The Federal Railroad Administration and Technology
The Federal Railroad Administration creates and enforces rail safety regulations It also provides rail funding and researches rail improvement strategies.
FRA field inspectors employ discretion to decide which cases merit the precise and time consuming civil penalty process. This helps ensure that the most serious violations are punished.
SMART-TD and its allies made history in 2024 when they convinced the FRA that two people should be allowed to sit in the locomotive cabs of freight trains. The fight isn't over.
Safety
The Federal Railroad Administration implements a number of safety measures to ensure the health of its employees and public. It formulates and enforces rail safety regulations, administers rail funding and studies strategies for improving rail infrastructure and new technologies. It also develops, implements and maintains a plan for maintaining the current infrastructure and services for rail. It also develops and improves the rail network across the nation. The department requires all railroad employers to adhere to the strictest rules and regulations, and empower their employees and provide them with tools to succeed and stay secure. This includes participation in the secure close call reporting system, establishing labor-management occupational health and safety committees that have full union participation, as well as anti-retaliation protections and providing employees with personal safety equipment.
Inspectors of the FRA are at the forefront of enforcing safety on rail regulations and laws. They perform routine inspections on equipment and conduct investigations into hundreds of complaints. Anyone who is in violation of the safety rules for rail can be penalized civilly. The agency's safety inspectors have a broad discretion on whether an incident falls within the legal definition of a criminal penalty-worthy act. Additionally the Office of Chief Counsel's security division examines all reports submitted by regional offices for legality before determining penalties. This discretion is exercised at the field and regional levels to ensure that civil penalties are only used in situations that warrant them.
A rail employee must be aware of the rules and regulations that govern his or her actions and knowingly disregard those guidelines to commit a criminal offense that is punishable by a civil penalty. The agency doesn't consider that a person who acts in response to a supervisor's direction has committed a willful offence. The agency defines "general railroad system" as the whole network that carries goods and passengers between metropolitan areas and cities. A plant railroad's trackage in a steel mill is not considered to be part of the overall transportation system by rail even though it is physically connected to it.
Regulation
The Federal Railroad Administration is responsible for establishing train regulations including those related to safety and the transportation of dangerous substances. The agency also oversees rail financing, including grants and loans for infrastructure and improvements to service. The agency works with other DOT agencies as well as industry to develop strategies for improving the nation's rail system. This work includes maintaining current rail services and infrastructure and addressing the need for new capacity, strategically expanding the network, and coordinating regional and national systems planning and development.
The agency is primarily responsible for freight transportation, but also oversees passenger transport. fela lawsuit settlements aims to connect people to the destinations they desire and offer more options for travel. The agency's focus is on improving the experience of passengers, enhancing safety of the existing fleet, and ensuring that the rail system continues to operate efficiently.
Railroads are required to abide with a variety of federal regulations, which include those that deal with the size and composition of train crews. In recent years this issue has become controversial. Certain states have passed legislation that requires two-person teams on trains. This final rule defines federally the minimum size crew requirements, ensuring that all railroads adhere to the same safety standards.
This law also requires that each railroad operating with a crew of one notify FRA and submit an analysis of risk. This will allow FRA to better identify the specific parameters of each operation and compare them to those of a standard two-person crew operation. Additionally this rule will change the standard of review for an approval petition that is based on determining whether the operation is "consistent with railroad safety" to determining whether approving the operation is safe or safer than a two-crewmember operation.
During the period of public comment for this rule, a number of people voted for a requirement of a two person crew. A form letter sent by 29 people expressed their concern that a single crew member might not be as quick to respond to train-related malfunctions or crossing incidents, or assist emergency responders at a highway-rail grade crossing. Commenters noted that human factors are responsible for a majority of railroad accidents. They believe that a larger crew would ensure the security of the train and its cargo.
Technology
Trains for passenger and freight use a variety of technologies to improve efficiency, increase security, and increase safety. Rail industry jargon covers many distinct terms and acronyms. Some of the most prominent include machine vision systems (also called drones) instruments for rail-inspection systems, driverless train, rolling data centers, and unmanned aerial vehicles (also called drones).
Technology isn't just replacing certain jobs, it's also empowering people to do their job better and safer. Passenger railroads are using smartphone apps and contactless fare payment cards to increase ridership and improve the efficiency of the system. Other innovations like autonomous rail cars are getting closer to reality.
The Federal Railroad Administration, as part of its ongoing efforts to promote secure, reliable, and affordable transportation in America, is focused on modernizing the rail infrastructure. This is a multi-billion dollar project that will see tunnels and bridges repaired as well as tracks and power systems upgraded, and stations reconstructed or upgraded. The FRA's rail improvement program will be significantly extended by the recently passed bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
The agency's Office of Research, Development and Technology is a central element in this initiative. Recent National Academies review of the office revealed that it was successful in engaging with, maintaining communication and utilizing inputs from a range of stakeholders. It is still required to focus on how its research contributes to the department's primary goal of ensuring safe movement of goods and people by railways.
One area in which the agency might be able to improve its effectiveness is in identifying and assisting the development of automated train systems and technologies. The Association of American Railroads, the freight rail industry's primary industry organization that focuses on research, policy and standard setting, has established a Technical Advisory Group on Autonomous Train Operations to help in developing industry standards for the implementation of the technology.
The FRA is interested in the group’s creation of a taxonomy for automated rail vehicles, a system that defines clearly and consistently the different levels of automation. This would apply to rail transit as well as vehicles on the road. The agency would like to know the degree of risk that the industry is assessing with fully automated operation, as well as whether the industry is considering any additional measures to mitigate that risk.
Innovation
Railroads are using technology to improve worker safety, make business processes more efficient and ensure that the freight that they transport arrives at its destination intact. These innovations range from sensors and cameras that monitor freight to innovative railcar designs that keep hazardous cargo safe during transportation. Some of these technologies even offer railroads the ability to send emergency responders to locations of accidents so they can quickly mitigate the risks to property and lives.
Positive Train Control (PTC) is among the most important innovations in rail. It will keep train-to-train accidents out of the way, as well as situations when trains are in a position they shouldn't, and other incidents caused by human error. The system is comprised of three parts of onboard locomotive systems that track the train; wayside networks that communicate with the locomotive; and a huge server that collects and analyses data.
Passenger railroads are also embracing technology to improve safety and security. For instance, Amtrak is experimenting with drones to assist security personnel in finding passengers and other items aboard trains in case of an emergency. The company is also looking into different ways to use drones, including deploying drones to inspect bridges and other infrastructure, for example, replacing the lighting on railway towers that could be hazardous for workers to climb.
Smart track technology is another technology that is used in railways that transport passengers. It is able to detect people or objects on tracks and notify drivers that it is unsafe to continue. These technologies are particularly useful in detecting crossings that are not authorized or other problems in the evenings when the traffic is lower and there are less witnesses to an accident.
Telematics is yet another significant technological breakthrough in the railway industry. It lets railways, shippers, and other parties to track a traincar in real-time. Crews and railcar operators can benefit from greater accountability and visibility which can help them to increase efficiency and avoid unnecessary maintenance. It will also help reduce delays when delivering freight.