Improving Railroad Safety is a Success
The Federal Railroad Association (FRA) established the Railroad Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC) to provide advice and recommendations to the FRA on railroad safety matters. The RSAC is a formally chartered and structured Federal Advisory Committee and provides a forum for collaborative rulemaking and program development. RSAC consists of representatives from all of the agency’s major stakeholder groups, including railroads, labor organizations, suppliers and manufacturers, and other interested parties. RSAC’s achievements are many. Since the establishment of RSAC, rail accidents per million train miles are down by nearly 30 percent as total miles and passenger counts increased significantly. Because of broad industry collaboration through committees like RSAC, success happens.
The past 20 years have proven that industry and government can accomplish much when they work together toward a common goal (i.e., developing rulemakings, regulations and safety policies, advancement of technologies and more importantly, saving lives today and tomorrow across our great nation moving forward). RSAC is one tool that FRA and its partners use to advance safety, and we need every effective tool to improve safety.
DOT Develops New Free Online CFR Mobile App
Ever find yourself in a remote location, needing to verify a CFR regulation? Now there’s a free App for that! In its continuing efforts to improve safety and public access to the latest transportation regulations, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) made available a new online Code of Federal Regulations (oCFR) mobile application – App. The oCFR mobile app is a simplified version of the web-based application which was released to the public in March of 2016. The oCFR app was released to both Apple’s App Store and the Google Play Store for use on iOS and Android mobile devices. The new oCFR app provides the first-ever mobile access to search, view, and navigate PHMSA’s Hazardous Materials Regulations in 49 CFR parts 100-180 for the classifying, handling, and packaging of hazardous materials by highway, rail, aircraft, and vessel.
This app also provides the first-ever mobile access to PHMSA’s Pipeline Safety Regulations in 49 CFR parts 190-199, which provide the federal minimum safety standards for the design, construction, operation and maintenance, and spill response planning for pipeline and liquefied natural gas facilities involved in the transportation of natural gas and hazardous liquids within the United States. The mobile app is also unique because it allows users to navigate regulations at the paragraph level.
To get the App, go to the App Store on your smartphone, SEARCH for OCFR, and download. It’s free!
