People News: ACTA, STV, AAR, NTSB

The Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority (ACTA) elects Tim McOsker as Board Chair. Also, STV elevates senior transportation leaders to support the growing Texas/Mountain Region; Union Pacific’s (UP) Sanjay Verna becomes the new Chairperson of the Association of American Railroads (AAR) Quality Assurance Committee; and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Member J. Todd Inman welcomes a new team to his staff.

STB’s Fuchs, NTSB’s Homendy Senate-Confirmed

Surface Transportation Board (STB) member Patrick J. Fuchs, a Republican, was Senate-confirmed by voice vote May 14 to a second five-year term, while Democrat Jennifer Esposito Homendy was similarly confirmed both to

(NTSB Diagram)

NTSB Issues Preliminary Report on 2024 CSX Head-On Collision

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released a preliminary report for its ongoing investigation of the April 15, 2024, head-on collision of a CSX train with a CSX stationary, loaded rock train in Folkston, Ga. The agency said future work will focus on “the industry-wide operational procedures for train movements during a signal suspension, training standards on the manual operation of dual-controlled switches, and the effectiveness of job briefings.”

Patrick Warren, Rail Safety Director, NTSB (left); and Mike Budinski, Deputy Director of Research and Engineering, NTSB (right).

People News: NTSB, STV

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) names Patrick Warren as Rail Safety Director and Mike Budinski as Deputy Director of Research and Engineering. Also, STV elevates Kristen Van Gilst to Chief of Staff; Judy Jones joins the firm as Senior Vice President of Strategic Sales; and Eugene (Gene) Kim joins the firm’s Transportation West group as Senior Vice President and California Area Manager.

Figure 1. Diagram of the Dec. 13, 2022, accident scene in which a Norfolk Southern employee was killed and another injured when a locomotive struck steel protruding from a gondola car on a stationary train near Bessemer, Ala. (NTSB Image)

NTSB Releases December 2022 NS Accident Report

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on April 9 issued the final report for its investigation of a Dec. 13, 2022, accident, in which a Norfolk Southern (NS) employee was killed and

NTSB at Full Strength

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is “at full strength” following Senate confirmation and swearing in of Alvin Brown and J. Todd Inman, filling two vacancies and bringing the board to its

NTSB Issues Prelim Report on NS Three-Train Accident

The National Transportation Safety Board on March 26 issued a Preliminary Report on its investigation of the March 2, 2024 collision and derailment of three Norfolk Southern trains on NS’s Allentown Road

FTA Proposes Mandatory Minimum Standards to Protect Rail Transit Workers

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) on March 22 announced that, for the first time, it is proposing mandatory minimum standards to protect those who perform track work for rail transit agencies nationwide.

Homendy Nominated for NTSB Chair and Member

President Joe Biden on March 14 announced his intention to nominate Jennifer Lynn Homendy for Chair and Member of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

Jennifer Homendy
Commentary

NTSB’s Top Cop: ‘Accept Fact-Based Science or Hit the Road, Jack’

WATCHING WASHINGTON, RAILWAY AGE, MARCH 2024 ISSUE: National Transportation Board (NTSB) Chairperson Jennifer Esposito Homendy can be a pain in the neck, and elsewhere. Celebrate that tenacity. It assuredly saves what cannot be calculated—injuries not suffered and lives not lost in preventable transportation mishaps.

LOAD MORE