“As trains — many carrying hazardous material — have grown longer, crews should not be getting smaller,” said Eddie Hall, the president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union. He praised the FRA for taking the step President Joe Biden promised. Hall said keeping two people in the cab of a locomotive is crucial now that railroads rely on longer trains that routinely stretch for miles.
Finally! This is a common sense rule that should have been the norm anyway, for anything longer than a dozen or so cars. A boss can pressure one person to skimp on safety but it’s way harder to have two concerned people hide/overlook problems at the same time.
Combine it with an anonymous close call reporting system for all class Is at least, then we can start putting safety back at the top of a railroader’s duties, as it should be.