Railroaders place to shoot the shit.

The Federal Railroad Administrations primary function is to make America's railroads safer by establishing and enforcing federal regulations on railroad safety.

Our emphasis on the importance of safety is reflected in our staffing ratio. Of 895 positions, 684 are assigned to the Office of Railroad Safety. Many FRA employees are former railroad employees. The largest single group of employees comprises railroad safety inspectors, assigned to work among eight regions in the contiguous U.S. and Alaska.

The inspectors are assigned to one of five inspection disciplines: Motive power and equipment, operating practices, hazardous materials, signal and train control, or track and structures.

The FRA's field complement includes program managers for the FRA's Highway/Rail Grade Crossing Safety and Trespass Prevention Program, bridge structure specialists, and industrial hygienists. Passage of the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 created a new Passenger Rail Division, Risk Reduction Division, and Positive Train Control (PTC) Team.

More information on our organization and the implementation of new initiatives can be found on the FRA's Web site at www.fra.dot.gov.

We are always happy to attend union meetings to explain the FRA's safety regulations and how they are enforced.

The FRA also works closely with labor organizations as part of the Railroad Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC), comprising 31 organizations representing labor, railroads, suppliers and manufacturers, states, and passenger advocates -- plus advisers from the Federal Transit Administration, Transportation Security Administration, National Transportation Safety Board, the nations of Canada and Mexico, and other interest groups.

The RSAC's unique partnership allows collaboration in the development of new rules and the review and revision of existing rules.

The conductor certification regulations will result in better training for freight and passenger conductors. Changes to the hours-of-service laws for freight railroad employees and upcoming changes for passenger railroad employees will serve to reduce fatigue and improve quality of life.

But, despite all this good news, railroads remain inherently hazardous places to work, because rail transportation involves the movement of large vehicles on fixed guideways in all weather conditions. Our jobs demand a focus on performing our assignments safely, in compliance with federal regulations and the carriers' rules.

It's the standard I expect of all FRA employees, including myself; its the standard I expect from railroad supervisors and officers; and its the standard I expect from you.

Recently, the FRA hosted a Switching Operations Fatality Analysis (SOFA) working group forum where labor, management and the FRA discussed the progress of the SOFA working group and held a series of problem-solving exercises. We were delighted that UTU International President Mike Futhey and other UTU leaders participated in the meeting.

Recently, FRA Administrator Joe Szabo issued a sobering reminder that, in 2009, 16 railroad employees left for work and never returned home. He asked us all to focus on doing our jobs safely to eliminate these tragedies. I echo his comments and ask you to join with the FRA in working toward zero railroad employee fatalities; its the only number we can all live with.

(Jo Strang is the FRA's associate administrator for railroad safety/chief safety officer, having previously been the FRA's deputy associate administrator for railroad development and deputy regional administrator in Chicago. Earlier, she was associate director for railroad and transit accident investigation at the National Transportation Safety Board. She earned an undergraduate degree in economics and geology from the University of Cincinnati, and a master's degree in economics from Marquette.)