In the alphabet soup of federal transportation agencies– DOT, FRA, FHWA, TSA, STB – only one can be said to capture the attention of the general public. The NTSB. No other transportation agency possesses a first responder like presence on the scene of a transportation disaster and no other transportation agency looks quite as commanding as the NTSB does in its prominent blue windbreakers emblazoned with the agency’s initials across the back.
The National Transportation Safety Board plays a unique role in transportation policymaking in that it serves as an investigative body following transportation disasters and it is an advocacy organization promoting safety recommendations. The NTSB holds no authority to require agencies to adopt its recommendations. Instead, it uses its “Most Wanted List” as an advocacy tool to advance transportation safety policies.
I wanted to learn more about how the NTSB works, so I reached out to NTSB Board Member, Jennifer Homendy. She is the 44th member of the NTSB, she took the oath of office in August 2018. Prior to that Member Homendy spent 14 years as the Democratic Staff Director of the House Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials. During her career at Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials she worked on transportation reauthorizations and major transportation safety legislation including the 2008 Rail Safety Improvement Act that mandated Positive Train Control (“PTC”) on the nation’s railroads.
What you will find in this conversation is – not only – a discussion of the NTSB, but an inside look at how transportation safety legislation becomes law. We discussed a range of topics including the NTSB’s early advocacy for PTC technology: