Transportation Safety


A 45-foot Response Boat - Medium from Coast Guard Station New London (Conn.) transits near the New London Ledge Light at the entrance to the Thames River on April 14, 2017. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Steve Strohmaier)

Mariner-Operated Low-Visibility Warnings Coming to Connecticut, Long Island

The new MRASS technology is far better because it is less expensive and requires less maintenance that the foghorns, which use older technology that is prone to being knocked out of calibration and for which parts are hard to find, according to the Coast Guard.

Union Pacific Updates Its Progress on PTC

The company also reported it educated more than 3,400 additional employees on PTC operations during the quarter, bringing the total number of employees trained to about 16,000 (40 percent completion), and also increased by 1,900 the number of route miles in PTC operation.

Drivers cannot be caught in the middle of a service crisis and a safety value dilemma. There are likely many policies and procedures in place that need a slight adaptation to the inflexible reality of electronic logging. (J.J. Keller & Associates Inc. photo)

Will Electronic Logs Change Your Safety Culture?

Follow these five steps to prepare for the collision of culture and technology.

Texas' Texting Ban Kicks in 9/1

"The new law will help reduce crashes, save lives, and make Texas roads safer for everyone," Kent Livesay, vice president and general manager of AAA Texas, wrote in his message to readers. "This new law will make travel safer for every Texan."

NY Suspends Road and Bridge Construction Lane Closures for Labor Day Weekend

The suspension accommodates travelers during the busy Labor Day holiday weekend. Most construction projects will be suspended, but some work may continue behind permanent concrete barriers or for emergency repairs.

In-Car Technologies Preventing Crashes, IIHS Research Shows

"This is the first evidence that lane departure warning is working to prevent crashes of passenger vehicles on U.S. roads," said Jessica Cicchino, IIHS vice president of research. "Given the large number of fatal crashes that involve unintentional lane departures, technology aimed at preventing them has the potential to save a lot of lives."

ANSI Launches Unmanned Aircraft Systems Standardization Collaborative

The collaborative also will focus on international coordination and adaptability in order to encourage the growth of the drone market, but it will not develop standards -- it instead will work to develop a standardization road map for the next year.

NTSB to Decide Sept. 12 on Tesla Crash's Cause

The driver of the car died when the 2015 Tesla Model S collided with a 2014 Freightliner Cascadia semitractor-trailer on U.S. Highway 27A. According to the board, the Tesla's Traffic-Aware Cruise Control and Autosteer lane-keeping assistance features were being used by the driver at the time of the crash.



China to Raise Bullet Trains' Maximum Speed, Report Says

China will soon start operating the world's fastest trains between Beijing and Shanghai, restoring the 350km/h top speed that was in place before a 2011 train collision.

DOT Reports on Rulemakings' Status

DOT's August 2017 Significant Rulemaking Report lists the status of dozens of pending rulemakings, including some the agency has halted and many others it has delayed during the Trump administration's initial months.

Georgia DOT Suspends Some Construction Work During Eclipse

To ensure safety and ease traffic congestion, construction-related lane closures on interstate and secondary routes in Metro Atlanta and Northeast Georgia will be suspended from noon to 7 p.m. on Aug. 21.

Union Pacific Launches 'Your Life Is Worth the Wait' Campaign

"Train accidents are preventable if people actively think about their safety at railroad crossings and choose to stop and patiently wait for approaching trains," said Cameron Scott, Union Pacific's executive vice president and chief operating officer.

NY 2017 Speed Week Tickets Topped 21,000

As part of the enforcement campaign, troopers targeted speeding and aggressive drivers statewide, watching for impaired and distracted drivers, vehicle occupants who were not properly buckled up, and drivers who violated the "Move Over Law" that requires them to exercise extreme caution when passing emergency vehicles stopped in or on the side of the road.

Alaska Aviation Safety Back in the Spotlight This Week

Pilot training, FAA oversight of Hageland Aviation, and guidance for pilots on deteriorating weather conditions to mitigate controlled-flight-into-terrain risk are topics to be discussed at the Aug. 17 hearing in Anchorage.

DOT Proposes $78.88 Million in FASTLANE Small Grants to 10 Infrastructure Projects

Seven of the 10 proposed grants are targeted projects in rural areas to increase freight mobility and produce greater economic opportunities, according to DOT.

Jacobs Engineering Acquires CH2M Hill for $3.27 Billion

It is a cash and stock transaction with an enterprise value of approximately $3.27 billion, including approximately $416 million of CH2M net debt, the companies announced Aug. 2.

EUROCONTROL Handled Record Volume of Flights in July

Flight traffic in July 2017 was up about 5 percent from 2016. July 2017's millionth flight milestone was passed on July 30.

Texas Police Department Revives Road Rage Hotline

"Our goal is to ensure citizens are safe while traveling on our freeways," said Arlington Police Chief Will Johnson. "There is absolutely no reason why someone should engage in aggressive driving behaviors that can lead to violence resulting in unnecessary injuries or even death."

ATSB's Chief Pilot Approved to Fly Drones

The Australian safety agency already has taken advantage by taking investigative video with its drone after a loaded coal train derailed in Queensland on July 21, 2017.

NTSB: SUV Driver at Fault in 2015 Rail Crash

The board has recommended that local officials assess the safety of at-grade crossings, such as the Commerce Street crossing, and that commuter railroads that use third-rail power systems at or near grade crossings should assess their safety.

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