SEATTLE — A federal appeals court has overturned a Federal Railroad Administration decision on train crew size, saying the agency’s decision to withdraw a proposed rule requiring two-person crews has a “real and intended effect … to authorize nationwide one-person train crews and to bar any contrary state regulations.” Calling that decision “arbitrary and capricious,” the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals returns the matter to the FRA for further consideration.
The decision, available here, means laws requiring two-man crews that have been passed by several states remain in effect. The FRA had introduced the proposal on two-person crews in 2016, but withdrew it in 2019, saying there was no evidence trains with two crew members were safer than those with just one [see “FRA withdraws proposed minimum crew size rule,” Trains News Wire, May 24, 2019].
The ruling by a three-judge panel comes in a suit by three states — California, Washington, and Nevada — as well as two major rail unions: the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers-Transportation Division (SMART-TD) and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen. They challenged the decision by former FRA Administrator Ron Batory, saying it failed to follow required procedures on comment and notification, and could not preempt state laws.
In a statement, the presidents of the two unions, SMART-TD’s Jeremy R. Ferguson and BLET’s Dennis R. Pierce congratulated the judges “for recognizing the former Administrator overstepped his bounds, and we look ahead to working with the FRA when crew size is again considered … as a matter of public and operational safety.
“We assert, and will continue to assert, that having two sets of eyes and two people working in concert, together with any improvements in technology, will be the best way to serve public safety.”
A representative for the Association of American Railroads, which was a party to the suit, said railroads are “frustrated and perplexed” by the decision.
In a statement, the representative said, “The panel rejected robust data, sound reason and well-established law in favor of judges’ personal opinions on how the expert rail safety agency should evaluate safety data and how the railroads should operate their trains. FRA has never regulated train crew size, and the 9th Circuit’s opinion fundamentally misconstrues the agency’s thoroughly supported decision in 2019 to decline doing so. Particularly at a time when DOT is championing increased automation on our nation’s highways, rules preventing the railroad industry from efficiently and effectively deploying similar technologies make no sense. … AAR is evaluating next steps.”
— Updated at 8:15 a.m. CST on Feb. 24 with AAR statement.
