Railroad Conductor Suffers Electric Shock Injury

Case Overview

This case involves a 50-year-old man who worked as a railroad conductor. The conductor had his hand on an iron handle while he was holding the door open to let a coworker enter the car. He used his other hand to hold a guardrail at the station, outside of the train car. He received a significant electric shock during the incident. It is alleged that the iron handle, was improperly grounded. This incident occurred at a station in Montana.

Questions to the Automotive expert and their responses

Describe your experience as it pertains to electrical grounding for railway cars and stations.

I have served as a project manager for both rolling stock procurements ('railway cars') and as a project manager for new and rehabilitated passenger rail stations. In those roles, I was responsible for safety certification of all project elements, including the grounding requirements.

Do you have specific experience with electric traction issues?

Additionally, I was involved with electric traction construction. I have specific experience with the type of rail car in question.

About the expert

This highly qualified locomotive expert earned his BS in Industrial Administration from the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and his MS in in Urban Management/Policy at New School University. He has served as the Chief Operating Officer of two regional railroad lines, where he planned, coordinated, and managed the day to day activities associates with the overall operation of contractor operates railroads (AMTRAK and Herzog). He also served as the chief safety executive at these two rail companies. This expert is currently the Assistant Vice President at a leading planning/engineering firm. He holds a senior leadership position responsible for the delivery of transit projects associated with optimizing operations, program/project management and system safety. Client list includes the following: The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, New Jersey Transit, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, California High Speed Rail Authority, Washington Area Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Caltrain, SANDAG, Regional Transportation District, Florida DOT, AMTRAK, and Utah Transit Authority.

E-009849

Specialties:

Automotive