Metro-North settled enforcement cases with the federal government totaling $859,375

. NJ Transit, which carries a comparable number of weekday passengers, paid $576,175

The Long Island Rail Road, which carries the most weekday passengers in the country, paid $131,725

Metro-North paid 50 percent more in civil penalties to the federal government than NJ Transit from 2013 to 2018, and together they ranked as the top violators in the nation during that time, an analysis of federal data shows.

The analysis, by NorthJersey.com and the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey, also shows that both commuter railroads paid vastly larger fines than their peer organizations during the same six years. In fact, the agencies racked up two of the top three civil penalty settlements among their peers with the Federal Railroad Administration in 2018, the analysis of the federal agency's annual enforcement reports shows.

The civil penalties stem from safety violations that involve track, signals, locomotives, equipment and train crews. They also cover categories such as alcohol and drug testing, employee hours of service and railroad operating practices.

Metro-North's settled cases show a high number of violations related to drug and alcohol testing of employees,which does not necessarily mean employees were using intoxicants on the job, authorities cautioned. The records also show a high number of violations related to rail operating practices on NJ Transit.

Both railroads have been under scrutiny from federal regulators in recent years, each having recorded fatal crashes that raised concerns about their safety culture and compliance.

Metro-North settled enforcement cases with the federal government totaling $859,375, according to the reports. NJ Transit, which carries a comparable number of weekday passengers, paid $576,175, or $283,200 less.

The Long Island Rail Road, the commuter railroad that carries the most weekday passengers of any in the country, paid $131,725 in civil penalties, the data show.

Both the LIRR and Metro-North fall under the jurisdiction of New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Chicago's Metra, which ranks just behind NJ Transit and Metro-North in weekday passengers, paid $102,900.

All the commuter railroads paid less than the Federal Railroad Administration initially proposed. Lawyers from those agencies usually negotiate lower settlement amounts.

Metro-North was initially assessed more than $1 million in penalties from 2013 to 2018, and NJ Transit more than $700,000.

The two commuter railroads have a longstanding partnership. NJ Transit operates Metro-North's west-of-the-Hudson trains, on the Pascack Valley Line from Hoboken to Spring Valley, New York, and on the line between Suffern and Port Jervis, both in New York.

Average weekday ridership rankings are as follows:

MTA Long Island Rail Road 349,500

NJ Transit Rail 307,853

MTA Metro-North Railroad 306,900

Metra 285,400

'Significant trouble'

The Federal Railroad Administration collected nearly $17.7 million from all railroads in 2018, out of nearly $25.3 million in penalties assessed.

Civil penalties do not necessarily mean that a railroad is unsafe. However, they can indicate problems with an organization's safety culture and compliance. The Federal Railroad Administration has paid special attention to both Metro-North and NJ Transit.

"Both of those railroads have been in significant trouble for the past several years," said Grady Cothen, who retired in 2010 as the federal regulator's deputy associate administrator for safety standards.

Both experienced high-profile fatal crashes in which the trains' engineers were diagnosed with a common sleeping disorder. And both railroads struggled to meet a December 2018 deadline to complete positive train control, a required safety system.

Metro-North drew greater scrutiny after a December 2013 derailment in the Bronx.

Four people were killed and 61 others injured when a Manhattan-bound train jumped a curve at Spuyten Duyvil on Dec. 2, 2013. The train was traveling 82 mph into a curve designed for 30 mph. The train's engineer, William Rockefeller, was later diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnea.

NJ Transit was already under federal review for its safety compliance when a train from Spring Valley crashed through an end-of-track barrier at Hoboken Terminal on Sept. 29, 2016. The crash collapsed part of the station's roof onto the train. One person was killed on the platform, and more than 100 others were injured on the train and the platform.

The Hoboken train's engineer, Thomas Gallagher, was later diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnea. The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the engineer's medical condition contributed to the crash.

In the Bronx derailment, the NTSB concluded that the absence of positive train control contributed to the crash. The system is designed to automatically slow or stop a train that's going too fast as it approaches a curve or a stop signal.

The NTSB also concluded that a system like positive train control could have prevented or mitigated the Hoboken Terminal crash.

The Federal Railroad Administration has about 400 inspectors nationwide who monitor the country's freight and passenger railroads for safety compliance. Around 100 state inspectors help bolster their ranks.

"The agency tries to go where the risks are. It’s a challenge," Cothen said. You’re taking a small number of resources and trying to target the areas of greatest need."

Among other enforcement tools, the agency's inspectors have the power to recommend civil penalties. They're not huge. They range from several hundred dollars per violation to tens of thousands of dollars.

"They’re intended to get folks’ attention," he said.

Repeat violations

The Federal Railroad Administration's enforcement report does not reveal which violations are tied to specific incidents, such as the Bronx and Hoboken crashes. Making those connections requires a Freedom of Information Act request, a process that can take months or even years.

But the reports can reveal repeat violations on the same issue. For example, Metro-North settled 50 cases totaling $163,725 in 2018 involving drug and alcohol testing.

Cothen said those are likely to be cases in which the railroad failed to follow federal regulations on testing requirements, and is not an indication that employees are using alcohol and drugs on the job.

"Railroads tend to take it seriously," he said.

NJ Transit settled 10 cases in 2018 involving rail operating practices, totaling $93,400.

In 2018 alone:

Metro-North paid a total of $298,875 out of $374,500 in assessed civil penalties in 86 cases.

NJ Transit paid $241,600 out of $344,000 in assessed civil penalties in 45 cases.

That makes both commuter railroads outliers among their peer organizations. For comparison:

LIRR paid $19,250 out of $33,000 in assessed civil penalties in five cases in 2018.

Metra paid $32,900 out of $54,500 in assessed civil penalties in nine cases.

Only Metro-North and Boston's Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority paid more civil penalties in 2018 than NJ Transit. MBTA paid $283,091 out of $375,455 in fines assessed in 41 cases. MBTA is a smaller operation than either Metro-North or NJ Transit.

MBTA's closest peer, Philadelphia's Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, paid $10,353 out of $13,000 in assessed federal fines in four cases in 2018.

Cothen said the Federal Railroad Administration tends to lean most heavily on railroads that appear to be in trouble. More enforcement cases and higher penalty amounts can be a warning sign that they are, he said.

"It’s not a favorable indication," Cothen said.

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