{snip}

https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/Pages/RRD24FR009.aspx

[mahatmakanejeeves]

108. Transit agency aims to make workers safer near train tracks

Transit agency aims to make workers safer near train tracks
April 1, 2024

Washington — The Federal Transit Administration is accepting comment on a proposed rule that would establish mandatory minimum safety standards for rail transit employees who work on or near tracks.

Published March 25, the proposal would direct rail transit agencies to install multiple track worker protections, including “the right to challenge and refuse in good faith any assignment based on on-track safety concerns and resolve such challenges and refusals promptly and equitably.”

Other requirements would include:

• Establishing a roadway worker protection program to prevent incidents, fatalities and injuries to workers who access areas on and along tracks.
• Setting minimum requirements for RWP programs, such as job safety briefings and lone worker protection.
• Requiring workers to report unsafe actions, conditions and near misses related to RWP programs.

An FTA press release cites data from the National Transit Database showing that 22 deaths and 120 serious injuries occurred among workers on or along rail-transit tracks between Jan. 1, 2008, and Oct. 31, 2022.

{snip}

Comments are due May 24.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

109. NTSB Preliminary Report: Norfolk Southern Train Collisions and Derailment near Easton, Pennsylvania

​Site of the collisions. (Courtesy of Lehigh County Emergency Management.)

Norfolk Southern Train Collisions and Derailment

What Happened

​​​​​​This information is preliminary and subject to change. Release Date: 26 March​ 2024.

On March 2, 2024, about 7:11 a.m. local time, eastbound Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) intermodal train 268H429 collided with stopped NS intermodal train 24XH101 on the same track and derailed railcars that were subsequently struck by westbound NS mixed freight train 19GH501 on the Allentown Road Subdivision near Easton, Pennsylvania.[1] As a result of the first collision, train 268H429 derailed three railcars that fouled the adjacent main track 1. Less than a minute later, a second collision occurred when train 19GH501 struck the derailed equipment while traveling westbound on main track 1.[2] As a result of the second collision, train 19GH501 derailed six railcars and two locomotives. Three of these derailed railcars were placarded as hazardous materials tank cars: one containing ethanol residue and two containing butane residue.[3] The tank cars did not breach or release hazardous materials. The two derailed locomotives partially submerged in the Lehigh River and discharged locomotive diesel fuel into the water. Seven crewmembers were transported to a local hospital, treated for minor injuries, and released. NS estimated damages to equipment and track to be about $2.5 million. At the time of the collisions, visibility conditions were daylight and overcast; the weather was 35°F with light rain.

​Train 24XH101 was traveling from Atlanta, Georgia, to Croxton, New Jersey, and consisted of 3 lead locomotives and 27 intermodal railcars. Its crew consisted of an engineer and a conductor.

Train 268H429 was traveling from Landers, Illinois, to Elizabeth, New Jersey, and consisted of 2 lead locomotives and 39 intermodal railcars. Its crew consisted of an engineer and a conductor.

Train 19GH501 was traveling from Croxton, New Jersey, to Enola, Pennsylvania, and consisted of 2 lead locomotives, 1 distributed power unit, and 199 mixed freight railcars. Its crew consisted of an engineer, a conductor, and a conductor trainee.

The track near the collision site has two main tracks. Train movements in the area are authorized by wayside signal indications with an overlaid positive train control system and are coordinated by the NS dispatcher center in Atlanta, Georgia.[4]The maximum authorized speed in the area was 40 mph.[5]

Shortly before the collisions, train 24XH101 had stopped on main track 2 because of train traffic. Train 268H429, approaching from the west, proceeded through a signal that required it to operate at restricted speed.[6] Train 268H429 was traveling about 13 mph at the time of the first collision. Westbound train 19GH501 was not required to operate at restricted speed and was traveling about 22 mph at the time of the second collision, below the maximum authorized speed.

While on scene, National Transportation Safety Board investigators completed interviews; inspected locomotives and railcars; tested and downloaded data from positive train control and signal systems; and sent data from radio logs, locomotive event recorders, and outward- and inward-facing image recorders to the National Transportation Safety Board Vehicle Recorder Laboratory for analysis.

The National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation is ongoing. Future investigative activity will focus on NS rules, procedures, and crew training related to train handling.

​Parties to the investigation include:

• the Federal Railroad Administration;
• NS;
• the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen;
• the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen; and
• the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers.

[1] (a) All times in this report are local times. (b) An intermodal train carries shipping containers used in intermodal freight transportation. (c) A mixed freight train includes several types of railcars and commodities.
[2] Fouling a track means the placement of an individual or equipment in such proximity to a track that the individual or equipment could be struck by a moving train or on-track equipment.
[3] The three hazardous materials tank cars were offered for shipment as having last contained UN1170, Ethanol Solutions, a Class 3 flammable liquid in packing group II, and UN1075, Liquefied Petroleum Gas, a Division 2.1 flammable gas, as specified in Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations Part 172.
[4] A positive train control system enforces speed limits and prevents a train from passing through a signal that requires it to stop.
[5] Maximum authorized speed was set by NS Keystone Division Allentown Road Subdivision Timetable Number 1, effective November 1, 2023, with revisions effective November 27, 2023.
[6] Restricted speed is defined by Federal Railroad Administration regulations in 49 Code of Federal Regulations 236.812. Restricted speed operations occur when a train operates below 20 mph (or at a lower limit set by operating rules) and at a speed that will allow it to stop within one-half the range of vision of the operator.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

110. A 100-Ton Locomotive With No One in the Cab

A 100-Ton Locomotive With No One in the Cab

Railroad unions are raising safety concerns about the growing use of remote-controlled trains after a rash of fatal accidents.



A worker replaced a ceramic cross for a man fatally struck by a train in Houston last year. Nathan Howard for The New York Times

By Frances Robles, Sergio Olmos, Mark Walker and Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs
Reporters traveled to Buffalo, Houston, Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Toledo, Ohio, to document the expanded use of remote trains.

May 27, 2024, 5:00 a.m. ET

One evening last June, as Esther Iradukunda set the table for dinner at her home in Buffalo, she heard a high-pitched cry through the kitchen window. She rushed outside and followed the screams to the train tracks that ran about 100 feet away from her house.

She found her young brother Aron lying on the tracks, run over when he chased a ball between the cars of a train that had suddenly begun to move. Now it was stopped again, but one of the boy’s legs was lodged underneath, the bone jutting through the skin, and he had grave wounds to his abdomen.

Ms. Iradukunda desperately pulled her brother clear just as the train began moving again, rolling slowly toward the CSX train yards about a quarter-mile away. Aron, now 10, survived but lost his right leg.

No one from the railroad had heard the boy’s screams or noticed him trapped on the tracks. The train had no conductor or engineer onboard; instead, its movement was being controlled by a remote operator who was not aboard the train and, under railroad protocols, could have been more than a half-mile away.

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[mahatmakanejeeves]

111. FRA report on East Palestine derailment differs slightly from NTSB analysis

Hat tip, someone on an IO.groups listserv that I'm on.

FRA report on East Palestine derailment differs slightly from NTSB analysis
By Bill Stephens | July 22, 2024

The rail safety agency asked Congress for the authority to regulate wayside detectors


The early stages of the fire following Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, on Feb. 3, 2023. NTSB; courtesy Eric’s Train Yard

WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration’s report on the Norfolk Southern hazardous materials derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, reached the same conclusions as the National Transportation Safety Board’s broader and more exhaustive probe. ... But the FRA report, released on Friday afternoon, did contain some key differences.

First, the FRA did not comment on the post-derailment decision to vent and burn five tank cars that were carrying vinyl chloride. The NTSB concluded the vent and burn was not necessary, and the board was critical of the decision-making process and communication chain that involved Norfolk Southern and its contractors. NS disputes this and has stood by the decision, which it said was made to prevent a catastrophic explosion. ... FRA sought to distance itself from the vent-and-burn decision. “FRA neither made, directed, nor participated in the decision to conduct a vent and burn operation, and the agency has no role or authority in such a decision,” the FRA said.

But the NTSB, in its recommendations, urged the FRA to update its vent-and-burn guidance: “Update and re-publish your 2007 vent and burn reports to include clear instructions to consult the shipper when considering a vent and burn, more comprehensive guidance on what products are candidates for a vent and burn along with what chemical and other hazards may result, and an updated process flow chart incorporating lessons from the East Palestine vent and burn; the re-published reports should identify the questions an incident commander should ask when considering a vent and burn, distinguish the meaning of the answers, and identify the resources necessary to make an informed decision.”

Second, the NTSB said no injuries were reported related to the Feb. 3, 2023, wreck that was caused by a wheel bearing failure. FRA, however, says that NS subsequently reported that 24 people — 18 civilians and six contractors — received minor injuries. FRA said the injuries were “due to inhalation hazards as a result of the fire that resulted from the derailment and subsequent hazardous materials remediation activities.” ... Third, NTSB and FRA reached slightly different conclusions regarding mechanical inspections of NS train 32N.

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