FTA prepared this guide to assist your transit agency in establishing a safety risk assessment matrix appropriate for the size and complexity of your operation. The matrix may help your agency implement the Safety Risk Management process required in FTA’s Public Transportation Agency Safety Plan (PTASP) regulation.

The rule requires each transit agency to "establish methods or processes to assess the safety risks associated with identified safety hazards" and further clarifies that a safety risk assessment includes "an assessment of the likelihood and severity of the consequences of the hazards, including existing mitigations, and prioritization of the hazards based on the safety risk." A safety risk assessment matrix provides a structured approach for addressing these requirements by helping to:

• Assess the likelihood and severity of the consequences of identified hazards
• Determine if the safety risk is acceptable with existing mitigations, or if additional action is needed
• Prioritize hazards based on the safety risk of their potential consequences