MTA Inspector General releases review of LIRR’s procedures for derailment investigations
A report has been released by Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Inspector General Carolyn Pokorny, which found weaknesses in the Long Island Rail Road’s (LIRR) post-incident procedures for investigating the causes of derailments and other severe safety-related events.
The Office of the MTA Inspector General (OIG) review focused on LIRR’s Corporate Policy & Procedure for Incident Investigations to determine if it was sufficiently aligned with industry best practices, including protocols used by NYC Transit and Metro-North Railroad.
The review found that LIRR’s post-incident investigative practices did not reflect industry best practices in several recent instances, particularly by not clearly providing a single railroad official with the authority for key investigative tasks which could result in hindering the collection of evidence at the accident scene.
In one incident at New Hyde Park in 2016, employees were released from the scene before they could be tested for drugs and alcohol or promptly interviewed by investigators. What’s more, OIG found that after some incidents, including the 2016 New Hyde Park derailment, LIRR legal personnel led the formal interviewing of employees, in contrast to industry best practices. These same individuals are charged with protecting the LIRR’s interests in insurance and legal matters.
“In the wake of a railroad incident —especially one as serious as a derailment— it is critical to determine the cause swiftly and with integrity. Industry best practices have long established that a single investigator needs to be in charge of the fact-finding process, which begins with preserving the scene and properly collecting evidence,” said Pokorny. “I am pleased that LIRR management has accepted all of our recommendations and look forward to working with them in the future to help develop an even more safe and secure mode of transportation.”
As every incident has the potential to cause injury to passengers and employees, damage rail facilities and equipment and impede service, it is imperative that LIRR collaborates effectively to identify any factors and conditions that might have contributed to the incident. A thorough and timely investigation into those factors and conditions must begin as soon as possible, and well-trained personnel must gather all necessary evidence without delay or interference. This is particularly true of derailments, which carry significant risk of injury and damage.
To address these areas of weakness, OIG has made several recommendations. Most significantly, OIG recommends that the LIRR empowers the agency’s Corporate Safety Department with the authority to manage investigative activities at the site and monitor follow-up corrective actions. In response, LIRR has accepted all the OIG’s recommendations and plans to implement improvements in the first quarter of 2020. The OIG looks forward to ensuring these recommendations are put into practice.
The audit was conducted by Senior Investigative Attorney Jonathan Estreich, Staff Auditor Justin Vella, and members of the Audit Unit. The report can be found here.
