56-446.1 - Limitations on passenger rail transportation liability.
§ 56-446.1. Limitations on passenger rail transportation liability.
A. As used in this section, unless the context requires otherwise:
"Authority" means a political subdivision of the Commonwealth that iscomprised of two transportation commissions of the Commonwealth collectivelyengaged in providing, directly or indirectly, passenger rail transportationservices to the general public.
"Claim" means a claim, action, suit, or request for damages, whethercompensatory, punitive, or otherwise, made by or on behalf of any railpassenger arising out of the provision of passenger rail services against anauthority or a railroad, against a member of an authority's governing body,or against a director, officer, employee, affiliate engaged in railroadoperations, or agent of an authority or a railroad, for property damage,personal injury, bodily injury, or death.
"Passenger rail services" means the transportation of rail passengers by oron behalf of an authority, and all related services performed by a railroador an authority, including services performed by a railroad on behalf of anauthority, pursuant to a contract with the authority arising from or inconnection with the transportation of rail passengers.
"Railroad" means a railroad company or railroad corporation that hasentered into any contracts or operating agreements of any kind with anauthority for the provision of passenger rail services.
B. An authority may contract with any railroad to allocate financialresponsibility for claims against the railroad or the authority arising fromor in connection with any incident or accident of any kind related to theprovision of passenger rail services, which may include but not be limited toexecuting indemnity agreements, notwithstanding any other statutory, commonlaw, public policy, or other prohibition against same, and regardless of thenature of the claim or the conduct giving rise to such claim.
C. The aggregate liability of the authority and any applicable railroad,including the authority or railroad's governing board, directors, officers,employees, affiliates engaged in railroad operations, or an agent of anauthority, for all claims of rail passengers arising from a single incidentor accident of any kind involving passenger rail services or incidentalservices related thereto for property damage, personal injury, bodily injury,and death shall be limited to $250 million per single incident or accident.
D. This section shall not affect the damages that may be recovered under theFederal Employers' Liability Act of 1908 (45 U.S.C. § 51 et seq.), as amended.
E. This section shall not affect the damages that may be recovered for aclaim if it can be shown that the accident or injury occurred as a result ofwillful and wanton conduct, felonious criminal conduct, or gross negligenceon the part of the railroad.
F. The limitation on aggregate liability provided in this section shall bemodified each year, beginning in January, 2011, and continuing each Januarythereafter, by adjusting the amount of the limitation by a percentage equalto the percentage change in the medical care component of the Consumer PriceIndex, as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over that componentpublished for the previous December.
G. The Virginia Division of Risk Management shall be designated to examinethe history of claims made and amounts recovered against the Virginia RailwayExpress arising from or in connection with the provision of passenger railservice in the Commonwealth, and to provide a complete review of thosefindings to the General Assembly by November 30, 2010.
(2006, cc. 774, 807.)