In reading the reports, both the phase one and the phase two--and my colleagues can address the different areas--I was particularly concerned about the number of loose sills, clearance of handholds, bottom safety supports rods, and defective brake beams. I know these may seem minor, but they put the workers at risk. Ultimately, if the workers are at risk, the train is at risk, and the community is.
The other thing was the issue of these N&Os, notices and orders. The report stated that there were 99 outstanding as of November 2005 that had not been satisfactorily addressed--and 24 of them go back to the year 2000 or earlier. The report says that 53.9% of the 232 locomotives inspected over that period had safety defects. Some were minor and some were major.
What I see in reading this is that it seems to be indicative of a malaise within the operation. Some of those minor ones are naturally going to become more serious. Maybe attention isn't being given to the number of safety concerns. I'd appreciate your comment on that.