A railcar's ability to withstand the dynamic forces of an accident is essential to protecting the vehicle's operators, crew, and passengers and to increasing the survivability of an accident. Equally important to survivability is emergency responders' ability to rapidly access, evacuate, and treat vehicle occupants.
The NTSB's investigation of a 2004 rail transit accident identified these two significant survival factors issues. Two Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) Metrorail trains collided in the Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan Station in Washington, DC.(1) The operator of one train, while stopped on a steep incline between stations, allowed the train to roll backward into the station where it struck a standing train that was off-loading passengers. The lead car of the standing train telescoped 34 feet, or almost half the length of the passenger compartment, into the rear car of the striking train. The NTSB has investigated other transit accidents where the rail cars telescoped 17 and 21 feet, respectively, in accidents in Brooklyn, New York, and Gaithersburg, Maryland.(2)
Also in the Woodley Park accident, emergency responders encountered extreme difficulty in gaining access to the impacted car. The emergency exit door was damaged and could not be opened. The windows were not designed to be easily removed, and the rubber grommets holding the windows in place were brittle and repeatedly tore as responders tried to remove them. Because of these impediments, it took the responders more than an hour after the accident to gain access to the rear car and verify that it was unoccupied. The accident caused 1 serious and 19 minor injuries.
The NTSB also investigated a light rail accident in Newton, Massachusetts, in which emergency responder entry was an issue.(3)
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has indicated that it lacks the authority to establish vehicle design or equipment standards or to require the removal of non-compliant equipment from service. Specifically, the FTA has cited statute 49 United States Code §5334(b)(1), which states, in part,
[E]xcept for purposes of national defense or in the event of a national or regional emergency, the Secretary may not regulate the operation, routes, or schedules of a public transportation system for which a grant is made under this chapter, nor may the Secretary regulate the rates, fares, tolls, rentals, or other charges prescribed by any provider of public transportation.
Currently, the FTA has no requirements that address means for safe and rapid emergency responder entry of railcars, passenger evacuation from railcars, or structural crashworthiness provisions. The FTA is aware of the importance of setting voluntary vehicle design standards and is consequently funding the development of consensus-based standards. Also, in July 2009, the Secretary of Transportation, recognizing the "gap in safety oversight," established a team to look at the existing legal authorities.(4)
The FTA is working with the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) to develop new technical crashworthiness standards for new heavy-and light-rail vehicles. The FTA is also researching and developing crash energy management specifications for overhauling the front ends of existing light-rail vehicles. On January 5, 2009, ASME issued a Safety Standard for Structural Requirements for Heavy Rail Transit Vehicles, which includes design load requirements for telescoping. ASME recently completed RT-1, the 2009 Safety Standard for Structural Requirements for Light Rail Vehicles, and continues to work on the Standard for Rail Transit Vehicle Emergency Egress/Access.
The FTA should develop transit railcar design standards to provide adequate means for safe and rapid emergency responder entry and passenger evacuation, develop minimum crashworthiness standards to prevent the telescoping of transit railcars in collisions, and establish a timetable for removing equipment that cannot be modified to meet the new standards.
R-06-5 (FTA)
Issued April 19, 2006
Newly Added to the Most Wanted List
Status: Open-Acceptable Response
Develop transit railcar design standards to provide adequate means for safe and rapid emergency responder entry and passenger evacuation. (Source: Collision between Two Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Trains at the Woodley Park - Zoo/Adams Morgan Station in Washington, DC, November 3, 2004 . [NTSB/RAR-06-01])
R-06-6 (FTA)
Issued April 19, 2006
Newly Added to the Most Wanted List
Status: Open-Acceptable Response
Develop minimum crashworthiness standards to prevent the telescoping of transit railcars in collisions and establish a timetable for removing equipment that cannot be modified to meet the new standards. (Source: Collision between Two Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Trains at the Woodley Park - Zoo/Adams Morgan Station in Washington, DC, November 3, 2004. [NTSB/RAR-06-01])
