Newly released Federal Railroad Administration data shows that freight rail safety continued to improve across nearly every major category, marking the safest year on record for the industry, a rail industry association said.
The Association of American Railroads said that the FRA’s 2025 data reinforces that sustained private investment, advanced technology deployment, and a highly trained and committed workforce are delivering real, measurable safety outcomes across the national freight rail network, strengthening supply chain reliability and supporting affordability across the economy. Even with this progress, freight railroads remain committed to further improving safety performance across the system.
According to the federal data, the overall train accident rate declined 14 percent year over year, while derailments, equipment-caused accidents, and track-caused accidents each fell to their lowest levels in the industry’s history. Human factors-related accidents declined nearly 20 percent year over year, reflecting sustained progress driven in part by expanded deployment of automation, advanced monitoring systems, and data-informed operating practices designed to reduce risk and support frontline employees.
Class I railroads also achieved their lowest employee injury rate ever in 2025, continuing a multi-decade trend of improved safety outcomes led by disciplined operations, advanced technology, and comprehensive training, AAR said. While these results mark meaningful progress, railroads remain clear that safety improvement is never complete and that ongoing investment and innovation are essential to driving risk even lower, while keeping the freight network efficient and cost-stable for the businesses and communities it serves.
“These results reflect decades of sustained private investment and a relentless focus on data-driven, measurable safety outcomes,” Ian Jefferies, AAR president and CEO of the Association of American Railroads, said in a release.
“Looking ahead, continued regulatory modernization can be driven by the U.S. Department of Transportation, which plays a critical stewardship role in ensuring that its regulatory framework keeps pace with innovation,” Jefferies added. “By advancing evidence-based reforms that enable deployment of proven technologies at scale, USDOT can help accelerate the next leaps in safety while strengthening protections for employees, communities, and the supply chains that depend on rail.”
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