Train accidents have been making many headlines recently, and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has responded with a bill which would aim to reduce a major culprit of these accidents and subsequent passenger personal injuries and fatalities: fatigue. According to a story in the Virginian Pilot, the FRA wants to replace 100-year-old laws addressing the work time of train crews’ with more modern and scientifically-based regulations. A reauthorization bill submitted to Congress last week would specifically regulate the amount of time train crews get to rest between shifts. 

According to the story, the railroad industry’s current hours of service laws say that workers can work 12 hours straight as long as they get 10 hours of rest. However, the law only mandates eight hours of rest when train employees work one minute less than 12 hours. FRA Administrator Joseph H. Boardman said that train employees need schedules which promote safety and rest. While labor unions are happy that the government is addressing fatigue related issues, they are also concerned that repealing the current laws would leave workers without guaranteed rest and work limits.

Fatigue has been listed as the probable cause of 16 major train accidents, some of which involved fatalities, during the last 23 years, according to a National Transportation Safety Board statistic in the story. The reauthorization bill is currently before congressional committee and would carry through 2011 if passed this year. Visit The Injury Blog for more specifics on this reauthorization bill and the latest developments as they happen.