Transportation Safety

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Despite having such poor vision that he drove with a restricted (auto) license, a train engineer was medically recertified by his employer, Union Pacific Railroad. Those vision problems contributed to fatal 2012 head-on collision between two freight trains in Oklahoma, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

A new rule that limits the number of hours truckers can drive takes effect July 1st – but that’s not stopping the debate over it. Under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) hours-of-service rule, drivers will be able to drive 12 fewer hours per week and will be required to take regular 34-hour rest periods that include pre-dawn hours of two straight days, under the rule.

The death of a railroad foreman who was struck by a train last month has led to urgent recommendations from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) for ways to improve safety for track maintenance crews to provide signal protection.

The U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is offering an app for iPhones and iPod Touches that will provide real-time safety information about vehicles, notify consumers about recalls and even help them install child seats.

The Boston-based Lucky Star bus company ran out of luck last week when it was given an “imminent hazard out-of-service order” by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). The feds say any further movement of Lucky Star’s vehicles must be accomplished by towing.

While big rigs would seem to be more dangerous to passenger cars in roadway accidents, single-unit trucks actually cause a disproportionate number of passenger vehicle fatalities, according to a new report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

A CSX freight train derailed and exploded this afternoon near Baltimore after colliding with a tractor trailer, news sources are reporting. Although numerous witnesses report a loud explosion accompanied by intense heat, and the incident caused a major disruption by forcing the shutdown of U.S. 40, only one injury is being reported: that of the truck driver, who was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is focusing on maintenance work done on the track in its ongoing investigation into the May 17 derailment and collision of two Metro-North trains near Bridgeport, Conn. The accident along a busy New York–New Haven corridor injured more than 70 people, at least five of them critically.

Witnesses say the collapse of a bridge in Washington state last night occurred after an oversized truck struck the metal arches that cover traffic crossing the bridge. There were no fatalities or serious injuries, although three people were rescued after their vehicles plunged into the Skagit River. They were taken to area hospitals.