WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a full committee hearing on Securing the Nation's Rail and Other Surface Transportation Networks.

Witness List:

Panel I

The Honorable David Heyman, Assistant Secretary for Policy, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Mr. Stephen M. Lord, Director of Homeland Security and Justice Issues, U.S. Government Accountability Office 

Mr. Carlton Mann, Assistant Inspector General for Inspections, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General

Panel II

Mr. John J. O’Connor, Vice President and Chief of Police, Amtrak Police Department

Mr. Skip Elliott, Vice President - Public Safety & Environment, CSX Transportation

Mr. Joseph Kelly, Acting Chief of Police, New Jersey Transit 

Key Quotations from Today’s Hearing:

“Our surface transportation system is part of our everyday lives in big cities and small towns, connecting states like West Virginia to the wider world and building powerful new opportunities, but its vast and open nature makes it that much harder to secure. And despite an increased focus on surface transportation security, I still believe TSA and every level of government, along with the private sector, must redouble their efforts. Our enemies are focused and determined. We must focus our efforts and resources on making sure an attack is never successful.”

Chairman John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV

“It’s not clear that we are meeting our obligations to keep our passenger rail systems, our freight networks and other surface transportation networks protected. The bottom line is, we cannot afford to be anything less than vigilant about rail security—and that’s why we will keep working to do what it takes to make sure our families, the traveling public, and all Americans are safe.”

Senator Frank R. Lautenberg, Chairman, U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security

“The nation’s surface transportation infrastructure is a vast, open system of interdependent networks that continually moves millions of passengers and millions of tons of commodities. The network and its four subsectors are critical to our economic well-being and our way of life. The security of this system is a shared responsibility among many governmental and private sector entities, including DHS.”

The Honorable David Heyman, Assistant Secretary for Policy, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

“TSA has developed national strategies for each surface transportation mode, but using targeted, outcome-oriented performance measures could enable TSA to better monitor the effectiveness of these strategies and programs that support them.”

Mr. Stephen M. Lord, Director of Homeland Security and Justice Issues, U.S. Government Accountability Office

“In our mass transit report, we identified important challenges to improve transit rail security, meet the needs of mass transit authorities, and comply with legislation, which expanded TSA’s statutory authority and responsibility. In our review of the Surface Transportation Security Inspector program, we concluded that TSA needed to look critically at how it is deploying resources.”

Mr. Carlton Mann, Assistant Inspector General for Inspections, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General

“The reasons are simple and clear. Surface transportations systems are open and densely packed with people. These systems are a big part of people’s daily routine. The whole point of terror is shock, and nothing produces shock like unexpected and horrifying attacks. The pattern is unmistakable.”

Mr. John J. O’Connor, Vice President and Chief of Police, Amtrak Police Department

“CSXT and the Industry recognize the complexity of challenges faced by both the government and American business in ensuring the safe and secure movement of people and products in a post-9/11 World. We also recognize that government responsibility, first and foremost, is to protect the public. Yet, it is also important that DHS react to the new security environment with sound regulatory policies that do not impede the free flow of commerce.”

Mr. Skip Elliott, Vice President - Public Safety & Environment, CSX Transportation

“We know that we cannot place a police officer on every corner of our system. However, force multipliers are desperately needed to protect our passengers. To that end, we have focused our efforts on technology advancement, coordination, force augmentation and education.”

Mr. Joseph Kelly, Acting Chief of Police, New Jersey Transit

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