GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES SUBCOMMITTEE

[H. Rept. 1452, 89th Cong., second sess.]

INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION OPERATIONS. (RAILROAD SAFETY)

Twenty-fifth Report by the Committee on Government Operations. (Submitted to the Speaker April 27, 1966)

This report examined the effectiveness with which Interstate Commerce Commission has carried out its railroad safety responsibilities. It should be noted that subsequent to the issuance of the report all railroad safety functions of the Interstate Commerce Commission were transferred to the newly created Department of Transportation, pursuant to Public Law 89-670. Railroad safety enforcement is now located within the Federal Railroad Administration in the Department of Transportation. The recommendations made in the report must be construed as applicable to the Federal Railroad Administration as the successor of the ICC's railroad safety program. The chief findings and conclusions are:

(1) The rate of railroad accidents, fatalities, and injuries. showed no decline during the decade from 1954 to 1963.

(2) Increases in appropriations and personnel resulted in a sharply higher percentage of supervisory personnel but no improvement in railroad safety.

(3) The crossbreeding of safety and car-service inspectors was. not successful.

(4) More emphasis had been placed on collecting inspection statistics than on enforcement of the railroad safety statutes.

(5) The accident-reporting procedures were not designed to concisely provide the maximum information that would be useful in improving the safety enforcement and accident prevention programs.

(6) The adoption of employee safety programs by the railroads. had not been strongly encouraged.

(7) Penalties for violations of the safety statutes had not been used effectively.

(8) Railroad grade crossing accidents contributed an extremely high percentage of injuries and fatalities and should be given high priority in seeking a reduction in the number of railroad accidents.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The committee made a number of recommendations for improvement in the organization and procedures of the Government's railroad safety activity.

ICC SHOULD COMPLETELY REORIENT THE RAILROAD SAFETY PROGRAM TO EMPHASIZE ENFORCEMENT (Recommendation 1):

To accomplish this result the following specific recommendations were made:

A. The "crossbreeding" of safety and car-service inspectors should be abandoned.

Results. The "crossbreeding" of safety and car-service inspectors was abandoned effective April 1, 1967. Safety inspectors are now working in their special areas of expertise.

B. Funds presently allocated to support a topheavy supervisory force should be reallocated to the employment of additional technically qualified safety inspectors for work in the field enforcing the safety inspection laws.

Results. The Federal Railroad Administration's Bureau of Railroad Safety is undergoing an extensive reorganization designed to fully utilize its engineering and technical knowledge in the Washington office to analyze and determine root causes for ever-increasing train accidents and to provide meaningful solutions for improving railroad safety matters.

The regions report to the Bureau of Railroad Safety's Washington office where the Department of Transportation feels it has the capabilities in technical and enforcement knowledge to properly analyze the results of field inspections.

C. The safety inspection program should be headed by a technically qualified, experienced safety inspector supported by a minimal staff of highly qualified specialists.

Results. According to the Department of Transportation, individual safety inspection programs conducted by the Bureau of Railroad Safety in its General Safety Division, Locomotive Safety Division, Signal and Train Control Division, and the soon-to-beestablished Hazardous Materials Division are all headed by recognized experts in their particular fields of endeavor and are supported by an absolute minimal staff of qualified specialists.

D. In the regions, safety inspectors should be free from conformity with office-type procedures, from putting in their time on a 9-to-5 basis, from filing projected itineraries, and from any other administrative requirements which prejudice their ability to exercise their responsibilities as safety inspectors in any way.

Results.-The Department reports that safety inspectors are free from conformity with office-type procedures and rarely spend more than 1 or 2 days per month in their respective offices. In general, inspectors are expected to abide by regular assigned office hours on the few days spent wholly in their offices. Exceptions are made, however, if the inspector has performed or plans to perform special night duty. The Department contends it is necessary to continue to require itineraries of anticipated travel to permit them to contact inspectors for emergency assignments such as serious train accident investiga

tions, complaints, etc. The individual inspector is at liberty to revise his travel plans as he sees fit, while on itinerary, to properly perform his duties; however, when time permits he is required to advise of changes in travel for the aforenamed reasons.

THE ICC ACCIDENT-REPORTING PROCEDURES SHOULD BE OVERHAULED SO THAT THE CATEGORIES AND CLASSIFICATIONS HAVE DIRECT AFFIRMATIVE VALUE TO SAFETY INSPECTION AND TO RAILROAD-ACCIDENTPREVENTION PROGRAMS (Recommendation 2):

Results. A research contract was recently let to Texas Transportation Institute for a study of grade-crossing reporting procedures including use of form "T" and supplement to "T" reports presently required by FRA reporting rules. (Estimate 18 months for TTI to complete the study and issue a report of findings.)

Other studies are under consideration to review all FRA accident reporting procedures; however, FRA is unable to furnish firm completion dates at this time.

THE ICC SHOULD ACTIVELY PROMOTE THE ADOPTION OF EFFECTIVE EMPLOYEE SAFETY PROGRAMS ON ALL AMERICAN RAILROADS (Recommendation 3):

Results. Lack of jurisdictional authority has seriously limited efforts to promote the adoption of effective employee safety programs. An exception to this rule was the recent adoption of an employee safety program by a class I railroad through combined efforts of encouragement by Washington BRS staff members working in close cooperation with the carriers and the regional field staff.

Proposed legislation recently introduced by Department of Transportation (H.R. 16980) would give the Department authority to set standards for effective employee safety programs on all American railroads.

THE PENALTIES PROVIDED FOR VIOLATIONS OF SAFETY STATUTES SHOULD BE USED MORE EFFECTIVELY (Recommendation 4):

Results. Anticipated benefits under the Claims Collection Act of 1966 may prove to be a very effective deterrent in the violations of safety statutes.

The Federal Railroad Safety Act of 1968 (H.R. 16980) should also be of great value in effectively determining penalties for violations of safety regulations.

GRADE-CROSSING ACCIDENTS-(Recommendation 5):

A. Through a technical evaluation, FRA should develop for future statistical study the various characteristics common to the 220,000 grade crossings in the United States.

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B. Future grade-crossing accidents should be evaluated on the basis of the characteristics determined under A above so that more effective statistical data can be attained as to those gradecrossing characteristics and combinations thereof which constitute the greatest potential danger.

C. Reflective markings should be placed on the sides of freight cars as well as other railroad rolling stock.

D. The FRA should seek a workable solution to the impasse with regard to the enforcement of safety standards at rail-highway grade crossings.

Recommendations 5-A, 5-B, 5-C, and 5-D are now under study by a joint action group, established inside the Department of Transportation August 8, 1967, to work with interested parties throughout the country to improve safety at rail-highway grade crossings. (See attachment A.) Progress reports will be supplied to the committee as benefits are established.

ATTACHMENT A

RAILWAY-HIGHWAY GRADE CROSSING ACTION PROGRAM

1. Make available to all States guidelines for diagnosing hazards. based on current information available to the Federal Highway and Railroad Administrations.

2. Request State highway departments to select one grade crossing for each 4,000 miles of Federal-aid highway for the testing of the most suitable known or proposed system of protection.

3. Encourage railroads to rehabilitate existing protective devices and sites under their jurisdictions.

4. Improve accident data collection and enforcement of traffic safety regulations at grade crossings.

5. Identify those crossings that are heavily used by commercial vehicles transporting hazardous cargo and upgrade the protection or reroute this class of traffic to diminish this hazard.

6. Identify crossings frequently used by schoolbuses and work with school officials to reroute schoolbus traffic or to improve the crossing protection.

7. Examine the possibility of closing or limiting the use of existing crossings or preventing the opening of new ones, and develop recommendations for any needed administrative or legislative steps.

8. Initiate a study of present Federal and State motor carrier safety regulations and laws pertaining to the mandatory stopping of certain vehicles at railway-highway grade crossings.

9. Intensify the accident investigation program of the Bureau of Motor Carrier Safety and Bureau of Railroad Safety to study adequately the crossing accidents involving federally regulated carriers.

10. Undertake a research and development program to develop more effective measures and devices to reduce the occurrence of railhighway grade-crossing accidents.

11. Initiate a study to determine the logical division of responsibility for the protection against grade-crossing accidents now shared by the railroads and the public and develop suitable administrative and legislative recommendations in this regard, including the questions of liability and cost sharing.

INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE

[H. Rept. No. 196, 89th Cong., first sess.]

OPERATIONS OF BILLIE SOL ESTES

Eighth Report by the Committee on Government Operations (Submitted to the Speaker March 22, 1965)

This report provides a detailed account of significant activities of Billie Sol Estes involving programs or personnel of the Federal Government. The subcommittee investigation disclosed that Estes obtained contracts for storage of Government grain by submitting false financial statements and that inadequate regulations and procedures, lack of alertness and poor judgment contributed to the success of his misrepresentations. The subcommittee found that irregularities in Estes' operations had been investigated many times by agencies of the Federal Government, beginning at least as early as 1953, and concluded that there was an almost total lack of effective coordination and communication between or within the departments, agencies, and subunits involved.

RECOMMENDATIONS

IMPROVING COORDINATION AMONG AND WITHIN FEDERAL AGENCIES CONDUCTING AUDITING AND INVESTIGATIVE WORK (Recommendation 1):

The subcommittee's investigation disclosed a serious lack of effective coordination and communication among Federal units engaged in auditing and investigative activities.

The subcommittee recommends that the President authorize and direct a comprehensive review of Federal audit and investigative activities with a view to securing improved coordination and communication both among and within Federal departments and agencies. The subcommittee believes that such a review should include but not be limited to consideration of appropriate actions designed to promote the following objectives:

(a) To insure that information coming to the attention of Federal agencies or personnel from outside sources is promptly referred to all agencies of the Federal Government that might have a potential interest in it or responsibility for taking action concerning it. Efforts should be made to better inform Federal employees, particularly those engaged in auditing and investigative activities, concerning the types of information that may be significant to other agencies. Federal employees should be encouraged and instructed to regard themselves as having a responsibility for the public interest generally, in addition to the specific duties assigned by their particular agency.