Letter to Administrator Allan Rutter, Federal Railroad Administration

February 10, 2004

The Honorable Allan Rutter
Administrator
Federal Railroad Administration
1120 Vermont Ave
Washington, DC 20590

Dear Administrator Rutter:

I am writing to urge you to expand your examination of last week's single grade crossing accident in Monroe County, New York to a broader investigation of general freight-train crossing safety in this area. Last Tuesday in the Town of Henrietta, two people were killed at a South Winton Road crossing when a warning gate malfunctioned. Days later, crossing gates malfunctioned in two other Monroe County towns, Gates and Pittsford. In addition, seven railroad cars derailed in Gates this past Saturday. Fortunately, no one was injured.

I am extremely concerned about the malfunctions on the part of CSX trains and railroad crossing gates. While the company maintains that it has been vigilant in the maintenance and upkeep of its trains and gates, the technical and human errors that have occurred in Monroe County are alarming. Even more alarming is CSX's lack of response to these life threatening malfunctions. I am outraged to read reports that indicate several calls to 911 about the malfunctioning South Winton Road crossing gates went unheeded by CSX. As you know, those calls came before last week's tragic accident. In addition, the Gates police chief and the Town of Pittsford supervisor have both expressed frustraton over CSX's lack of response to these safety issues.

While I understand that technical failures occur, this egregious recurrence of malfunctions necessitates a more general investigation of the area's at-grade crossings. CSX's lack of responsiveness on the issue is a further cause for concern and deserves your agency's attention. I understand that the FRA is already investigating the incident on South Winton Road. I urge you to expand your examination of this situation to look at the overall safety record of CSX in Monroe County, and to do so as quickly as possible in order to avoid another fatal accident. In order to fully appreciate the scope and breadth of the problem, I would suggest that representatives of FRA come to Monroe County to meet with local officials and see first-hand the CSX at-grade crossings.

Thank you for your immediate attention to this matter. If you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Charles E. Schumer
United States Senate