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The new measures come in response to series of high-profile rail catastrophes in New York and Connecticut, including two derailments, one of which resulted in four fatalities in the Bronx, N.Y.
Schumer and Blumenthal’s bill would put into law many of the recommendations found in the Federal Railroad Administration’s “Operation Deep Dive” report assessing the safety and training plans and practices by Metro-North, as well as the findings of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s own Blue Ribbon Panel study released last week.
"This major, comprehensive measure will help American railroads move toward 21st century safety and reliability,” Blumenthal said in a statement. “Rigorous public oversight and scrutiny are critical, and that's where this bill begins. We must assure that safety and reliability standards receive real enforcement, not mere lip service."
Some of the measures in the bill include:
- Bolstering the Federal Railroad Administration’s oversight of our country’s rail systems by authorizing an increase in funding for FRA’s safety and operations work.
- Requiring greater FRA accountability for unmet statutory mandates and open NTSB recommendations through regular quarterly reports to Congress.
- Improving railroad operating practices by requiring enhanced inspection practices by commuter railroads.
- Requiring greater use of modern inspection technology and stepped up enforcement of speed restrictions.
“The deadly Metro-North crash, plus so many others across the country, have exposed time-and-again that our passenger and freight railroads must do more to promote a ‘culture of safety’ above all other priorities,” Schumer said in a statement.
“That is why Senator Blumenthal and I have worked to develop a comprehensive rail safety bill that will take the lessons of this tragic crash, plus the expert recommendations from the NTSB and others, and make them into tough requirements for our railroads, including a mandate for inward and outward facing cameras on all trains, new requirements for increased rail inspections, a significant boost in fines for safety violations, and more."
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