railroad safety Archives - Page 6 of 6

Union Pacific, investigators look into Sunday fatality in Arizona

4 February 2021

A photograph of a Union Pacific locomotive.

Union Pacific (NYSE: UNP) and federal investigators are looking into an incident in southeast Arizona on Sunday that claimed the life of an employee of the railroad.

Union Pacific (UP) engineering employee and system laborer James Morgan was involved in an accident in Vail, Arizona.

“This is a tragic situation and our hearts go out to James’ family, friends, coworkers and the larger Union Pacific family. At this time, notifications are being made, and we have no further information,” UP said on...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/union-pacific-investigators-look-into-sunday-fatality-in-arizona

New federal rule: All states must develop grade crossing safety plans

15 December 2020

A photograph of a truck at a rail crossing waiting for a passenger train to go by.

Every state plus the District of Columbia must now develop and implement action plans on how they can help make highway-rail grade crossings safer, according to new federal regulation.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) on Tuesday published a final rule that required 40 states and Washington to develop and implement highway-rail grade crossing action plans to help improve public safety. An additional 10 states that had already submitted plans to FRA must update their plans and report on...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/new-federal-rule-all-states-must-develop-grade-crossing-safety-plans

Three rail switching-related fatalities prompt warning

9 December 2020

A photograph of a railcars in a rail yard.

A cross-industry working group for freight rail is concerned about the rate of fatalities related to switching operations over the last four months.

The Switching Operations Fatality Analysis (SOFA) Working Group issued a warning in its November safety alert asking workers to be vigilant during switching operations. The group determined that three recent fatalities — one in Crossett, Arkansas, on Aug. 13, another in Richmond, Virginia, on Oct. 11 and a third in Tuscola, Illinois. on Nov. 11 —...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/three-rail-switching-related-fatalities-prompt-warning

Federal agencies, rail unions team up on safety research

6 July 2020

A photograph of a rail track close up. On the track is a paper sign that says, Safety First. In the distance is a freight train locomotive.

Researchers at federal agencies are working with the railroad unions to understand how railroaders best receive information on safety practices.

Since May (and running through July), the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) Office of Research, Development and Technology (RD&T) and the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center have been conducting a needs assessment survey to learn about what tools and technology railroaders use to gather, share and communicate information on occupational...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/federal-agencies-rail-unions-team-up-on-safety-research

Stakeholders await new guidance on rail track and brake safety standards

1 July 2020

A photograph of a rail yard. There are several lines of trains parked at the yard.

Federal rules revising how rail industry stakeholders should monitor and ensure healthy track infrastructure could be unveiled sometime soon.

The rules on rail integrity amendments and track standards, FRA-2018-0104, are in the clearance process at the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), but there’s no firm date yet for their issuance and publication in the Federal Register, according to sources.

Freight railroads, rail shippers and rail union members have been awaiting the revised rules since

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/stakeholders-await-new-guidance-on-rail-track-and-brake-safety-standards

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