positive train control

Cause of two train crashes identical – and preventable

February 14, 2018

Two train accidents within 13 weeks of each other – one in New Jersey and the other in New York – had the same root causes, says the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB): the undiagnosed sleep apnea of the trains’ engineers. Sleep apnea is a potentially serious sleep disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts. It can result in a sufferer feeling tired even after a full night's sleep.

Two train accidents, same cause, says NTSB

February 7, 2018

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) 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.

Was fatal NJ train crash caused by sleep apnea?

November 21, 2016

The lawyer for a New Jersey Transit train engineer that slammed into a station in September says his client suffered from an undiagnosed sleep disorder.

NTSB: Distracted engineer caused fatal Philly train wreck

-But he wasn't using his cell phone

May 18, 2016

The May 2015 derailment of an Amtrak train in Philadelphia was the result of a loss of situational awareness by the train’s engineer after his attention was diverted to an emergency involving another train, the National Transportation Safety Board announced in a public meeting yesterday.

NTSB unveils 2016 Most Wanted List, stresses technology

January 14, 2016

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) unveiled its 2016 Most Wanted List of transportation safety improvements Wednesday, calling it a “road map from lessons learned to lives saved.” The list focuses on 10 broad safety improvements on which the NTSB has made recommendations that have not yet been implemented.

NTSB wants railroads to use “fatigue science” when scheduling personnel

May 15, 2015

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued a number of recommendations based on its investigation into a crash involving a Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) train.

Feds invest $21.2 million in railroad safety

FRA spends on highway grade crossing safety, positive train control, passenger rail

April 22, 2015

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has awarded eight grants totaling more than $21.2 million that invest in highway-rail grade crossing safety, Positive Train Control (PTC) implementation, and passenger rail. FRA awarded the grants as part of a Notice of Funding Availability it issued in July 2014 to distribute new FY14 Omnibus funding as well as unobligated funds from the High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program.

Oil and gas industry working with PHMSA, rail industry to reduce accidents

February 24, 2014

In the wake of recent train derailments and oil leaks, the oil and natural gas industry says it is working collaboratively with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and America’s railroad industry to improve rail safety.

NTSB releases “Ten Most Wanted” list of transportation improvements for 2014

January 16, 2014

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) today released its 2014 Most Wanted List, the top 10 advocacy and awareness priorities for the agency for 2014, which for the first time includes improving operational safety in rail mass transit.

NTSB wants more protection for rail transit workers

“A positive safety culture is not a solo act”

December 20, 2013

The National Transportation Safety Board yesterday issued two “urgent” safety recommendations to the Federal Transit Administration as part of its ongoing investigation into the deaths of two Bay Area Rapid Transit track workers who were struck by a BART train near Walnut Creek, Calif., on October 19.