FREIGHT RAIL SAFETY RECORD KEY FACTS

  • Freight rail is safer than ever, with accident and injury rates at all-time lows.
  • Derailments, hazmat incidents, and human-error accidents have dropped significantly since 2005.
  • Crossing collisions and trespassing remain key safety challenges.

The most recent data from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) confirms that the industry’s safety-centered approach to investments and operations deliver overall improvements have made the last decade the safest ever for freight rail. Specifically, these strong, unrelenting efforts have driven the train accident rate down 43% since 2005 and 11% since 2023. Notable employee safety statistics include:

  • For all railroads, on-duty fatalities declined 27% since 2005; 2024 was the third lowest on record.
  • Railroads have reduced employee casualty rates by 27% since 2005 and 4% since 2015. 2024 was the third lowest on record.

Analysis of 2024 FRA Data per million train miles indicates:

  • The derailment rate for Class I railroads has dropped 40% since 2005.
  • Per carload, the hazardous materials (hazmat) accident rate is at its lowest ever and down 80% since 2005 based on preliminary data.
  • Class I railroads’ mainline accident rate is down 43% since 2005.
  • Class I railroads decreased yard accident rate per million-yard switching miles by 32%, reversing last year increase.

Railroads maintain a strong safety record through strategic investments, continuous innovation, and skilled workforce expertise.

Thanks in large part to freight rail’s consistent investments in network maintenance and capital expenditures and deployment of advanced inspection technologies that identify wheel and track issues before they become problems, the equipment-caused accident rate has dropped 37%, and track-caused accident rate has dropped 56% between 2005 and 2024.

These advanced technologies help railroads keep tabs on equipment while in-use, enabling proactive steps to fix issues early. Work continues to implement concrete, voluntary safety commitments made in 2023 to enhance railroads’ ability to detect certain equipment defects and act before they result in an accident.

Grade crossing collision rates continue to decline.

In 2024, grade crossing collision rates declined 25% since 2000. Since 2005, the total number of public crossings has declined 12%, while the number with gates has increased 42%. Traditionally, the number of trespassing deaths calculated for a particular year actually declines during the next year as many of those incidents are reclassified as suicides. These preventable accidents remain persistent challenges across the national rail network.