Re: New FRA bridge inspection requirements

nedsn3 Wrote:
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> Nothing new? Not necessary, just another eason for
> the Feds to hire more inspectors to harass the
> RR's. How many railroad bridges have failed
> recently (not counting those hit bybarges, etc.)?
> Just another step by Uncle Sugar to impose himself
> into 360 degrees of everything we do. All
> justified by "Safety".
> Ned

Hi Ned,

The PDF at the ink that Brian provided (first post in this thread) includes the answer to your question, specifically:

Quote
49 CFR Parts 213 and 237 (Docket No. FRA 2009-0014, Notice No. 2)
FRA accident records for the 27 years 1982 through 2008 show 58 accidents that were caused by the structural failure of railroad bridges. These accidents resulted in nine reportable injuries and a reported $26,555,878 in damaged to railroad facilities, cars and locomotives."

58 collapses / 27 years == 2.03 collapses per year.

IMHO, two bridge collapses a year is far too many, especially when you consider what the freight railroads are transporting. A simple misaligned switch caused nine fatalities and at least 250 injuries in Graniteville, South Carolina in 2005.

--
Chris Webster