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This union and its predecessors fought for and obtained federal laws making transportation occupations safer, but the industry is still a hazardous one in which to work.

Every year, thousands of rail, bus and transit workers are injured and some even killed on the job. That is why the United Transportation Union remains committed to providing our members with the safest work environment possible with an objective of zero injuries and fatalities.

This area of the UTU website will be used to educate our members and  others about some of the hazards in the transportation industry and how to prevent accidents in the workplace.

Check this page regularly for updates to this section.

The Switching Operations Fatalities Analysis (SOFA) working group, with representatives from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), labor and management, was formed at the request of the FRA to review recent employee fatalities and to develop recommendations for reducing fatalities in switching operations. Click on SOFA for more information about the group.

The newest information added to the Transportation Safety page can be found at right under the What's New header.

What's New:

Safety Through Employees Exercising Leadership (STEEL) 06/24/09

Safety task force seeks member help (05/04/09)

Read: GAO Report on U.S. DOT Research (02/16/09)

FRA's Confidential Close Call Reporting System (02/09/09)

Powerpoint: Labor Briefing on Positive Train Control  (12/19/08)

More

Fatigue, Drug and Alcohol Testing UTU Safety Team Safety Laws and
Recommendations

Other
Important Websites

Fatigue is the number-one danger facing transportation workers today. For more information about this problem and to view a series of online presentations concerning fatigue, click on the link below.

Fatigue

What You Need to Know About Federal Drug and Alcohol Testing provides general information on federal drug and alcohol testing for railroad hours of service employees.

FRA Post-Accident Testing Criteria/Flowchart

The UTU Transportation Safety Team is comprised of eleven members of the UTU, each of whom is on call 24 hours a day to assist in determining the facts in rail-related accidents. Click below to contact the UTU Safety Team members.

Safety Team

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)

Safety Recommendations

Railroad safety laws are contained in a number of statutes and regulations. Below are links to a general summary of many of those laws. They should be used as a guide only, and if a specific problem arises, the applicable law or regulation should be reviewed. There are also links to government safety advisories and safety recommendations.

Safety Laws

Safety Advisories

FRA Reports

FRA Electronic and Electrical Device Flowchart (10/20/08)

Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008

Federal Railroad Administration

FRA Office of Safety

FRA Safety Data

FRA Switching Operations Fatality Analysis

FRA Regulations

Department of Transportation's Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy Compliance

FRA Online Accident Investigation Reports