[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 70 (Tuesday, April 12, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21659-21660]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-08353]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration

[Safety Advisory 16-1]


Stop Signal Overruns

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of Safety Advisory.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) issued Safety 
Advisory 16-1 regarding stop signal overruns on rail fixed guideway 
public transportation systems, and an accompanying letter to the State 
Safety Oversight (SSO) program managers and

[[Page 21660]]

the chief safety officers of rail transit systems, seeking data and 
information on stop signal overruns during 2015. Safety Advisory 16-1 
and the accompanying letter are available in their entirety on the FTA 
public Web site at http://www.fta.dot.gov/tso.html.

DATES: The FTA is asking the directors of the SSO programs to submit 
the requested data and information by July 2016.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For program matters, Mr. Sam Shelton, 
Office of System Safety, telephone (202) 366-0815 or 
[email protected]. For legal matters, Scott Biehl, Senior Counsel, 
telephone (202) 366-0826 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Across the rail transit industry, many if 
not most operators keep a database on the number of instances in which 
their passenger or maintenance vehicles over run a stop signal. In some 
instances, State Safety Oversight Agencies (SSOAs) have identified stop 
signal overruns as event data a Rail Fixed Guideway Public 
Transportation System (RFGPTS) must record and report to the SSOA, as 
part of the hazard management process in the System Safety Program 
Plans required by the FTA rules at 49 CFR part 659. The FTA considers 
stop signal overruns to be significant events, creating safety risks, 
with potentially catastrophic consequences. The FTA now seeks to better 
understand the prevalence of stop signal overruns throughout the 
industry. The FTA issued Safety Advisory 16-1, ``Stop Signal 
Overruns,'' which is eliciting data and information on stop signal 
overruns at RFGPTSs that occurred during calendar year 2015.
    Specifically, FTA is requesting that each SSOA provide FTA with; 
(1) the total number of stop signal overruns that occurred during 2015 
at each RFGPTS within the SSOA's oversight; (2) each RFGPTS's 
definition of stop signal overrun; (3) each RFGPTS's definition of a 
stop signal/stop aspect (e.g., hand signal, stop sign, cab signal); (4) 
a description of the process each RFGPTS uses to internally detect stop 
signal overruns; and, (5) a description of the process each RFGPTS uses 
to report stop signal overruns to the SSOA. The FTA is requesting this 
data and information by July 2016. The FTA is making this request in 
accordance with its authority to request State Safety Oversight program 
information, codified at 49 CFR 659.39(d). Safety Advisory 16-1 and an 
accompanying letter addressed to the SSO program managers, and the 
chief safety officers of RFGPTSs, are available in their entirety on 
the FTA public Web site at http://fta.dot.gov/tso.html.
    Also, FTA is aware that a number of RFGPTSs keep data and 
information on stop signal overruns on their own volition, for the 
purpose of enhancing the safety of their operations, albeit they are 
not required to report that data and information to their SSOAs. The 
FTA seeks to develop as complete a database as practical, thus, FTA 
would appreciate these RFGPTSs submitting their data and information to 
their SSOAs, and in turn, the SSOAs providing that material to FTA. The 
cooperation of the entire rail transit industry would be very helpful 
in developing a better understanding of stop signal overruns, and in 
due course, a strategy for mitigating the safety risks created by stop 
signal overruns.

Matthew J. Welbes,
Executive Director.
[FR Doc. 2016-08353 Filed 4-11-16; 8:45 am]
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