FTA calls on MTA to address worker safety after one fatality and 38 near misses

New York, NY (WorkersCompensation.com) – The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has issued a special directive to New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority to respond to “an escalating pattern of safety incidents” involving workers.

The order cites one death in November 2023, one serious injury to a worker in June 2024 and 38 near misses last year. The near misses represent a 58 percent increase from the 24 last year, FTA officials said.

On August 14, the FTA issued the order to the MTA and also issued an order to New York City's Public Transportation Safety Board regarding its oversight of New York City Transit, the MTA division responsible for safety operations.

Both directives state that the FTA has determined that “a combination of unsafe conditions and practices exists which presents a significant risk of death or personal injury.” The directive

According to the FTA's two guidelines, there is a “combination of unsafe conditions and practices that pose a significant risk of death or personal injury.”

The audit found deficiencies in the subway system's Roadway Worker Protection program, which provides guidelines for track worker safety. Of the 38 near misses in 2023, half were the result of one or more workers failing to follow established marking rules. Other incidents, the report said, involved improper communication and radio use, improper installation of protection or right-of-way access, lack of supervision, failure to follow protocols in areas with communications-based train control and inattention by train operators.

The audit recommended that, to remedy findings that NYC Transit had failed to implement the safety risk management provisions in its safety plan, the FTA require the subway authority to complete an evaluation of the Roadway Worker Protection Program within 60 days. Once completed and approved by the FTA, NYC Transit must submit a mitigation plan to correct the issues identified in the evaluation.

In addition, the FTA required NYC Transit to take additional steps to ensure that it complies with the Roadway Worker Program by initiating a weekly compliance monitoring program within 10 days of the policy's issuance. The agency must also report the results of that monitoring to the FTA within 100 days. Once approved, the agency must submit the report monthly.

The MTA said it disputes the findings and plans to appeal. In a letter to the FTA, New York City Transit interim president Demetrius Crichlow wrote: “We strongly refute the FTA's view that NYCT was in any way negligent when it came to the safety of track workers, one of our top priorities. The agency has extensive safety protocols in place for the more than 1.5 million operations that occur on the track during the ongoing operation of our 24/7 subway system.”

However, union representatives said the results were consistent with what their members had been saying for years.

“There is a constant tension between the punctuality of trains and the safety of workers, and that pressure has increased dramatically,” John Samuelsen, president of the Transport Workers Union, told The City newspaper.

The review came in response to the November 2023 death of 57-year-old Hiliarian Joseph, an MTA flagger who died when he was struck by a subway train. In June of that year, another flagger was seriously injured when he was struck by an out-of-service train in Brooklyn.

The FTA's order to the Public Transportation Safety Board calls on the agency to expand its oversight of the Roadway Worker Safety Program, monitor responses to near misses and other safety incidents, and oversee NYC Transit's roadway worker safety training. The order also requests a series of reports and plans to mitigate additional safety issues similar to those the FTA recommended for MTA and requires the PTSB to conduct an independent audit of the NYC Transit training program, which NYC Transit must address through plans resulting from the results of that audit.