Union Pacific safest U.S. railroad for third straight year

Federal Railroad Administration points to lowest injury rate among employees.    Union Pacific was deemed the safest U.S. Class I railroad in employee safety for the third consecutive year, according to Federal Railroad Administration data.
   The FRA said Union Pacific had a 0.79 reportable injury rate in 2017. A railroad’s reportable injury rate represents the total number of injuries reported per 200,000 employee work hours.
   “Being the safest railroad for the third consecutive year reflects our employees’ consistent dedication to keeping each other safe,” said Rod Doerr, Union Pacific vice president and chief safety officer. “Our work isn’t finished and we will continue focusing on eliminating risks to accomplish our ultimate goal of operating in an incident-free environment.”
   Union Pacific’s employee-driven safety initiatives include Courage to Care, a voluntary commitment empowering employees to look out for their peers and “stop the line” on operations that could result in an incident. Twice a year the company stops work system-wide to hold safety stand-downs, giving employees an opportunity to have candid discussions and share experiences to learn from each other.
   More information about Union Pacific’s safety programs is available in the Operating Safely section of its Building America Report.