57 replies to this topic

[CNJRoss]

Federal Register, 3/15:

 

Train Crew Staffing - Notice of Proposed Rule Making

[CNJRoss]

AAR news release:

 

Freight Rail Industry Challenges Need for Rule Mandating Two-Person Crew

Cites FRA's Acknowledgement of Little Evidence or Safety Data Supporting Move

 

WASHINGTON, D.C., March 14, 2016 – "Safety is this industry's number one concern, but there is simply no safety case to be made for a regulation that requires two-person crews, especially where Positive Train Control is fully operational," said Edward R. Hamberger, AAR president and CEO. "Worldwide, trains safely operate with one person in the cab, including here in the United States with passenger and commuter trains and some short line freight railroads. Major European railway systems running many mixed freight and passenger trains per day have safely implemented single-person train crews.

 

"Coming from an administration that champions smart, data-driven regulations, it is inexplicable how this proposal was approved by the President's Office of Management and Budget," said Hamberger. "Even the FRA concedes they have no 'reliable or conclusive statistical data' to suggest that two-person crews are safer. I encourage the FRA to reexamine the facts and exercise sound regulatory judgment before finalizing a rule that lacks empirical support."

 

Hamberger pointed out Class 1 freight railroads remain committed to two people in the cab for trains operating on mainline track that is not equipped with Positive Train Control (PTC). PTC will be in operation for 60,000 out of the nation's 140,000-mile freight rail system.

 

"Notwithstanding an extensive body of evidence showing that two-person crews are no safer than one-person crews, the nation's Class 1 freight railroads currently operate with two-person crews, and have committed to continuing that practice for trains without PTC systems in place," Hamberger stated. "PTC is designed to provide continuous monitoring of train operations to protect against human error in controlling train speeds and movements. This is exactly the kind of safety redundancy through technology for which the FRA has long advocated." 

Hamberger also noted with irony that the proposed rule comes from the Department of Transportation (DOT) at the same time as that agency is enthusiastically promoting autonomous vehicle technology, which would facilitate platoons of un-manned trucks on our nation's highways. The same DOT is determining concrete guidelines for driverless cars, but offers absolutely no guidance to the railroads to move to one-person crews.

 

"The freight rail industry is spending billions to automate operations inside freight locomotives. Instead of piling on additional, duplicative regulatory costs that offer no incremental safety benefit , the government should focus on creating an environment that fuels innovation and technological advancement in furtherance of safety," concluded Hamberger.

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[CNJRoss]

AP 3/14:

 

Gov't proposes requiring at least 2-member train crews

 

 

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Government regulators are proposing trains have a minimum of two crew members, a response to safety concerns that arose in 2013 after an unattended oil train caught fire and destroyed much of a town in Canada.

 

A Federal Railroad Administration notice published Monday says the agency is considering allowing railroads that operate with only one engineer to apply for an exception to the proposed two-person crew rule.

 

Continue here.

[CNJRoss]

Maine Public Broadcasting, 3/15:

 

Rail Administration Adopts Two-Person Train Crews

The Federal Railroad Administration has proposed requiring two-person train crews for railroad operations.

 

U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine’s 1st District says she’s been pushing for tougher rail safety rules since the Lac Megantic tragedy in 2013.

 

“I think it really made people recognize that there were a lot of practices going on that weren’t as safe as we had assumed, particularly when trains are transporting toxic hazardous materials,” she says.

 

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[CNJRoss]

International Business Times, 3/16:
 

Feds Propose Two Crew Member Minimum On Trains, Irking Rail Industry And Drawing Praise From Safety Advocates

 

 

U.S. federal regulators rolled out a long-awaited proposal this week that would require at least two crew members on most railroad trains across the country. It comes almost three years after 47 people were killed when an unattended oil train derailed and exploded in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec.

 

Critics doubt the measure’s safety benefits and say ongoing technological advances make a second crew member obsolete. But labor unions and safety advocates say such a mandate by the Federal Railroad Administration provides a crucial bulwark against railroads’ moves to reduce crew sizes. At stake, ultimately, is the future of work on the country’s hundreds of thousands of miles of track.

 

“The only way to operate a train safely is with a minimum of two crew members,” said John Risch, legislative director for the transportation division of the Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers union, which represents thousands of workers on the major railroads. “It’s like an airplane: You’ve got the pilot and co-pilot interacting with one another.”

 

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[CNJRoss]

The Washington Post, 3/14:
 

Will doubling the number of engineers make trains safer?

 

In a move that might have spared those involved in a deadly Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia last year, federal regulators Monday said they want a minimum of two engineers aboard most of the nation’s trains.

 

The proposal has been under discussion since before the May 13, 2015, Amtrak derailment that killed eight people and injured more than 200 when a train traveling twice the posted speed limit spun off the tracks on a curve.  .  .  .

 

SNIP

 

“Even the FRA concedes they have no ‘reliable or conclusive statistical data’ to suggest that two-person crews are safer,” Hamberger said. “I encourage the FRA to reexamine the facts and exercise sound regulatory judgment before finalizing a rule that lacks empirical support.”

 

Continue here.

[jis]

Appears to be the typical FRA mode of operation. Let us do something so as to look like we are doing something, even though there is no scientific basis for it. All the better if it plays well with a favored political gallery. I guess I am feeling particularly cynical this morning.  :-/

[CNJRoss]

People's World, 3/21:
 

Unionists cheer as railroad adminstration proposes two-person train crews

 

WASHINGTON - In a big win for rail workers, their unions, their members and - the agency emphasizes - rail safety, the Federal Railroad Administration is proposing to mandate two-person crews in all but a few instances on the nation's freight railroads.

 

If FRA's proposed rule makes it all the way through the convoluted federal rulemaking process, it would be a big win for rank-and-file rail workers and their unions, who have agitated and lobbied for two-person crews. They've also convinced several state legislatures about that.

 

Continue here.

[CNJRoss]

Progressive Railroading, 6/16:

 

AAR and ASLRRA to FRA: Withdraw proposal to mandate two-person crews

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) is urging the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to withdraw its proposed rule that would mandate two-person crews on trains.

In comments recently filed with the FRA, AAR officials claimed the proposal not only lacks any data-driven justification, but could undermine efforts to improve freight-rail safety.
 
"There is no greater priority for the freight-rail industry than safety, but this proposed rule offers no safety benefit to railroads, their employees or the public," said AAR President and Chief Executive Officer Ed Hamberger in a press release. "There is absolutely no data to support the view that a second crew member enhances safety.”

 

Continue here.

[CNJRoss]

AAR news release, 6/15:

 

AAR FILES COMMENTS URGING FRA TO WITHDRAW PROPOSED RULE MANDATING TWO-PERSON TRAIN CREWS

 

Proposed Crew Size Mandate Is Unsupported By Data, As Safety Agency Itself Acknowledges

 

AAR: Rule Could Undermine Efforts to Enhance Freight Rail Safety

 

 

WASHINGTON, D.C., JUNE 15, 2016 – The Association of American Railroads (AAR) today urged the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to withdraw its proposed rule mandating two-person crews on railroads.  In comments filed with the FRA, the AAR said that the proposal not only lacks any data-driven justification but could also undermine efforts to improve freight rail safety.

 

"There is no greater priority for the freight rail industry than safety, but this proposed rule offers no safety benefit to railroads, their employees or the public," said Edward R. Hamberger, President and CEO of the AAR.  "There is absolutely no data to support the view that a second crewmember enhances safety. This regulation is trying to solve a problem that does not exist."

 

In its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) published on March 15, the FRA acknowledged that it lacks any data to support the assertion that two-person crews are safer than one-person crews.  In fact, the FRA notes that "it is possible that one-person crews have contributed to the improving safety record" of the rail industry.  The NPRM also largely ignored studies provided by AAR in January 2015 that quantify the strong safety record of single-person operations, which are used all over the world.

 

"With no evidence that one-person operations are less safe, there is simply no basis for enacting a general prohibition on crew size reductions," Hamberger said.

 

Historically, the FRA has treated crew size as a labor issue to be addressed through the collective bargaining process rather than as a safety issue.  By mandating crew sizes, the FRA would be creating a new economic burden for rail operators that already operate with only one crewmember, as well as those that would be prevented from reducing crew sizes in the future.  The FRA's move is ironic because it comes just as the Class I railroads are in the process of implementing Positive Train Control (PTC) technology, which is designed to override human error in the cab.

 

The AAR also emphasized that unnecessary rules like this may stifle future technological innovations that could make the freight rail network safer and more efficient.  New safety technologies often also provide productivity and efficiency gains to the railroads that implement them, and smart regulatory policy should be designed to encourage — not inhibit — railroads from investing in those technologies.

 

"This proposed rule is a textbook example of unnecessary regulation, and, if implemented, would have a chilling effect on the development of new technologies that could make the world's safest transportation network even safer," Hamberger said.  "While the Department of Transportation is throwing its full support behind the development of autonomous vehicles as a way to improve safety on our roadways, it is doing the opposite with our railroads."  

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