The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) launched an in-depth investigation of Metro North Railroad on December 16, 2013 in response to several “high profile accidents” in a span of seven months. The most serious accident occurred on December 1, 2013, when a train en route to Grand Central Station derailed near Spuyten Duyvil station in New York, killing four passengers and injuring more than 70. The other accidents included the death of a Metro North maintenance of way worker in West Haven on May 28, 2013, and two other derailments, including one on the New Haven Line that injured more than 50 people.
The FRA report, released on March 14, 2014, found three overarching safety concerns:
- An overemphasis on on-time performance,
- An ineffective safety department and poor safety culture, and
- An ineffective training program
“This is a severe assessment, and it is intended as an urgent call to action to Metro North’s leadership,” the report said. “Metro North must never compromise safety in the interests of the reliability of its train schedule or the efficiency in its railroad operations. Senior leadership must put safety front and center, and communicate and implement that priority throughout the organization. This action must be taken immediately.”
FRA enumerated a number of corrective measures for Metro North to take. It directed the railroad to submit to it, by May 17, 2014, plans to improve both its safety department’s mission and effectiveness and its training program. The FRA will meet monthly with Metro North to review and evaluate its progress.
This report summarizes the FRA report’s three overarching concerns, its specific findings, and the specific actions it directs Metro North to take. Attachment #1, taken from the report, lists FRA’s safety concerns and directed actions.
For more information, read the full report.
