News & Reviews News Wire New York legislators introduce state bill to require two-person crews

New York legislators introduce state bill to require two-person crews

By Trains Staff | May 13, 2022

| Last updated on March 1, 2024

Similar bills were introduced in 2020

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ALBANY, N.Y. — Legislators in New York state have introduced bills requiring two-person crews for most freight operations in the state.

Senate bill S3953, introduced by Sen. Timothy M. Kennedy (D-Buffalo), would require two-person crews for Class I and Class II railroads, except for those engaged in switching, and specifies penalties beginning at $250 to $1,000 for the first violation, escalating to as much as $10,000 for the third. The corresponding assembly bill, A1287B, was introduced by Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli (D-Syracuse).

Both legislators introduced similar bills in 2020. At least seven states — Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin — have passed such bills, and Amit Bose, administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration, has indicated longer trains warrant two-person crews [see “FRA administrator sees longer trains as rationale ..,” Trains News Wire, April 8, 2022].

4 thoughts on “New York legislators introduce state bill to require two-person crews

  1. All idiots…apparently none of them have ever heard of the iron ore lines in Australia running with ZERO crews, yes autonomous trains do exist already. I don’t really care if it’s sparsely populated country, they’d have the same problem with broken knuckles and derailments whether in a populated or non-populated region, and that’s with no crews. At least with one on board and a roaming conductor on the ground there are people physically present with the trains. Let’s forget all about the autonomous OTR services that will soon begin in the Southwestern U.S.

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