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U.S. Department of Transportation U.S. Department of Transportation Icon United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

Safety Risk Management

FTA Safety Advisory 23-1: Bus-to-Person Collisions

On Tuesday, September 19, 2023 FTA issued Safety Advisory 23-1 Bus-to-Person Collisions which recommends that bus transit agencies perform their own risk assessment to identify hazards of bus-to-person collisions and consider appropriate safety risk...

Overview FTA Safety Risk Management Diagram

FTA oversees a safety management system (SMS) framework with the goal of enhancing the safety of public transportation in the United States. SMS principles and methods guide FTA’s development of regulations, policies, guidance, best practices and technical assistance administered to public transportation agencies using four main program areas: Safety Management Policy, Safety Risk Management (SRM), Safety Assurance and Safety Promotion. These programs work together to achieve safety and risk management outcomes.

FTA uses an SRM process to address safety concerns impacting the transit industry, including bus and rail, and to apply FTA’s statutory oversight authority to improve the safety of the Nation’s transit systems. The SRM program uses both data-driven, quantitative and subject matter expert informed, qualitative analyses to identify, assess and mitigate transit safety risks at the national level. FTA’s SRM program interfaces with internal and external stakeholders to minimize risks affecting transit workers, riders and operations through a four-step process. 

  • Complete Safety Risk Assessment 

  • Develop Safety Risk Mitigations 

  • Implement Mitigations 

  • Monitor Mitigation Performance