Research and Innovative Technology Administration October 21, 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the requirements of section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces that the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) intends to request the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) renew the information collection request for the Close Calls project. This data collection effort is in support of a five-year research study aiming at improving rail safety by analyzing information on close calls and other unsafe occurrences in the rail industry. The ongoing research study is conducted by the Office of Human Factors in the Federal Railroad Administration and is designed to identify safety issues and propose corrective actions based on voluntary reports of close calls submitted to BTS. This collection is necessary because data on close calls are not normally reported to the railroad carriers or the Federal Railroad Administration. Continuous data collection for this research project is necessary to develop trends about rail safety and to improve railroad safety on an ongoing basis.