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This is the second in a series of safety alerts issued by the UTU Rail Safety Task Force.

The task force was appointed by International President Mike Futhey in response to a spike in railroad on-duty employee fatalities.

This safety alert focuses on the job of protecting the point while riding rail cars.

In such situations, here are facts to consider and questions to ask yourself as part of assuring you return home to your family in one piece:

  • Are you controlling the movement to really allow stopping within half the range of vision? Are you really protecting yourself?
  • Have you considered walking as a safer alternative in some cases?
  • From how far away can you see a one-inch gap in switch points? In daylight, it’s about 130 feet, at most. And the average railroad issued lantern casts light for approximately 70 feet
  • Do you know how many feet per second are you moving at 10 mph? The answer is 15-feet per SECOND; and at 8 mph, it is about 12-feet per second.
  • Now contemplate that you are protecting the point during daylight, with a single engine shoving 10 loaded lumber cars on flat grade at 15 mph. Now, you see a gapped switch. It will take you 8.6 seconds to stop.
  • If you are shoving too fast,, are you rolling the dice?
  • Now contemplate what would happen if the shoving movement at 15 mph were a crossover lined into a cut of cars, or a car left out to foul.
  • In such a situation should you consider stopping the movement and walking ahead to inspect and protect?
  • There have, recently, been a great number of shoving-related fatalities and career ending injuries in our industry. Please be careful. Always maintain situational awareness. It’s very dangerous out there, and your family wants you back home in one piece.

In solidarity,

UTU Rail Safety Task Force

Greg Hynes, UTU assistant Arizona state legislative director
Steve Evans, UTU Arkansas state legislative director
Jerry Gibson, UTU Michigan state legislative director
Scott Olson, UTU Arizona state legislative director

For more information on the UTU Rail Safety Task Force, visit the task force’s interactive Web page by clicking:

http://utu.org/utu-rail-safety-task-force/

July 3, 2009

UTU Rail Safety Alert No. 1 (revised)

(Following is the first safety alert, revised June 22, issued by the UTU’s recently appointed Rail Safety Task Force.

UTU International President Mike Futhey appointed the task force in response to a sharp spike in railroad on-duty employee fatalities.

The UTU and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen also have petitioned the Federal Railroad Administration for an emergency order to prohibit the use by railroads of one-person operating crews, including in remote control operations.)

SAFETY ALERT NO. 1 (revised)

While the UTU has consistently taken exception to single-person operations, in reality it exists today. Accordingly, our members should be aware of the safest course in an unsafe situation.

UTU members working in single-person operations are strongly encouraged to question any order by a railroad official to perform any activities that may result in an injury, loss of limb or life — short of insubordination.

If your request to be relieved of such a task is denied, please immediately contact your local chairperson, general chairperson, local legislative representative or state legislative director for further handling.

In doing so, document these actions as soon as you are able, providing as much information as possible, including witnesses, times, dates, locations and names of all involved.

Following is the proper procedure to handle any types of incidents you feel cannot be safely accomplished by a one-person operation:

1) Call for help, such as a utility employee and/or the mechanical department to assist with the function while the RCO operator maintains control of the RCL transmitter (belt pack) and provides three-step protection. All blue flag rules still apply.

Following are FRA regulations relating to the functions of a “utility employee.”

A utility employee properly attached to a train or yard crew, per the requirements of 49 CFR 218.22(c)(1), (2), (3) and (4), may go on, under or between rolling equipment that the crew is called to operate to perform any of the six functions permitted by 49 CFR 218.22(c)(5), without blue signal protection.

The following are the only six functions permitted:

  1. Set or release hand brakes.
  2. Couple or uncouple air hoses and other electrical or mechanical connections.
  3. Prepare rail cars for coupling. (This means opening knuckles, adjusting drawbars, arranging air hoses etc. It does not mean making repairs, such as changing a knuckle or replacing an air hose.)
  4. Set wheel blocks or wheel chains.
  5. Conduct air brake tests to include cutting air brake components in or out and position retaining valves.
  6. Inspect, test, install, remove or replace a rear-end marking device or end-of-train device.

Under all other circumstances, a utility employee working on, under, or between railroad rolling equipment must be provided with blue signal protection in accordance with §§ 218.23 through 218.30 of Subpart B to Part 218.

2) If help is not available, notify management that you are concerned the function you are being required to perform is unsafe, and that you would prefer not to perform the function.

3) If the carrier official (supervisor, manager) insists that you perform the unsafe function anyway, tell him/her you feel this would place your personal safety in jeopardy and ask that they reconsider your request.

4) If the carrier official denies your request, perform the function as instructed, taking every safety protection available, including:

  • Making sure everyone working on both ends of the yard knows where you are, and that you are about to be on your own under or between cars on the track and without blue-flag protection.
  • Make sure the belt pack is set to prevent the locomotive from moving.
  • Secure cars on a cut located on the oppose side of where the locomotive is attached (to prevent rollback).
  • Keep a constant eye and ear out for any movement whatsoever.
  • Keep the belt pack on, to ensure the man-down feature is operable (or as near as safely possible without creating a tripping hazard), just in case it’s needed.

5) After being required to perform the function, report these occurrences to you local legislative representative, safety chairpersons and local chairpersons.

In solidarity,

UTU Rail Safety Task Force

Greg Hynes, UTU assistant Arizona state legislative director
Steve Evans, UTU Arkansas state legislative director
Jerry Gibson, UTU Michigan state legislative director
Scott Olson, UTU Arizona state legislative director

For more information on the UTU Rail Safety Task Force and its mission, click here:

https://www.smart-union.org/safety/smart-rail-safety-task-force/