Amusement ride accident lawyers note a promising development in the area of amusement park ride safety. ASTM International, a global leader in the development of voluntary safety compliance standards, has begun an initiative to develop standards to govern amusement railway trains.
You might not know that many of the harmless looking amusement train rides you see at transportation museums, zoos, carnivals, and other places are not yet governed by a cohesive set of safety standards. Many of these railway rides are assembled and run by train enthusiasts and hobbyists who may be exacting on matters of scale and historical detail, but who might not be well versed in the safety requirements for running the trains for other peoples’ amusement.
If you worry that “voluntary” standards sound like they won’t do much to ensure your safety on the trains, consider that throughout the amusement ride industry, many of the already existing safety standards are voluntary ones. But owners and operators seek to comply with the voluntary standards to avoid the costly liabilities associated with failures to comply. Accidents from amusement rides of all types are surprising rare. But when they do occur, amusement ride accidents tend to be particularly serious, causing gruesome and deadly injuries.
ASTM seeks to address the problems and dangers posed by a lack of cohesive standards governing amusement railway trains. Accidents on such amusement railway rides are relatively rare, but they can be fatal. ASTM’s subcommittee on Special Rides and Attractions is focusing on the development and delivery of international voluntary consensus standards in two major categories affecting amusement railway rides.
1. Practice for Amusement Ride Steam Locomotives (ASTM wk31185), and
2. Practice for Amusement Railway Ride Tracks, Devices, and Facilities (ASTM wk 35400).
The standards intend to provide owners and operators of amusement railway rides with a handy reference that they can use to operate, maintain, and inspect their railway rides. A generally accepted and followed body of standards could allow the train system owners and operators to better ensure the safety of their employees and guests.
The final ASTM standards will cover roadways, rails, rail joints, ties, turnouts and other equipment related to the operation of the amusement railway rides. ASTM wk35400 will apply to the design, manufacture, installation, operation, maintenance, and inspection of “permanently installed amusement railway ride tracks and their associated devices and facilities.”
ASTM has invited all interested parties to help participate in the development of the two amusement railway ride standards. The owners and operators of amusement railway rides will be the primary users of the standards. Their employees and guests will be the primary beneficiaries of the standards.
Good standards could help avert such needless tragedies as occurred at the Texas Transportation Museum in San Antonio when a worker was killed during operation of one of the amusement railway rides. But even with the best, most comprehensive standards, human error and mechanical failure can still lead to sudden accidents.
If you’ve been injured or lost a loved one to an amusement ride accident and you have questions, contact our amusement ride accident lawyers for a free consultation. We have answers and solutions that could help you obtain just financial compensation for your injuries and cope with the aftermath of a devastating accident.