The purpose of this chapter is to introduce the reader to the human factors concerns of the railroad enterprise as it exists in the United States and Canada and to provide an overview of human factors research related to railroads. The railroad enterprise is complex and, in many ways, distinct from other forms of transportation. Differences found between railroading and other modes are arguably more profound in internal organization and tradition than in equipment and technologies. Because of this, a significant portion of this chapter is given over to a description of context. Understanding this context is critical in understanding the need for and relevance of the human factors research cited. We also cover research concerns and efforts in a number of key areas, including safety legislation versus regulation, safety and productivity, perceived versus measured safety, close call confidential reporting, the social environment of the U.S. railroad industry, operator fatigue and alertness, locomotive ergonomics and cab design, the locomotive engineers' and dispatchers' roles, remotely controlled locomotives, and trespassing and grade-crossing accidents.The railroad, one of the basic technologies that drove the Industrial Revolution and a key to the continuing development of industrialized nations, is a very specialized world. It has traditions, rules, working conditions, and human performance requirements that are qualitatively different from those in other industries. For these reasons, in the first part of this chapter, we provide an extensive contextual background of the railroad enterprise.Internationally, the human role in the railroad enterprise is both broad and varied, but the context of this chapter will be limited to U.S. operations. Where relevant, the international research will be discussed. Wilson and Norris (2005) provided a good overview of railroad human factors from the British and European perspectives.Arguably, today's railroad represents the most integrated system of any transportation mode. Unlike in other modes, safe and efficient operation depends entirely on a tightly coupled operational approach:• Railways are different from all other transport systems in that the routes of the trains are determined by the road, not by the driver. Trains cannot take evasive action or move to avoid each other. Speed cannot be reduced abruptly, and stops cannot usually be made in the distance visible to the driver when the train is moving at normal speed (Calvert, 2005). • Railroad operations require the synchronized contributions of train crews, dispatchers, maintenance-of-way workers, traffic planners, train crews, and signalmen, among others. The level of individual-and often independent-decision making found in aviation, maritime, and highway operation is not possible in railroad operations. Whereas this inherently required integration has been widely recognized, taking a human-centered systems approach 148 at GEORGIAN COURT UNIV on April 5, 2015 rev.sagepub.com Downloaded from Railroad Human Factors nic...