Regular inspection and maintenance is carried out to ensure the safety of railway structures, such as tracks, bridges, signals, sidings, railroad cars, engines, rail yards and the operating systems that control these structures. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) employs more than 400 certified safety inspectors to monitor the movement of hazardous materials, the integrity of track structures, the viability of power and equipment, operational safety and signal and train controls.
The FRA oversees the safe operation of railroad equipment, including the driving of trains. Routine drug and alcohol testing has been conducted under the Omnibus Transportation Testing Act since 1986 to monitor the physical and mental health of railroad employees. Keeping the perceptions and reactions of railroad employees free of impairment greatly reduces the risk of railway accidents.
A computerized safety system called Positive Train Control can take over the operation of a train, causing it to stop or slow down if the engineer is unable to perform, if unknown dangers lie ahead or in the very unlikely event that a train is taken over by an unauthorized party.
Most guidelines for passenger safety are common sense. For example, the Virginia Railway Express (VRE) manual on passenger safety instructs passengers to stay well back from the edges of platforms and tracks, never to go under or around a lowered signal arm, to cross the tracks at designated areas only and take note of emergency exits and posted evacuation procedures. The VRE also advises passengers to report unaccompanied luggage and suspicious packages, vehicles or people near railway structures and to follow the instructions of railway personnel in an emergency.
Most train cars include safety equipment such as a fire extinguisher, first aid kit, pry bar, glow stick and hacksaw. Many also carry at least one automatic external defibrillator, which, when administered by a trained railway employee, can restore normal heart rhythm until emergency medical personnel arrive.
