[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 169 (Tuesday, September 1, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52846-52847]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-21611]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Docket Number: RITA-2008-0002]


Agency Information Collection Activity; Notice of Request for 
Approval To Collect New Information: Confidential Close Call Reporting 
for Transit Rail System

AGENCY: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), Office of the 
Assistant Secretary for Research Technology (OST-R), U.S. Department of 
Transportation.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements of section 3506(c)(2)(A) 
of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the 
intention of the Bureau of Transportation Statistics to request the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve the following 
information collection: Confidential Close Call Reporting for Transit 
Rail System. This data collection effort supports a multi-year program 
focused on improving transit rail safety by collecting and analyzing 
data and information on close calls and other unsafe occurrences in the 
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) rail system. The 
program is co-sponsored by WMATA's Office of the Deputy General Manager 
Operations (DGMO) and the President/Business Agent of the Amalgamated 
Transit Union (ATU) Local 689. It is designed to identify safety issues 
and propose corrective actions based on voluntary reports of close 
calls submitted confidentially to the Bureau of Transportation 
Statistics (BTS), U.S. Department of Transportation. This information 
collection is necessary to aid WMATA/ATU in systematically collecting 
and analyzing data to identify root causes of potentially unsafe 
events.

DATES: Comments must be received by November 2, 2015.

ADDRESSES: To ensure that your comments are not entered more than once 
into the docket, submit comments by only one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and follow the instructions for sending your 
comments electronically. Docket Number: RITA-2008-2002.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility (DMF), U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West Building, Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery: Deliver to mail address above between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m. EST, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: (202) 493-2251.
    Identify all transmission with ``Docket Number RITA-2008-0002'' at 
the beginning of each page of the document.
    Instructions: All comments must include the agency name and docket 
number for this notice. Paper comments should be submitted in 
duplicate. The DMF is open for examination and copying, at the above 
address from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST, Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays. If you wish to receive confirmation of receipt of 
your written comments, please include a self-addressed, stamped 
postcard with the following statement: ``Comments on Docket RITA-2008-
0002.'' The Docket Clerk will date stamp the postcard prior to 
returning it to you via the U.S. mail. Please note that all comments 
received, including any personal information, will be posted and will 
be available to Internet users, without change, at www.regulations.gov.

[[Page 52847]]

You may review DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal 
Register published on April 11, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 70; pages 
19477-78) or you may review the Privacy Act Statement at 
www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Demetra V. Collia, Bureau of 
Transportation Statistics, Office of the Assistant Secretary for 
Research and Technology (OST-R), U.S. Department of Transportation, 
Office of Statistical and Economic Analysis (OSEA), RTS-31, E36-302, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001; Phone No. (202) 
366-1610; Fax No. (202) 366-3383; email: [email protected]. Office 
hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., EST, Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.
    Data Confidentiality Provisions: The confidentiality of Close Calls 
data is protected under the BTS confidentiality statute (49 U.S.C. 111 
(k)) and the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical 
Efficiency Act (CIPSEA) of 2002 (Public Law 107-347, Title V). In 
accordance with these confidentiality statutes, only statistical and 
non-identifying data will be made publicly available through reports. 
Further, BTS will not release to FRA or any other public or private 
entity any information that might reveal the identity of individuals or 
organizations mentioned in close call reports.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. The Data Collection

    The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35; as 
amended) and 5 CFR part 1320 require each Federal agency to obtain OMB 
approval to continue an information collection activity. BTS is seeking 
OMB approval for the following BTS information collection activity:
    Title: Confidential Close Call Reporting System.
    OMB Control Number: 2139-0010.
    Type of Review: Approval to continue to collect data. Confidential 
Close Call Reporting for WMATA.
    Respondents: WMATA Rail Employees.
    Number of Respondents: 100 (per annum).
    Estimated Time per Response: 60 minutes.
    Frequency: Intermittent for approximately five (5) years. (Reports 
are submitted when there is a qualifying event, i.e. a close call 
occurs within WMATAs rail system. The frequency of such an event is 
estimated to be two per day.)
    Total Annual Burden: 100 hours.
    Abstract: Collecting transportation safety data, including data on 
precursors to adverse events, is an important component of BTS's 
responsibility to the transportation community and is authorized in 
BTS' authorizing statute (49 U.S.C. 6302). BTS and WMATA/the 
Amalgamated Transit Union, (ATU) share a common interest in promoting 
transit rail safety based on accurate information. To that end, WMATAs 
Office of the Deputy General Manager Operations (DGMO) and ATU's 
President/Business Agent are sponsoring the Confidential Close Call 
reporting for Transit Safety Rail System (C3RTSRS) project to 
investigate the effectiveness of the system in improving transit rail 
safety. A close call is a situation or circumstance that had the 
potential for safety consequences, but did not result in an adverse 
safety event. Knowledge about a close call presents an opportunity to 
address unsafe work conditions and improve safety in the workplace. It 
is estimated that the time for an individual respondent to complete a 
near miss report and if needed, participate in a brief confidential 
interview will be no more than 60 minutes for an estimated 100 
respondents and maximum total burden of hours (100 reports * 60 
minutes/60 = 100 hours). Reports may be voluntarily submitted to BTS 
when there is a qualifying event, i.e., when a close call occurs within 
WMATA's rail system.

II. Background

    Collecting data on the nation's transportation system is an 
important component of BTS' mission and responsibility to the 
transportation community as stated in its authorizing statute (49 
U.S.C. Sec. 6302). BTS and WMATA/ATU share a common interest in 
promoting rail transit safety through the use of timely, accurate, and 
relevant data. WMATA/ATU is sponsoring the Confidential Close Call 
Reporting for Transit Rail System (C\3\RTRS) project to improve transit 
rail safety by studying the effectiveness of its own rail system 
through data and information collected from reported close calls.
    A close call is a situation or circumstance that had the potential 
for safety consequences, but did not result in an adverse safety event. 
Knowledge about a close call presents an opportunity to address unsafe 
work conditions, prevent accidents, and improve safety in the 
workplace.
    BTS will collect close call reports submitted by WMATA rail 
employees, conduct employee interviews, as needed, develop an 
analytical database containing the reported data and other pertinent 
information, provide statistical analysis to WMATA, and protect the 
confidentiality of these data through its own statute (49 U.S.C. Sec. 
6302) and CIPSEA. Accordingly, only statistical and non-sensitive 
information will be made available through publications and reports.
    Voluntary reporting of close calls to a confidential system can 
provide a tool to identify and correct weaknesses in WMATA's transit 
rail system and help prevent accidents. The C\3\RTRS project will 
foster a voluntary, cooperative, non-punitive environment to 
communicate safety concerns. Through the analysis of close calls the 
WMATA/ATU will receive information about factors that may contribute to 
unsafe events and use that information to develop new training programs 
and identify root causes of potentially adverse events. The database 
will also potentially provide researchers with valuable information 
regarding precursors to safety risks and contribute to research and 
development of intervention programs aimed at preventing accidents and 
fatalities.
    Employees involved in reporting a close call incident will be asked 
to fill out a report and participate in a brief, confidential 
interview. Employees will have the option to mail or submit the report 
electronically to BTS. Participants will be asked to provide 
information such as: (1) Name and contact information; (2) time and 
location of the event; (3) a short description of the event; (4) 
contributing factors to the close call; and (5) any other information 
that might be useful in determining a root cause of such event.

III. Request for Comments

    BTS requests comments on any aspects of these information 
collections, including: (1) The accuracy of the estimated burden of 100 
hours detailed in Section I; (2) ways to enhance the quality, 
usefulness, and clarity of the collected information; and (3) ways to 
minimize the collection burden without reducing the quality of the 
information collected, including additional use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on August 25, 2015.
Patricia Hu,
Director, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Office of the Assistant 
Secretary for Research and Technology.
[FR Doc. 2015-21611 Filed 8-31-15; 8:45 am]
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