15 Surprising Facts About Federal Railroad The Federal Railroad Administration and Technology

The Federal Railroad Administration creates and enforces rail safety regulations, provides rail funding and studies strategies for improving rail safety.

FRA field inspectors use discretion to determine which cases merit the precise and time-consuming civil penalty process. This discretion helps ensure that those violations most deserving of punishment are punished.

SMART-TD members and allies have made history in 2024 by pushing the FRA to keep two people in the cabs of locomotives of freight trains. The fight is not over.

Safety

The Federal Railroad Administration implements a variety of safety measures to ensure the health of employees and public. It creates and enforces safety regulations for rail, administers rail funding and studies strategies for improving rail infrastructure and technology. It also formulates and implements a plan to ensure that current infrastructure, rail services and capacity, and strategically develops and improves the nation's rail network. The department requires that all rail companies adhere to strict regulations and empower their employees, and provide them with the tools to be safe and successful. This includes taking part in the confidential close call reporting system, establishing labor-management occupational health and safety committees, with full union participation, as well as protection against retaliation and providing employees with needed personal protective equipment.

Inspectors of the FRA are at the forefront of enforcing safety on rail regulations and laws. They conduct routine inspections of equipment and conduct investigations into hundreds of complaints. Those who violate the safety rules for rail can be penalized civilly. Safety inspectors at the agency have wide discretion to determine if an act is within the legal definition of an offense that is punishable by civil penalties. The Office of Chief Counsel's safety division also reviews all reports that regional offices submit to ensure they are legal prior to imposing penalties. This discretion is exercised at the field and regional levels to ensure that civil penalties are only applied in cases that warrant their use.

A rail employee must be aware of the rules and regulations that govern their actions and knowingly disregard those standards to be guilty of a civil penalty-worthy offence. However, the agency does not take any person who is acting under a direction from a supervisor as having committed an intentional violation. 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 the steel mill isn't considered part of the general rail system of transportation, even although 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 manages rail finance, which includes loans and grants for infrastructure and service improvement. The agency collaborates with other DOT agencies and industry to develop strategies to improve the rail system of the United States. This includes maintaining the current rail infrastructure and services, addressing the needs for additional capacity, expanding the network strategically and coordinating the regional and national system's planning and development.

While most of the agency's work focuses on freight transportation, it also handles passenger transportation. The agency is aiming to provide more options for passenger travel and connect people with the places they want to travel to. The agency is focused on enhancing the passenger experience, enhancing the safety of the existing fleet, and making sure that the rail network continues to operate efficiently.

Railroads must comply with a variety of federal regulations, including those that deal with the size and composition of crews on trains. This is an issue of contention in recent years, with a few states passing legislation that requires two-person crews on trains. This final rule establishes federally the minimum size of crew requirements, making sure 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 understand the specific parameters of each operation and compare them to those of a normal two-person crew operation. In addition this rule will change the criteria for reviewing an approval petition that is based on to determining whether an operation is "consistent with railroad safety" to determining whether the operation is safe or safer than a two-crewmember operation.

During the public comment period on this rule, many people backed the requirement of a two-person crew. In a form letter 29 people expressed their concern that a single crew member would not be in a position to respond with the speed required to respond to train malfunctions or incidents at grade crossings, or assist emergency personnel on a highway-rail level crossing. The commenters pointed out that human factors account for more than half of all railroad accidents and they believe that a larger crew will ensure the safety of the train and the cargo it transports.

Technology

Freight and passenger railroads employ numerous technologies to enhance efficiency, add security, increase safety and much more. The rail industry vernacular includes many unique terms and acronyms, but some of the most significant developments include machine vision systems, instrumented rail inspection systems, driverless trains, rolling data centers, and drones that are not piloted (commonly called drones).

Technology doesn't just replace some jobs. It empowers people to do their jobs better and with greater security. Railroads that transport passengers are using smartphones apps and contactless fare payment cards to increase ridership and make the system more efficient. Other developments like autonomous rail cars are coming closer to reality.

As part of its ongoing effort to advance safe, reliable and affordable transportation for the nation In its ongoing effort to ensure safe, reliable and affordable transportation for the nation, the Federal Railroad Administration is focused on modernizing its rail infrastructure. This multi-billion dollar project will see tunnels, bridges tracks, power systems, and tracks updated and stations renovated or replaced. The recently passed bipartisan infrastructure law will substantially grow the agency's rail improvement programs.

The agency's Office of Research, Development and Technology is a key element in this initiative. Recent National Academies review of the office found it excelled at engaging in a continuous dialogue and utilizing the inputs from a variety of stakeholders. It still needs to consider how its research contributes to the department's primary objective of ensuring safe movement of people and goods by railways.

One area where the agency may be able improve its effectiveness is by identifying and assisting the development of automated train systems and technologies. The Association of American Railroads (AAR) is the principal industry association for the freight rail industry, which is focused on research, policy and standard setting and has established a Technical Advisory Group for Autonomous Train Operations to help create standards within the industry.

The FRA is interested in the group’s development of a taxonomy to describe automated rail vehicles which defines clearly and consistently different levels of automation. This could apply to both rail transit and vehicles on the road. The agency would like to know the degree of risk that the industry sees in fully automated operation, and whether the industry is considering any additional safeguards to minimize that risk.

Innovation


Rail companies are adopting technology to enhance worker safety, boost efficiency in business processes, and ensure that the freight they transport reaches its destination in good condition. These innovations vary from cameras and sensors that monitor freight to innovative railcar designs that keep hazardous cargo safe during transportation. Some of these technologies allow railroads send emergency responders directly to accident sites to reduce the danger and minimize the damage to property and people.

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 accidents caused by human errors. This system consists of three parts consisting of locomotives onboard that track the train; wayside networks which communicate with the locomotive; and a huge server that collects and analyses data.

Trains for passengers are also adopting technology to enhance safety and security. Amtrak is one example. It is experimenting with drones to assist security personnel on trains locate passengers and other items in the event of an emergency. The company is also exploring ways to utilize drones. They could be used to check bridges and other infrastructure or to replace the lighting on railway towers that are dangerous for workers to climb.

Other technologies that can be utilized for railways for passengers include smart track technology that can detect the presence of people or objects on the tracks and send out drivers with a warning if it's unsafe to proceed. These types of technologies can be particularly valuable for detecting unauthorized crossings and other issues during times when traffic is at its lowest and there are fewer people to witness an accident.

Telematics is yet another significant technological advance in the rail industry. It lets railways, shippers, and other stakeholders, to follow a traincar's progress in real-time. fela claims railroad employees and railcar operators can benefit from increased accountability and transparency which can help them to improve efficiency and avoid unnecessary maintenance. It will also help avoid delays when delivering freight.