Rail regulators accused of ignoring safety recommendations after shocking number of accidents
Huge number of train accidents due to regulators ignoring safety recs
- Federal railroad regulators have largely ignored safety recommendations, with a study revealing that the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) implemented only 5 out of 81 National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommendations between 2015 and 2024.
- Over the last decade, more than 3,000 rail accidents, resulting in 23 deaths and nearly 1,200 injuries, have been attributed to human error and track defects.
- The rail industry has actively lobbied to thwart federal safety reforms, including influencing the administration of Donald Trump to reduce track inspection and repair requirements and loosen rules aimed at preventing crew fatigue.
- Key safety issues, such as worn-down rails and crew fatigue, have repeatedly led to fatal accidents, including the 2021 Amtrak derailment in Montana, despite long-standing NTSB recommendations for regulation.
- Industry lobbying has also delayed the implementation of critical safety measures like Positive Train Control for decades, contributing to hundreds of preventable deaths and thousands of injuries before full compliance was achieved in 2020.