Railroad safety gets upgraded

A change in railroad safety procedures has been one of the upshots of the Graniteville train accident.

The acting administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration issued a safety alert on Monday urging railroads to strengthen their switching procedures in areas where electronic signals are not used.

The suggested safety measures include requiring train crews operating manual switches to report to the dispatcher when main track switches are restored to the normal position.

Also urged is a requirement of the conductor of a train crew to complete and sign a Switch Position Awareness Form. The form would include the time a switch is reversed and the time it is returned to its normal position.

A switch error is thought to be the cause of the Graniteville accident that has claimed nine lives.

This is the first safety measure that has been enacted since last Thursday's accident. It is welcome news that such a measure has been requested of railroads, and we would hope that Norfolk Southern will follow this procedure in the future.

There are still other aspects of train traffic through the Valley and Graniteville that need to be considered, including the speed of trains through the area. When considering the safety of people against the travel time for trains, safety must be the first priority. We look forward to additional safety measures being adopted in the wake of this calamity.

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