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DOT 10-06
Contact: Brian Turmail, Tel.: (202) 366-4570
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
New Inspection Program to Target Rail Safety Hot Spots, U.S. Secretary of
Transportation Norman Y. Mineta Announces During Rail Safety Update
A new program to deploy federal railroad inspectors to safety hot spots will
begin early this year, Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta announced
today during an update on his Department’s National Rail Safety Action Plan.
He said the plan “is helping to improve the business of safety in America, at
just the right time,” adding it “ensures our rail network and our economic
growth can continue to move forward at a robust and record-breaking pace.”
Mineta said the Department expects to start by March a new inspection program
that will use accident data to identify rail safety problems for specific
railroads and states. The inspection plan will allow federal inspectors to focus
their efforts where safety issues are most likely to arise so they can be
corrected before a serious train accident occurs, Mineta added.
Over the coming months, the Department also will deploy two new track inspection
vehicles, tripling the number of miles of track inspected each year; propose a
new federal rule to address common human errors that lead to train accidents
such as improperly lined switches; and undertake research into train operator
fatigue, near misses, and the strength of hazardous materials tank cars, he
noted.
Mineta unveiled the plan in May 2005, which lays out an aggressive agenda to
target the most frequent, highest risk causes of train accidents; better utilize
federal rail inspection resources; and accelerate research efforts.
He noted that several components of the plan, including pilot projects to test
technology to identify small cracks in rail joints, monitor switch positions in
non-signaled or dark territory, and provide timely hazardous materials
information to emergency responders, are already in place. The Secretary added
that stronger partnerships between the federal, state and local governments are
now in place to help prevent collisions at highway-rail grade crossings.
“We have made solid progress on the plan in just nine months,” said Mineta,
adding that the Department was “on track to build on this solid safety progress
in 2006.”
The National Rail Safety Action Plan can be found at
http://www.dot.gov/affairs/frasafetyplan012506.htm.
The Secretary's remarks can be found at http://www.dot.gov/affairs/minetasp012506.htm.
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