Industry questions legitimacy of claim one-person crews to be more dangerous
TOPEKA — Gov. Laura Kelly implemented an administrative order requiring two-person crews in the lead locomotive of trains operating in Kansas despite industry opposition based on assertions there was insufficient evidence to prove reliance on a single person was more dangerous.
A majority of railroads in Kansas maintained two-person crews and wouldn’t experience higher labor costs adhering to the regulation, Kelly said. Short-line railroads in Kansas were more likely to deploy a single person on trains, but long-haul freight railroads typically had a pair of operators.
“This requirement will protect workers from the effects of fatigue, prevent train derailments and reduce risks in the many Kansas communities along our railroad tracks,” Kelly said. “Kansans’ safety and security must always come first. That includes the safety of our railroad crew members.”
Kansas became the 10th state to adopt a two-person crew mandate. The requirement has been endorsed by labor leaders, but challenged by a railroad industry association. The governor proposed in May the Kansas Department of Transportation study the issue. The requirement took effect Wednesday.
In June, the Association of American Railroads filed a federal lawsuit in Ohio to derail that state’s two-person train crew mandate. The trade group argued the requirement was unconstitutional because it conflicted with federal transportation regulations in the 1995 Interstate Commerce Commission Termination Act.
Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed legislation in March that said “a train or light engine used in connection with the movement of freight shall have a crew that consists of at least two individuals.” His decision was a response to the catastrophic derailment of a Norfolk Southern train in February.
“Under the law,” the railroad association said, “it does not matter whether operating with a single crew member is just as safe as, or even safer, than operating with multiple crew members, whether a railroad operates with a single crew member in adjacent states or even whether the railroad has a collective bargaining agreement permitting single-person operations.”
The International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, otherwise known as SMART, urged Kelly to adopt the staff rule for railroads.
Ty Dragoo, the union’s Kansas legislative director, said two-person crews were the norm and the growth in length and weight of freight trains made it important to formalize the safety standard in Kansas. He said two people were necessary to safely navigate a train and to effectively respond to emergencies.
“This regulation ensures Kansas communities and citizens have the already widely accepted industry-wide minimum standard in place for their safety,” Dragoo said.
Jeremy Ferguson, SMART’s international president, went further by declaring the two-person regulation in Kansas showed “safety comes first and corporate profits will never be placed ahead of all the citizens of this great state.”
The Federal Railroad Administration ranked Kansas in the top 25 of states for highway-railway grade crossing collisions. In 2022, Kansas experienced five fatalities and 14 injuries in those crashes. Train derailments in Kansas last year resulted in nearly $10 million in damage.
Kansas Reflector is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kansas Reflector maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Sherman Smith for questions: info@kansasreflector.com. Follow Kansas Reflector on Facebook and Twitter.
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