OMB SupportingStatement - Part B - for C3RS_02-25-2010

SUPPORTING STATEMENT

2. Collection of Information Employing Statistical Methods

1. Describe the Survey Procedures.

Unlike a survey where all respondents are expected to respond, we expect to receive a close call report only if and when an employee experiences a close call. More than one person may be eligible to provide a report for a close call incident. All close calls are included in the scope of this study. Thus, there is no sample selection for this data collection. All yard and rail employees and NJT managers, an estimated total of 4000, are included in the C³RS demonstration project and will be eligible to submit close call reports to BTS whenever they experience a qualifying event. At this point, the expected frequency of close calls is no more than 2 per day.

The data collection should have no coverage bias as every single eligible employee will receive a briefing and information on this effort. However, it takes employees time to warm up to such a reporting system, and therefore we do not expect the responses to be representative of all close calls. Hopefully, as confidence in this effort grows, the reporting of close calls will become more representative of true close calls in the rail environment.

This effort is meant to study the feasibility of a voluntary reporting program of close calls industry-wide and better understand key factors to consider in developing an implementation plan for such program.

2. Description of procedures for the collection of information.

There is no sample selection for this data collection. Theoretically, the C³RS will contain a census of all valid close calls that took place in the pilot sites during the duration of the C³RS demonstration project. However, since this data collection is completely voluntary, it will be difficult to ascertain the size of the true population of close calls in the test facilities. Given the design of this study, we know that we don’t have a representative sample of the universe of close calls; however, the reported data are still useful in our understanding of the nature of close calls without making overall inferences.

3. Describe the methods to maximize response rates, and describe how the Department deals with non-responses.

Steps have been taken to increase employee and carrier participation to this voluntary demonstration project. Those include:

1. Strong support from local management and local union leadership for the project,

2. BTS participation to assure data confidentiality,

3. For employees: protection from carrier discipline and/or decertification and FRA enforcement, if they report an event within 48 hours after its occurrence, and

4. For participating carriers/pilot sites: protection from FRA enforcement potentially arising from reported events.

4. Describe any tests of procedures or methods undertaken.

The C³RS reporting form is comprised of a small number of demographic fields (name, address, phone number, location, time of event) and a comment field for the employee to describe the close call event in their own words. The C³RS reporting form was pilot tested by two individuals at the North Platte facility. Completion time was reported to range between fifteen and twenty minutes. The form has been constructed based on experts in FRA and management and employees at Union Pacific. Similarly, the interview tool was developed using expert input from the participating PRTs, FRA and BTS.

5. Provide the name and telephone number of individuals consulted on the statistical aspects of the design and the name of the agency unit, contractor grantee, or other persons who will actually collect and/or analyze the information for the agency.

The team involved in the development of the C³RS data warehouse and data analysis is as follows:

Demetra Collia [email protected] 202 366-1610 Fen Lang 202 366-4456 [email protected] Charlie Han [email protected] 202 366-8927	Statistical expert, confidentiality officer, and project manager at the Bureau of Transportation Statistics – involved in providing project management, data processing, and data analysis. Senior programmer with MacroSys-- involved in database development and database management. Senior manager at MacroSys -- prime contractor for the development and staffing of the Confidential Close Calls Reporting System.

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