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State Safety Oversight (SSO) Program

Safety officers attend demonstration at Maryland Transit Administration in Baltimore

The purpose of the State Safety Oversight program is to oversee safety at rail transit systems. The SSO program is administered by eligible states with rail transit systems in their jurisdiction. FTA provides federal funds through the SSO Formula Grant Program for eligible states to develop or carry out their SSO programs. Under 49 U.S.C. Section 5329(e), as amended by the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), FTA is required to certify each state’s program to ensure compliance with MAP-21. Review the list of SSO agencies.

What's New

2026 FTA SSO and RTA Safety Workshop

The 2026 FTA State Safety Oversight and Rail Transit Agency Safety Workshop will take place at the Hyatt Regency in Arlington, Virginia, from Wednesday, March 25 through Friday, March 27, 2026, for the following audiences:

  • Wednesday, March 25: In-person for FTA and SSOAs only; no sessions for RTAs
  • Thursday, March 26: In-person for both SSOAs and RTAs
  • Friday, March 27: In-person for both SSOAs and RTAs

Workshop registration is open through March 6. Reservations at the conference hotel are available until February 24.

SafeStat Fundamentals Training

The presentation and recording are available from FTA’s Safety State Oversight System (SafeStat) Fundamentals Training webinars for State Safety Oversight Agencies (SSOA). These webinars introduced SSOA personnel to FTA’s new audit tracking solution, SafeStat. SafeStat is a workflow within the FTA Oversight Tracking System (OTrak) designed to streamline and support FTA’s audit processes for SSOA oversight activities. Participants learned about SafeStat’s key features, how to access the system, SSOA roles and responsibilities, and best practices for effective use.

Two-Hour Safety Event Notification Guide

The FTA’s State Safety Oversight (SSO) regulation establishes definitions and minimum notification thresholds for safety events. The SSO final rule defines a “safety event” and requires a rail transit agency (RTA) to notify its State Safety Oversight Agency (SSOA) and the FTA within two hours of any safety event that meets certain thresholds. This Two-Hour Notification Guide is designed to help RTAs identify those events and notify FTA. This document updates prior guidance, issued on September 24, 2021, to incorporate the changes adopted in FTA’s SSO final rule, which published on October 18, 2024.

State Safety Oversight Final Rule Updates

FTA has published updates to the State Safety Oversight (SSO) regulation in the Federal Register to further strengthen the existing SSO program. These updates implement new requirements of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, remove outdated references, clarify existing requirements and simplify notification requirements. Effective January 1, 2025.

On Wednesday, October 30, 2024, FTA hosted a webinar about updates to the SSO Final Rule and presenters addressed questions submitted by attendees.

Rail Transit Roadway Worker Protection (RWP) Final Rule 

FTA published the RWP regulation on October 31, 2024. Rail transit agencies have until December 2, 2025, to establish an SSOA-approved RWP Program to improve worker safety consistent with the final rule. It is critical that transit agencies coordinate with their SSOAs to develop the RWP programs and set reasonable timeframes for completing their work.   

Resources

 Webinars

  • Rail Transit Roadway Worker Protection Final Rule Overview Webinar
    November 2024
    Presentation | Recording
  • Overview of the Rail Transit Roadway Worker Protection Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
    April 2024
    Presentation | Recording

Risk-Based Inspection Programs

On October 21, 2022, FTA issued special directives to all State Safety Oversight Agencies (SSOA), the agencies that oversee safety at rail transit systems, to develop and implement a risk-based inspection program in accordance with changes to FTA’s Public Transportation Safety Program as required by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. A risk-based inspection program uses qualitative and quantitative data analysis to inform inspection activities and is designed to prioritize safety concerns and hazards associated with the highest levels of risk. Learn more about risk-based inspection programs.

SSO Certification

State Safety Oversight Final Rule

SSO Formula Grant Program

Advisories and Technical Assistance

Last updated: Tuesday, January 27, 2026