Rail Safety Improvement Act of 1987

Summary

Rail Safety Improvement Act of 1987 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation (the Secretary) to promulgate rules establishing a Federal licensing system, including minimum standards and requirements for testing, ensuring the fitness of all railroad personnel engaged in train operations. Requires railroad personnel to obtain and maintain licenses in order to engage in train operations. Requires license applicants to authorize the provision of information regarding their motor vehicle records and National Driver Register records. Requires the Secretary to promulgate regulations regarding written certification of railroad maintenance, tests, and inspections, including the assessment of civil penalties against a railroad or its employees for specified violations of the certification requirements. Amends the Federal Railroad Safety Act of 1970 to raise from $2,500 to $25,000 the maximum civil penalty imposed for violation of any railroad safety rule. Directs the Secretary to establish a system to record and classify all safety defects violating Federal railroad safety laws and regulations. Directs the Secretary to consult with railroad carriers and labor organizations regarding the feasibility of establishing a schedule of permitted absences for employees for safety reasons if there is impairment caused by alcohol or drug use. Directs the Secretary of Labor to promulgate regulations: (1) prohibiting any railroad carrier from discriminating against an employee for engaging in protected activities (whistle blowing); and (2) defining such protected activities. Sets forth a grievance procedure for employees alleging discrimination for engaging in protected activities. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to establish a Northeast Corridor Safety Committee comprised of certain representatives for consultation on safety improvements in the Northeast Corridor. Requires such Secretary to promulgate regulations that require the use on the Northeast Corridor of: (1) automatic train control devices on all freight and passenger trains; and (2) event recorders on all freight trains. Directs the Secretary to: (1) convene a meeting of Northeast Corridor rail carriers for the purpose of reducing through freight traffic on Northeast Corridor passenger lines; and (2) report to the Congress on the status of efforts to improve safety in the Northeast Corridor. Amends the Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976 to specify required improvements on certain systems operating within the Northeast Corridor.

This text is taken from the official record. PoliticalRepo does not editorialize.

Timeline

No timeline events have been ingested for this record yet.

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

No version snapshots stored. Document URLs remain at the source.

Documents

1 official file

• Introduced in Senate

  summary · EN · 28 April 1987

  Open at official source

Sponsors

No sponsors or actors listed by the source.

Related records

No cross-record relationships stored yet.