(Bloomberg) -- As federal investigators examined the charred wreckage of Tuesday’s deadly commuter-train collision near New York, lawmakers in Washington were calling for new initiatives and money to prevent future tragedies.
U.S. Representative Sean Patrick Maloney, a New York Democrat, said Wednesday he filed legislation to boost by 10-fold to $100 million the annual federal funding available to states to move road-level rail crossings to safer locations.
The U.S. has about 130,000 public rail crossings.
“The issue of rail crossings itself is one that really needs more attention,” Maloney said during a conference call with reporters. “We believe there is an important and reasonable step we can take quickly.”
Federal regulators had raised flags about the prevalence of such accidents, including the day before the crash in President Barack Obama’s federal budget proposal for fiscal 2016. It specifically cited rules born of legislation backed by then-U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton in 2008, which it said were effective in reducing rail accidents, but are “reaching the limits of their effectiveness.”
While grade-crossing collisions are down 27 percent since 2005, they increased 12 percent last year to 2,258, according to data from the Federal Railroad Administration for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2014.
European Rail
In Europe, few if any railroads intersect with roads because nations have invested in bridges and tunnels to eliminate crossings, Jim Hall, a former NTSB chairman, said in an interview. The U.S. is behind other developed nations in making such upgrades, Hall said.
“It’s an issue where we again have failed to require proper investments and to do proper risk assessments,” he said.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the railroad administration in recent years also have each called for new initiatives to prevent rail-crossing crashes, which kill about 250 people a year.
Maloney, whose congressional district includes parts of Westchester County, said there is bipartisan support in Congress to boost funding. His legislation would reauthorize a dormant grant program that provides federal funds for state and local governments that move grade crossings into safer locations. Funding for the Rail Line Relocation and Improvement Capital Grant Program ended in 2011, when Congress appropriated $10.5 million.
“It’s a good idea that hasn’t been implemented,” he said.
Maloney’s legislation, titled the Rail Crossings Safety Improvement Act, would increase annual funding to $100 million for four years.
Federal Budget
Obama’s budget proposal, which Congress must approve, includes an additional $2.2 million for rail-crossing safety initiatives. Much of the extra money in Obama’s budget would go toward public outreach regarding what drivers should know.
In the budget request, the Department of Transportation listed rail-road intersections as one of the “three most pressing rail safety issues.”
The deadliest collision in Metro-North Railroad’s history occurred after a rush-hour auto accident on the adjacent Taconic State Parkway. Cars were diverted, crossing the tracks. Gates came down atop a sport-utility vehicle, whose driver got out, got back in, then tried and failed to move forward, said Tony Bottalico, general chairman of the Association of Commuter Rail Employees, which represents the engineer.
Five Dead
The train struck the stuck vehicle, killing the driver and triggering an explosion and fire that left five dead on the train as the electrified third rail pierced the rail car and set it ablaze.
If rail-roadway intersections can’t be eliminated, local and state highway agencies need to do a better job of studying crossings to identify the riskiest ones and to take more steps to protect people, Hall said.
“There are very few jurisdictions where that is the case,” he said.
Maloney said he’s also supporting legislation to help fund installation of automatic rail-safety devices known as positive train control. The devices, which have been recommended by NTSB, include sensors that spot an object on the tracks and automatically slow or stop the train, he said.
To contact the reporters on this story: Toluse Olorunnipa in Washington at tolorunnipa@bloomberg.net; Alan Levin in Washington at alevin24@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Stephen Merelman at smerelman@bloomberg.net Romaine Bostick, Steve Geimann
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