Long Island Railroad and Metro-North Railroad recently implemented safety recommendations listed on the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)’s 2019-2020 Most Wanted List of Transportation Safety Improvements.
NTSB recommended Long Island Railroad screen and evaluate employees in safety-sensitive positions for sleep disorders and treat anyone diagnosed with a disorder, and recommended Metro-North revise its medical protocols and provide employees in safety-sensitive positions a list of medications that engineers and conductors must avoid.
Both railroads, two of the country’s largest commuter rail operators, are part of New York’s Metropolitan Transit Authority.
NTSB issued its recommendations following the investigations of five accidents in 2013 and 2014. The accidents involved Metro-North trains in New York and Connecticut that injured 126 people, killed six, and caused more than $28 million in damages.
“The most important outcomes from NTSB investigations are the implementation of safety recommendations because they can prevent accidents and save lives,” NTSB Chairman Robert L. Sumwalt said. “Recommendations themselves don’t move the needle on safety, only their implementation does.”
The recommendations are now classified as “closed – acceptable action.”
The 2019-2020 Most Wanted List campaign began in February. Seventeen items since have been closed.
The list identified safety recommendations that, if implemented, potentially can save lives and minimize injuries by preventing accidents.