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A close call is an accident or other safety incident that could have happened but did not. If ignored, close calls can lead to serious consequences. They are an opportunity to improve safety practices. Minor incidents are included in this definition.

The WMATA CCDP, a collaboration with the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), is a project to improve safety practices in transportation. Close call events are potentially unsafe conditions that pose the risk of more serious consequences. By studying close calls, preventative safety actions can be developed that can prevent the risk of accidents. The Close Call Reporting program with WMATA is a part of CCDP that has been designed to help adapt a confidential reporting system to the needs of the U.S. transportation industry. Stakeholders of the Close Call Reporting program with WMATA include ATU L-689, IBT L-922, OPEIU Local 2, WMATA, and BTS.

WMATA, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, is the transit agency participating in the Close Call Reporting program. WMATA works with the other stakeholders (ATU L-689, IBT L-922, BTS, and the PRT) to review reports from the peer review team and take preventative safety actions in response to close call events.

ATU L-689 is the labor organization that represents rail and bus transit employees who are eligible to participate in the Close Call Reporting program. ATU L-689 representatives are part of the Close Call Steering Committee and the Peer Review Team.

IBT L-922 is the labor organization that represents the bus transit employees who are eligible to participate in the Close Call Reporting program. IBT L-922 representatives are part of the Close Call Steering Committee and the Peer Review Team.

OPEIU Local 2 is the labor organization that represents the professional, technical, administrative, and clerical WMATA employees who are eligible to participate in the Close Call Reporting program. OPEIU Local 2 representatives are part of the Peer Review Team.

BTS is a federal agency within the U.S. Department of Transportation that serves as an independent third party in collecting, analyzing, and maintaining the confidential close call data collected from WMATA employees. BTS identifies safety trends and emerging risks from this data. Then, BTS shares this information with WMATA and the transit industry by writing and distributing publications.

The PRT consists of local representatives from WMATA rail and bus transit infrastructure management, union officers and members, WMATA Safety management, and BTS. The team promotes the Close Call Reporting program at WMATA, identifies why close calls occur, recommends preventative safety actions, and evaluates the effectiveness of preventative safety actions that have been implemented.

The CCSC includes representatives from program stakeholders (WMATA, ATU L-689, IBT L-922, and BTS) and oversees the Close Call Reporting program. The CCSC developed the program's Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The committee coordinates with BTS and the PRT to make sure WMATA's Close Call Reporting program is consistent with other programs within BTS's Close Call Data Program (CCDP).

The MOU is a document written for a specific site (in this case, WMATA) to describe the purpose and administrative structure of the project. The MOU defines the roles and responsibilities of all parties (WMATA, ATU L-689, IBT L-922, OPEIU Local 2, and BTS).

The confidential reporting system:

• provides an environment in which WMATA rail and bus transit employees can report close calls voluntarily and confidentially, without the fear of discipline.
• accepts close call reports.
• stores confidential data.
• analyzes close calls to identify trends in close calls and new sources of risk as well as preventative safety actions that address these trends and new sources of risk.
• disseminates reports on trends in close calls, new sources of risk, and preventative safety actions taken to increase safety for WMATA operations and the transit industry at large.
• tracks WMATA's reports on preventative safety actions to measure the program's impact on safety.

Close Call Reporting gives the opportunity to learn what happened in close call events. That information can be used to prevent similar and/or more serious events from occurring. The confidential and non-punitive nature of Close Call Reporting results in improved trust and partnerships, and employees have more time to focus on running safe operations as fewer investigations take place. Overall, Close Call Reporting increases safety awareness in the transit industry.

Information from your close call report makes the work environment safer and healthier for you and your co-workers. From your close call report, WMATA can identify and correct factors that contribute to accidents and/or injuries.

All WMATA employees (represented and non-represented) are eligible to participate in the Close Call Program. Only ATU L-689, IBT L-922, and OPEIU Local 2 employees are eligible for discipline protection, though.

Employees included in Close Call Reporting can report any safety concern. Reports are accepted for any condition or event that is perceived as potentially endangering employees, the public, equipment, or the environment. Any concern about one's own safety or someone else's safety at work can be reported. Each close call report must contain sufficiently detailed information about a safety event so that BTS can evaluate it.

Reports are rejected if they are:

• unrelated to the safety of WMATA's transit infrastructure operations.
• urgent real-time issues (e.g. a runaway train).
• grievances related to a safety event that has already been filed pursuant to the parties' Collective Bargaining Agreement.
• Employee individualized accommodation requestions (ADA, EOC, etc.).

Events are not protected if:

• the employee's action or lack of actionw as intended to damage WMATA's operations or equipment, injure other employees, or purposely place others in danger (i.e. sabotage).
• the event involved a criminal offense.
• the event involved substance abuse or the inappropriate use of controlled substances.
• the close call report contains falsified information.
• the event resulted in a transit agency accident/incident.
• the event caused or allegedly caused any injury and/or illness of any kind to any person involved.
• the event resulted in an identifiable release of hazardous material.
• the event was a real-time observation reported to WMATA by a WMATA supervisor, employee or customer. A real-time observation means that the employee must be informed, or attempted to be informed, of the observed violation by a WMATA supervisor within 4 hours from the time of the observation for rail operations and within 12 hours from the time of the observation for bus operations. WMATA may use event recorder information to support discipline.

The following events specific to rail operations do not qualify for Close Call Reporting:

• station overrun of more than one door leaf
• exceeding the limits of an absolute or permissive block
• Red Signal Violations by train or work equipment
• wrong side door opening

In addition, events specific to bus operations that are related to rollaway buses involving the operator's failure to follow procedures for proper vehicle securement are not accepted for this program.