Railroads and their regulators thwart safety fixes, costing livesA new analysis of railroad accident data reveals a recurring cycle of industry opposition and federal inaction to attempts to improve safetyByCAT MURPHY Associated Press, HALEY PARSLEY Associated Press, JOSEPHINE JOHNSON Associated Press, MOLECULE JONGWILAI / HOWARD CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM Associated Press, UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND HOWARD CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM Associated Press, and UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND Associated PressJanuary 12, 2026, 12:00 AMHuman errors and track defects caused more than 3,000 rail accidents over the last decade, killing 23 people and injuring nearly 1,200. Yet federal railroad regulators failed to implement most of the safety recommendations that emerged from accident investigations. That’s according to an original analysis by the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at the University of Maryland. Behind those numbers, the Howard Center found, is a powerful industry that uses its money and influence to stymie federal safety reforms. It’s actively lobbying President Donald Trump’s administration to further reduce track inspection and repair requirements and loosen rules aimed at preventing crew fatigue. The center’s analysis of data from the National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates major accidents and recommends safety improvements, found it gave federal railroad regulators 81 recommendations from 2015 through 2024.
