National Public Transportation Safety Plan, 34917-34919 [2023-11551]
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 31, 2023 / Notices
II. Background
Under 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and
31315(b), FMCSA may grant an
exemption from the FMCSRs for no
longer than a 5-year period if it finds
such exemption would likely achieve a
level of safety that is equivalent to, or
greater than, the level that would be
achieved absent such exemption. The
statutes also allow the Agency to renew
exemptions at the end of the 5-year
period. However, FMCSA grants
medical exemptions from the FMCSRs
for a 2-year period to align with the
maximum duration of a driver’s medical
certification.
The physical qualification standard
for drivers regarding epilepsy found in
49 CFR 391.41(b)(8) states that a person
is physically qualified to drive a CMV
if that person has no established
medical history or clinical diagnosis of
epilepsy or any other condition which
is likely to cause the loss of
consciousness or any loss of ability to
control a CMV.
In addition to the regulations, FMCSA
has published advisory criteria 1 to
assist Medical Examiners in
determining whether drivers with
certain medical conditions are qualified
to operate a CMV in interstate
commerce.
The seven individuals listed in this
notice have requested renewal of their
exemptions from the epilepsy and
seizure disorders prohibition in
§ 391.41(b)(8), in accordance with
FMCSA procedures. Accordingly,
FMCSA has evaluated these
applications for renewal on their merits
and decided to extend each exemption
for a renewable 2-year period.
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III. Request for Comments
Interested parties or organizations
possessing information that would
otherwise show that any, or all, of these
drivers are not currently achieving the
statutory level of safety should
immediately notify FMCSA. The
Agency will evaluate any adverse
evidence submitted and, if safety is
being compromised or if continuation of
the exemption would not be consistent
with the goals and objectives of 49
U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315(b), FMCSA
will take immediate steps to revoke the
exemption of a driver.
IV. Basis for Renewing Exemptions
In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e)
and 31315(b), each of the seven
1 These criteria may be found in APPENDIX A TO
PART 391—MEDICAL ADVISORY CRITERIA,
section H. Epilepsy: § 391.41(b)(8), paragraphs 3, 4,
and 5, which is available on the internet at https://
www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2015-title49-vol5/pdf/
CFR-2015-title49-vol5-part391-appA.pdf.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:50 May 30, 2023
Jkt 259001
applicants has satisfied the renewal
conditions for obtaining an exemption
from the epilepsy and seizure disorders
prohibition. The seven drivers in this
notice remain in good standing with the
Agency, have maintained their medical
monitoring and have not exhibited any
medical issues that would compromise
their ability to safely operate a CMV
during the previous 2-year exemption
period. In addition, for commercial
driver’s license (CDL) holders, the
Commercial Driver’s License
Information System and the Motor
Carrier Management Information System
are searched for crash and violation
data. For non-CDL holders, the Agency
reviews the driving records from the
State Driver’s Licensing Agency. These
factors provide an adequate basis for
predicting each driver’s ability to
continue to safely operate a CMV in
interstate commerce. Therefore, FMCSA
concludes that extending the exemption
for each renewal applicant for a period
of 2 years is likely to achieve a level of
safety equal to that existing without the
exemption.
As of June 10, 2023, and in
accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and
31315(b), the following seven
individuals have satisfied the renewal
conditions for obtaining an exemption
from the epilepsy and seizure disorders
prohibition in the FMCSRs for interstate
CMV drivers:
John D. Archer (MO)
Brian Brown (PA)
Marvin Fender (CO)
Daniel Gast (KS)
Denton Hineline (WA)
Steve Hunsaker (ID)
Bryan R. Jones (PA)
The drivers were included in docket
number FMCSA–2010–0203, FMCSA–
2011–0089, FMCSA–2014–0213,
FMCSA–2015–0115, FMCSA–2016–
0007, FMCSA–2018–0057, or FMCSA–
2019–0027. Their exemptions are
applicable as of June 10, 2023 and will
expire on June 10, 2025.
V. Conditions and Requirements
The exemptions are extended subject
to the following conditions: (1) each
driver must remain seizure-free and
maintain a stable treatment during the
2-year exemption period; (2) each driver
must submit annual reports from their
treating physicians attesting to the
stability of treatment and that the driver
has remained seizure-free; (3) each
driver must undergo an annual medical
examination by a certified ME, as
defined by § 390.5; and (4) each driver
must provide a copy of the annual
medical certification to the employer for
retention in the driver’s qualification
file, or keep a copy of his/her driver’s
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34917
qualification file if he/she is selfemployed. The driver must also have a
copy of the exemption when driving, for
presentation to a duly authorized
Federal, State, or local enforcement
official. The exemption will be
rescinded if: (1) the person fails to
comply with the terms and conditions
of the exemption; (2) the exemption has
resulted in a lower level of safety than
was maintained before it was granted; or
(3) continuation of the exemption would
not be consistent with the goals and
objectives of 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and
31315(b).
VI. Preemption
During the period the exemption is in
effect, no State shall enforce any law or
regulation that conflicts with this
exemption with respect to a person
operating under the exemption.
VII. Conclusion
Based on its evaluation of the seven
exemption applications, FMCSA renews
the exemptions of the aforementioned
drivers from the epilepsy and seizure
disorders prohibition in § 391.41(b)(8).
In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e)
and 31315(b), each exemption will be
valid for 2 years unless revoked earlier
by FMCSA.
Larry W. Minor,
Associate Administrator for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2023–11438 Filed 5–30–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
[Docket No. FTA–2023–0010]
National Public Transportation Safety
Plan
Federal Transit Administration
(FTA), Department of Transportation
(DOT).
ACTION: Notice of availability of
proposed National Public
Transportation Safety Plan; request for
comments.
AGENCY:
The Federal Transit
Administration (FTA) invites public
comment on a proposed update to the
National Public Transportation Safety
Plan (National Safety Plan). The
proposed National Safety Plan would
rescind and replace the plan that FTA
published in January 2017. This new
version of the National Safety Plan, like
the version before it, is intended to
guide the national effort to manage
safety risk in our nation’s public
transportation systems. It lays out a
performance-based approach to reduce
SUMMARY:
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34918
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 31, 2023 / Notices
injuries and fatalities on transit systems
under FTA’s safety jurisdiction. This
proposed update to the plan also
supports the USDOT’s long-term goal of
reaching zero fatalities on America’s
roadways, as presented in the January
2022 National Roadway Safety Strategy,
by adding safety performance criteria for
vehicular collisions and providing
voluntary standards for bus transit.
Pursuant to the Bipartisan Infrastructure
Law, the proposed update to the plan
also establishes performance measures
for Public Transportation Agency Safety
Plan (PTASP) risk reduction programs.
DATES: Comments should be filed by
July 31, 2023. FTA will consider
comments received after that date to the
extent practicable.
ADDRESSES: You may send comments,
identified by docket number FTA–
2023–0010, by any of the following
methods:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal:
https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for sending comments.
• Fax: (202) 493–2251.
• Mail: Docket Management Facility,
U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200
New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building
Ground Floor, Room W12–140,
Washington, DC 20590–0001.
• Hand Delivery/Courier: West
Building Ground Floor, Room W12–140,
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE,
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5
p.m. ET, Monday through Friday, except
Federal holidays.
Instructions: All submissions received
must include the agency name and
docket number (FTA–2023–0010). All
comments received will be posted
without change to https://
www.regulations.gov, including any
personal information provided. For
detailed instructions on sending
comments and additional information
on the rulemaking process, see the
‘‘Public Participation’’ heading of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of
this document.
Docket: For access to the docket to
read background documents or
comments received, go to https://
www.regulations.gov or the street
address listed above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
program matters, contact Arnebya
Belton, Office of Transit Safety and
Oversight, 202–366–7546 or
arnebya.belton@dot.gov. For legal
matters, contact Emily Jessup, Office of
Chief Counsel, 202–366–8907 or
emily.jessup@dot.gov. Office hours are
from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday
through Friday, except Federal holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
notice provides a summary of the
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:50 May 30, 2023
Jkt 259001
proposed update to the National Safety
Plan. The National Safety Plan itself is
not included in this notice; instead, the
proposed update to the plan is posted in
the docket for this notice. FTA seeks
public comment on this proposed
National Safety Plan.
Background and Overview
Congress first directed FTA to create
and implement a National Public
Transportation Safety Plan (National
Safety Plan) under the Moving Ahead
for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP–
21) Act, which authorized a new Public
Transportation Safety Program (Safety
Program) at 49 U.S.C. 5329 (Pub. L. 112–
141). The Safety Program was
reauthorized by the Fixing America’s
Surface Transportation (FAST) Act
(Pub. L. 114–94) and again by the
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, enacted
as the Infrastructure Investment and
Jobs Act (Pub. L. 117–58).
On February 5, 2016, FTA first
published a Federal Register notice (81
FR 6372) seeking comment on a
proposed National Safety Plan. FTA
conducted a number of public outreach
sessions and a webinar series related to
the proposed National Safety Plan and
the PTASP notice of proposed
rulemaking that also was published in
the Federal Register on February 5,
2016 (81 FR 6343). Subsequently, FTA
published a summary of the final
changes to the National Safety Plan and
responses to comments in the Federal
Register (82 FR 5628) and published the
finalized plan to the docket and on
FTA’s website.
Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 5329(b), the
National Safety Plan includes several
elements intended to improve the safety
of all public transportation systems that
receive Federal financial assistance
under 49 U.S.C. Chapter 53. The
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law adds new
elements that must be included in the
National Safety Plan, including:
• Safety performance measures
related to the PTASP safety risk
reduction program;
• In consultation with the Secretary
of Health and Human Services,
precautionary and reactive actions
required to ensure public and personnel
safety and health during an emergency;
and
• Consideration, where appropriate,
of performance-based and risk-based
methodologies.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law also
requires that the minimum safety
performance standards for public
transportation vehicles used in revenue
operations take into consideration, to
the extent practicable, innovations in
driver assistance technologies and
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
driver protection infrastructure, where
appropriate, and a reduction in
visibility impairments that contribute to
pedestrian fatalities.
This proposed update continues to
mature FTA’s National Public
Transportation Safety Program and
addresses new requirements in the
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to further
advance transit safety.
The proposed National Safety Plan is
organized into the following three
chapters:
Chapter I Keeping Safety the Top
Priority: Chapter I presents FTA’s safety
vision, strategic objectives, and an
overview of FTA’s National Public
Transportation Safety Program; and
provides high-level safety performance
data related to FTA safety priorities.
Chapter II Safety Performance
Criteria: Chapter II defines safety
performance measures for transit
agencies required to establish and
implement Agency Safety Plans under
FTA’s PTASP regulation.
Chapter III Voluntary Minimum
Safety Standards: Chapter III provides
voluntary minimum safety performance
standards for public transportation
vehicles used in revenue operations and
voluntary minimum safety standards to
ensure the safe operation of public
transportation systems, as well as
recommended practices that may
support the transit industry in assessing
and mitigating safety risk and help
improve safety performance.
FTA is considering the development
of mandatory standards for Rail Transit
Roadway Worker Protection and Transit
Worker Fitness for Duty through
rulemaking that may supersede the
voluntary minimum safety standards
and recommended practices identified
in Category A of Chapter III.
Voluntary Safety Standards and
Recommended Practices
The proposed National Safety Plan
includes an updated list of voluntary
minimum safety standards and
recommended practices to support
mitigation of safety risk and to improve
safety performance. The list in the
proposed National Safety Plan includes
new categories beyond those included
in the 2017 version of plan, such as
transit worker safety, pedestrian and
bicyclist safety, rail grade crossing
safety, tunnel ventilation, and fire
safety. The proposed list is more
comprehensive than the list in 2017,
incorporating the large number of
voluntary minimum safety standards
and recommended practices issued and
identified in the intervening years. The
proposed list is also organized into a
greater number of discrete categories to
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 31, 2023 / Notices
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facilitate understanding. Pursuant to the
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the
proposed National Safety Plan also
includes precautionary and reactive
actions to ensure public and personnel
safety and health during an emergency.
FTA coordinated with the Department
of Health and Human Services on the
list of such recommended actions.
Safety Performance Measures
Under FTA’s PTASP regulation,
transit agencies must set performance
targets based on the safety performance
measures established in the National
Safety Plan (49 CFR 673.11(a)(3)). The
2017 version of the National Safety Plan
identified seven performance measures
to support PTASP performance target
setting. The proposed update to the
National Safety Plan increases the
number of these measures from seven to
14. The proposed seven new
performance measures are: Collision
Rate, Pedestrian Collision Rate,
Vehicular Collision Rate, Transit
Worker Fatality Rate, Transit Worker
Injury Rate, Assaults on Transit
Workers, and Rate of Assaults on
Transit Workers. These additions are
consistent with the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law’s increased focus on
bus collisions and transit worker safety.
In addition to the measures described
above, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
directs FTA to include performance
measures for the safety risk reduction
program required under 49 U.S.C.
5329(d)(1)(I) in the National Safety Plan.
In accordance with 49 U.S.C.
5329(b)(2)(A), the National Safety Plan
identifies eight measures required for
safety risk reduction programs, which
apply to Section 5307 recipients that
serve an urbanized area of 200,000 or
more: Major Events, Major Events Rate,
Collisions, Collisions Rate, Injuries,
Injury Rate, Assaults on Transit
Workers, and Rate of Assaults on
Transit Workers. FTA is proposing these
measures as they align with the goals of
the safety risk reduction program as
described in FTA’s PTASP notice of
proposed rulemaking, namely reducing
the number and rates of safety events
and injuries, reducing vehicular and
pedestrian safety events involving
transit vehicles, and mitigating assaults
on transit workers. FTA’s proposal to
identify Major Events, Major Event Rate;
Injuries, and Injury Rate as performance
measures addresses the safety risk
reduction program goal of reducing the
number and rates of safety events and
injuries. Similarly, proposing Collisions
and Collisions Rate as performance
measures addresses the goal of reducing
vehicular and pedestrian safety events
and the measures of Assaults on Transit
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16:50 May 30, 2023
Jkt 259001
Workers and Rate of Assaults on Transit
Workers address the reduction of
assaults on transit workers.
Pursuant to the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law, performance targets
for the risk reduction program must be
set based on a 3-year rolling average of
NTD data. FTA recognizes that certain
transit agencies may not yet report
detailed safety event information to the
NTD that corresponds to these
performance measures. FTA proposed
requirements to address this situation in
a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the
PTASP regulation, which was published
in the Federal Register on April 26,
2023 (88 FR 25336).
FTA also notes that some of the eight
performance measures for the safety risk
reduction program overlap with the 14
measures for all agencies subject to the
PTASP regulation described above.
Section 5307 recipients that serve an
urbanized area with a population of
200,000 or more may choose to use the
same target for both measures, provided
the target for the safety risk reduction
program is based on a 3-year rolling
average of NTD data.
Performance targets for a risk
reduction program at 49 U.S.C.
5329(d)(4) are not required until FTA
has finalized the National Safety Plan to
include these performance measures.
However, nothing precludes an Agency
from implementing a risk reduction
program in advance and updating it
once the performance measures are
finalized.
In the National Safety Plan, FTA also
proposes that when setting safety
performance targets, transit agencies
should use the following modal groups:
rail, fixed route bus, and non-fixed route
bus. This is responsive to 49 U.S.C.
5329(b)(2)(A), which requires FTA to
identify safety performance criteria for
all modes of public transportation.
After reviewing and responding to the
comments received on this proposed
National Safety Plan, FTA will issue a
final National Safety Plan.
Nuria I. Fernandez,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2023–11551 Filed 5–30–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–57–P
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34919
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA–2022–0057]
Czinger Vehicles—Grant of Petition for
Temporary Exemption From Certain
Requirements of FMVSS No. 205,
Glazing Materials
National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NHTSA),
Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of grant of petition for
temporary exemption.
AGENCY:
This notice grants the petition
of Czinger Vehicles (Czinger) for a
temporary exemption from windshield
abrasion resistance requirements in
Federal motor vehicle safety standard
(FMVSS) No. 205, Glazing materials.
The basis for the exemption is that
compliance with these requirements
would cause substantial economic
hardship to a low volume manufacturer
that has tried in good faith to comply
with the standard. This action follows
our publication in the Federal Register
of a document announcing receipt of
Czinger’s petition and soliciting public
comments. We received no comments
on the petition.
DATES: The exemption from the
windshield abrasion resistance
requirements in FMVSS No. 205 is
effective from August 1, 2023, through
July 31, 2026.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Callie Roach, Office of the Chief
Counsel, National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.
Telephone: 202–366–2992; Fax: 202–
366–3820.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NHTSA is
granting a request from Czinger for a
temporary exemption from FMVSS No.
205’s abrasion resistance requirements
for windshields for its first vehicle
model, the 21C. In accordance with
statutory and regulatory requirements,
NHTSA is granting the petition on the
basis that compliance would cause
substantial economic hardship to a low
volume manufacturer that has tried in
good faith to comply with the standard.
SUMMARY:
I. Relevant Legal Authority and
Regulations
a. Statutory and Regulatory
Requirements for Temporary
Exemptions
NHTSA is responsible for
promulgating and enforcing FMVSS
designed to improve motor vehicle
safety. Generally, a manufacturer may
Frm 00098
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 104 (Wednesday, May 31, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34917-34919]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-11551]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
[Docket No. FTA-2023-0010]
National Public Transportation Safety Plan
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of availability of proposed National Public
Transportation Safety Plan; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) invites public
comment on a proposed update to the National Public Transportation
Safety Plan (National Safety Plan). The proposed National Safety Plan
would rescind and replace the plan that FTA published in January 2017.
This new version of the National Safety Plan, like the version before
it, is intended to guide the national effort to manage safety risk in
our nation's public transportation systems. It lays out a performance-
based approach to reduce
[[Page 34918]]
injuries and fatalities on transit systems under FTA's safety
jurisdiction. This proposed update to the plan also supports the
USDOT's long-term goal of reaching zero fatalities on America's
roadways, as presented in the January 2022 National Roadway Safety
Strategy, by adding safety performance criteria for vehicular
collisions and providing voluntary standards for bus transit. Pursuant
to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the proposed update to the plan
also establishes performance measures for Public Transportation Agency
Safety Plan (PTASP) risk reduction programs.
DATES: Comments should be filed by July 31, 2023. FTA will consider
comments received after that date to the extent practicable.
ADDRESSES: You may send comments, identified by docket number FTA-
2023-0010, by any of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for sending comments.
Fax: (202) 493-2251.
Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building Ground Floor,
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
Hand Delivery/Courier: West Building Ground Floor, Room
W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and
5 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name
and docket number (FTA-2023-0010). All comments received will be posted
without change to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal
information provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments and
additional information on the rulemaking process, see the ``Public
Participation'' heading of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of
this document.
Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or
comments received, go to https://www.regulations.gov or the street
address listed above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For program matters, contact Arnebya
Belton, Office of Transit Safety and Oversight, 202-366-7546 or
[email protected]. For legal matters, contact Emily Jessup, Office
of Chief Counsel, 202-366-8907 or [email protected]. Office hours
are from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal
holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice provides a summary of the
proposed update to the National Safety Plan. The National Safety Plan
itself is not included in this notice; instead, the proposed update to
the plan is posted in the docket for this notice. FTA seeks public
comment on this proposed National Safety Plan.
Background and Overview
Congress first directed FTA to create and implement a National
Public Transportation Safety Plan (National Safety Plan) under the
Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) Act, which
authorized a new Public Transportation Safety Program (Safety Program)
at 49 U.S.C. 5329 (Pub. L. 112-141). The Safety Program was
reauthorized by the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act
(Pub. L. 114-94) and again by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law,
enacted as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Pub. L. 117-58).
On February 5, 2016, FTA first published a Federal Register notice
(81 FR 6372) seeking comment on a proposed National Safety Plan. FTA
conducted a number of public outreach sessions and a webinar series
related to the proposed National Safety Plan and the PTASP notice of
proposed rulemaking that also was published in the Federal Register on
February 5, 2016 (81 FR 6343). Subsequently, FTA published a summary of
the final changes to the National Safety Plan and responses to comments
in the Federal Register (82 FR 5628) and published the finalized plan
to the docket and on FTA's website.
Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 5329(b), the National Safety Plan includes
several elements intended to improve the safety of all public
transportation systems that receive Federal financial assistance under
49 U.S.C. Chapter 53. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law adds new
elements that must be included in the National Safety Plan, including:
Safety performance measures related to the PTASP safety
risk reduction program;
In consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human
Services, precautionary and reactive actions required to ensure public
and personnel safety and health during an emergency; and
Consideration, where appropriate, of performance-based and
risk-based methodologies.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law also requires that the minimum
safety performance standards for public transportation vehicles used in
revenue operations take into consideration, to the extent practicable,
innovations in driver assistance technologies and driver protection
infrastructure, where appropriate, and a reduction in visibility
impairments that contribute to pedestrian fatalities.
This proposed update continues to mature FTA's National Public
Transportation Safety Program and addresses new requirements in the
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to further advance transit safety.
The proposed National Safety Plan is organized into the following
three chapters:
Chapter I Keeping Safety the Top Priority: Chapter I presents FTA's
safety vision, strategic objectives, and an overview of FTA's National
Public Transportation Safety Program; and provides high-level safety
performance data related to FTA safety priorities.
Chapter II Safety Performance Criteria: Chapter II defines safety
performance measures for transit agencies required to establish and
implement Agency Safety Plans under FTA's PTASP regulation.
Chapter III Voluntary Minimum Safety Standards: Chapter III
provides voluntary minimum safety performance standards for public
transportation vehicles used in revenue operations and voluntary
minimum safety standards to ensure the safe operation of public
transportation systems, as well as recommended practices that may
support the transit industry in assessing and mitigating safety risk
and help improve safety performance.
FTA is considering the development of mandatory standards for Rail
Transit Roadway Worker Protection and Transit Worker Fitness for Duty
through rulemaking that may supersede the voluntary minimum safety
standards and recommended practices identified in Category A of Chapter
III.
Voluntary Safety Standards and Recommended Practices
The proposed National Safety Plan includes an updated list of
voluntary minimum safety standards and recommended practices to support
mitigation of safety risk and to improve safety performance. The list
in the proposed National Safety Plan includes new categories beyond
those included in the 2017 version of plan, such as transit worker
safety, pedestrian and bicyclist safety, rail grade crossing safety,
tunnel ventilation, and fire safety. The proposed list is more
comprehensive than the list in 2017, incorporating the large number of
voluntary minimum safety standards and recommended practices issued and
identified in the intervening years. The proposed list is also
organized into a greater number of discrete categories to
[[Page 34919]]
facilitate understanding. Pursuant to the Bipartisan Infrastructure
Law, the proposed National Safety Plan also includes precautionary and
reactive actions to ensure public and personnel safety and health
during an emergency. FTA coordinated with the Department of Health and
Human Services on the list of such recommended actions.
Safety Performance Measures
Under FTA's PTASP regulation, transit agencies must set performance
targets based on the safety performance measures established in the
National Safety Plan (49 CFR 673.11(a)(3)). The 2017 version of the
National Safety Plan identified seven performance measures to support
PTASP performance target setting. The proposed update to the National
Safety Plan increases the number of these measures from seven to 14.
The proposed seven new performance measures are: Collision Rate,
Pedestrian Collision Rate, Vehicular Collision Rate, Transit Worker
Fatality Rate, Transit Worker Injury Rate, Assaults on Transit Workers,
and Rate of Assaults on Transit Workers. These additions are consistent
with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law's increased focus on bus
collisions and transit worker safety.
In addition to the measures described above, the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law directs FTA to include performance measures for the
safety risk reduction program required under 49 U.S.C. 5329(d)(1)(I) in
the National Safety Plan. In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 5329(b)(2)(A),
the National Safety Plan identifies eight measures required for safety
risk reduction programs, which apply to Section 5307 recipients that
serve an urbanized area of 200,000 or more: Major Events, Major Events
Rate, Collisions, Collisions Rate, Injuries, Injury Rate, Assaults on
Transit Workers, and Rate of Assaults on Transit Workers. FTA is
proposing these measures as they align with the goals of the safety
risk reduction program as described in FTA's PTASP notice of proposed
rulemaking, namely reducing the number and rates of safety events and
injuries, reducing vehicular and pedestrian safety events involving
transit vehicles, and mitigating assaults on transit workers. FTA's
proposal to identify Major Events, Major Event Rate; Injuries, and
Injury Rate as performance measures addresses the safety risk reduction
program goal of reducing the number and rates of safety events and
injuries. Similarly, proposing Collisions and Collisions Rate as
performance measures addresses the goal of reducing vehicular and
pedestrian safety events and the measures of Assaults on Transit
Workers and Rate of Assaults on Transit Workers address the reduction
of assaults on transit workers.
Pursuant to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, performance targets
for the risk reduction program must be set based on a 3-year rolling
average of NTD data. FTA recognizes that certain transit agencies may
not yet report detailed safety event information to the NTD that
corresponds to these performance measures. FTA proposed requirements to
address this situation in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the PTASP
regulation, which was published in the Federal Register on April 26,
2023 (88 FR 25336).
FTA also notes that some of the eight performance measures for the
safety risk reduction program overlap with the 14 measures for all
agencies subject to the PTASP regulation described above. Section 5307
recipients that serve an urbanized area with a population of 200,000 or
more may choose to use the same target for both measures, provided the
target for the safety risk reduction program is based on a 3-year
rolling average of NTD data.
Performance targets for a risk reduction program at 49 U.S.C.
5329(d)(4) are not required until FTA has finalized the National Safety
Plan to include these performance measures. However, nothing precludes
an Agency from implementing a risk reduction program in advance and
updating it once the performance measures are finalized.
In the National Safety Plan, FTA also proposes that when setting
safety performance targets, transit agencies should use the following
modal groups: rail, fixed route bus, and non-fixed route bus. This is
responsive to 49 U.S.C. 5329(b)(2)(A), which requires FTA to identify
safety performance criteria for all modes of public transportation.
After reviewing and responding to the comments received on this
proposed National Safety Plan, FTA will issue a final National Safety
Plan.
Nuria I. Fernandez,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2023-11551 Filed 5-30-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-P
