CSX receives public safety award for emergency response tool

CSX has been recognized for excellence in public safety by the National Alliance for Public Safety GIS Foundation.

The Class I received the foundation's 2016 Award of Excellence in Public Safety for the "CSX Rail Respond" mobile-computing application, which provides emergency responders mobile access to information about commodities traveling on CSX rails in near-real time.

David Hartman, former battalion chief of the fire department in Charlottesville, Va., nominated CSX for the award. The app "is a dream come true for incident commanders as it directly and immediately impacts the safety and effectiveness of our responders," he said in a press release issued by CSX.

The app allows emergency responders to determine the exact contents of any rail car on a CSX train, as well as emergency response information and recommendations for protective action distances. The system is accessible from any Android, iOS or Windows mobile device, tablet or desktop computer, so responders can access the information while en route to an incident or once they arrive on scene.

The service is free to first responders, as are the training and response tools provided by CSX.

"CSX's Rail Respond mobile application is successful due to a collaborative effort between CSX and our emergency first response partners that incorporated their feedback and usage needs into the development of this tool," said Skip Elliott, CSX vice president of public safety, health and environment. "The future success of this and similar systems is founded on our ability to continue working with those partners and listening to their feedback."

In November 2015, Progressive Railroading profiled the app in an online feature.