New short line railroad safety resource based on five years of data

Federal Transit Administration

Based on data collected from over five years of short line Safety Culture Assessments conducted, the Short Line Safety Institute (SLSI) has developed and released a new resource for short line railroads, entitled Strong Safety Culture Best Practices. This first-of-its-kind guide is easily accessible on the website, and available to all short line railroads.

The SLSI’s flagship program, the Safety Culture Assessment, found to be the  “most robust model for assessing safety culture in the U.S. railroad industry,” utilizes the Ten Core Elements of a Strong Safety Culture as defined by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safety Council to evaluate a railroad’s safety culture in practice. In the document released today, best practices in each of the Ten Elements are provided, along with examples of the practice in action, and an explanation of the rationale behind the best practice. In many cases, downloadable tools or additional resources also are provided.

“The data analyzed across completed Safety Culture Assessments, coupled with the 500+ years of railroad safety experience on our team, has identified some clear actions in each of the Ten Core Elements to enhance a railroad’s safety culture,” said Tom Murta, executive director, SLSI. “The easy-to-use Best Practices guide will enable short lines to continuously elevate safety culture across all of these metrics.”

For the latest news, go to www.rtands.com.

Read more articles on safety.