The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“METRO-NORTH TRAIN SAFETY” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Transportation was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H2481 on March 14, 2014.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
METRO-NORTH TRAIN SAFETY
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 3, 2013, the Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) for 30 minutes.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, the Federal Railroad Administration's examination of the Metro-North railroad safety apparatus has been completed.
I begin by offering my sincere condolences to the family and friends of Mr. James Romansoff, a Metro-North employee and a constituent of mine, a Yonkers resident, who died Monday after being hit by a train while performing track maintenance. My thoughts go out to his relatives and all who knew him, and I am deeply sorry for the family's loss.
This morning, the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Railroad Administration released a report to Congress entitled,
``Operation Deep Dive: Metro-North Commuter Railroad Safety Assessment.'' This report was prompted by the horrific train derailment that occurred in my district on December 1, 2013, which killed four and wounded dozens.
I am sure I speak for all of my colleagues when I say that the safety and welfare of my constituents, of all of our constituents, is our number one priority. That is why I was dismayed to learn of the profoundly ineffective standards under which Metro-North--a rail system that thousands of my constituents depend on daily--has been operating.
According to the FRA's report, which concentrated on Metro-North's
``safety culture,'' this system is hampered by a strict adherence to train schedules; a safety apparatus that does not seek out potentially dangerous situations, but instead responds to complications after they arise; and inadequate training procedures.
These ailments are indefensible and unwarranted. The FRA's report states:
Detectable safety issues exist across multiple disciplines that should have been discovered by the Metro-North management.
That is an indictment of Metro-North's management. No people should be killed because of incompetence. No people should have been killed because the person driving the train apparently fell asleep. Metro-
North's failure to monitor potential safety hazards is downright reckless. According to the Metropolitan Transit Authority, approximately 281,000 travelers use Metro-North trains every week, and those passengers' commutes are at risk from these safety hazards cited in the report.
Getting people in and out of New York City, in and out of Manhattan, is an important task, and if it can't be done safely, then what good it is.
The FRA's report makes several recommendations that, if implemented, might help prevent accidents in the future. According to the report, Metro-North is plagued by three fundamental problems: a destructive emphasize on timely departures and arrivals; the absence of proactive rather than reactive responses to safety concerns; and defective training procedures. Four serious Metro-North accidents occurred just last year, and that is four too many.
I call upon Metro-North to immediately begin implementing the safety recommendations contained in the FRA report. The safety of thousands of passengers and Metro-North employees depends on it.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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