Appeals Court Ruling Blocks Family’s Federal Lawsuit in PATCO Train Death Case
The family of a South Jersey transit worker who died in a train accident lost when a federal appeals court ruled that PATCO is not a railroad. The family cannot use a vital federal railroad worker statute to pursue their claim.
At PATCO’s Lindenwold Yard in July 2020, 76-year-old technician John Schroeder was crushed between two rail carriages. After the incident, his daughter Dawn Tucker sued PATCO and the Delaware River Port Authority under the Federal Employers Liability Act. Railway workers have long sought compensation for working injuries and deaths under this provision.
The Third Circuit concluded that PATCO is not a federal “common carrier by railroad”. The justices ruled that the federal courts had no jurisdiction over the Speed Line system because FELA does not apply. To continue litigation, Schroeder’s estate must file state-level claims.
Circuit Judge Thomas Ambro exempted PATCO’s Speed Line from FELA because it “bears little resemblance to a railroad”. A municipal transit service, PATCO is not part of the national freight or passenger rail network, the court noted.
The 14.5-mile Speed Line between Philadelphia and Lindenwold, New Jersey, opened in 1969. Though it operates 24/7 and serves 5 million people yearly, it does not transport freight, share rails, or connect to interstate rail lines. The appeals court recognized that PATCO only used a rail spur track for maintenance over 10 years ago, not freight.
Tucker and her lawyers claimed that PATCO’s limited spur track use and linkages to other transportation systems made it a federal railroad. The court ignored those concerns and equated the agency to a local subway, not a railroad.
The ruling maintains a lower federal court’s jurisdiction dismissal. It also emphasizes courts’ difference between commuter transit and FELA-covered railroads. The judgment forces Schroeder’s family to sue under state law rather than federal law, which is devastating.
Lawyers for the estate and transit agency did not immediately comment on the verdict. FELA may not cover transit workers and their families if accidents occur on systems that do not meet the federal definition of a railroad, making the case significant.
This case underscores the limited application of federal railroad safety and compensation requirements and the need for legal standards in fatal workplace occurrences to evaluate worker rights. Since PATCO runs heavy rail equipment, it is a transport company, not a railroad.
Sources
Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion
Delaware River Port Authority Records
Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA) Provisions
