The Federal Railroad Administration and Technology
The Federal Railroad Administration creates and enforces rail safety regulations, provides rail funding and conducts research on strategies to improve rail infrastructure.
FRA inspectors on the ground make use of discretion to decide which cases are worthy of the time-consuming and precise civil penalty process. This allows them to ensure that those violations most deserving of punishment are punished.
SMART-TD and its allies created history in 2024 when they convinced the FRA that two persons should be in the cabs of freight locomotives. trains. The fight is not over.
Safety
The Federal Railroad Administration has a range of safety measures in place to ensure the safety and health of employees and the public. It creates and enforces safety regulations for rail as well as manages funding for rail and researches strategies for improving rail and new technologies. It also formulates and implements a strategy to ensure the current infrastructure, services, and capacity, and strategically develops and improves the nation's rail network. The department expects all rail employers to adhere to strict rules and regulations, empower their employees and provide them with the tools to succeed and stay secure. This includes participating in the confidential close call reporting system, setting up labor-management occupational health and safety committees with full union participation, as well as anti-retaliation protections and providing employees with the necessary personal protective equipment.
FRA inspectors are at the forefront of enforcement of railway safety regulations and laws. They conduct routine inspections of equipment and conduct investigations into hundreds of complaints. Civil penalties can be imposed on those who violate railroad safety laws. The agency's safety inspectors have broad discretion over whether a particular violation meets the statutory definition of a crime that is punishable by civil penalties. In addition the Office of Chief Counsel's safety division reviews all reports that are received from regional offices to determine their legality prior to assessing penalties. The exercise of this discretion both at the regional and field levels helps ensure that the time-consuming, costly civil penalty process is used only in cases that truly warrant the deterrent effect of a civil penalty.
Rail employees must be aware of rules and regulations that govern his or her actions and knowingly disregard those rules to commit a civil penalty-worthy offense. However fela claims doesn't take any person who acts under a directive by a supervisor as having committed an intentional violation. The agency defines "general railroad system" as the entire network that carries goods and passengers between metropolitan areas and cities. The trackage of a plant railroad in a steel mill is not considered part of the general transportation system that trains, even though it is physically connected to it.
Regulation
The Federal Railroad Administration is responsible for establishing regulations for trains, such as those relating to safety and the transportation of dangerous substances. The agency also manages rail financing, including grants and loans for infrastructure and service improvements. The agency works with other DOT agencies as well as industry to devise strategies to improve the nation's rail infrastructure. This includes maintaining existing rail infrastructure and services, 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 manages passenger transportation. The agency is working to provide more options for passengers and connect people with the places they'd like to go. The agency's primary focus is on enhancing the experience for passengers and enhancing the safety of the existing fleet and ensuring the rail network is operating efficiently.
Railroads must adhere to a number of federal regulations, relating to the size of crews on trains. In recent years this issue has become controversial. Some states have passed legislation that requires two-person teams on trains. This final rule outlines the minimum size of crew requirements at the federal level, making sure that all railroads are held to the same safety standards.
This law also requires that each railroad that has a one-person crew notify FRA and submit an analysis of risk. This will allow FRA to compare the parameters of each operation to those of a two-person standard crew operation. In addition, this rule changes the review standard for a special approval petition from determining whether an operation is "consistent with railroad safety" to determining if approving the operation is secure or as safe as an operation with two crew members.
During the public comment period for this rule, a lot of people backed the requirement for a two-person crew. In a letter to the editor, 29 people expressed their concerns that a single crewmember would not be able to respond as quickly to train malfunctions or incidents at grade crossings, or assist emergency response personnel at an elevated highway crossing. The commenters pointed out that human factors are responsible for more than half of all railroad accidents and they believe that a larger crew would help ensure the safety of both the train and its cargo.
Technology
Railroads that transport passengers and freight employ various technologies to increase efficiency, improve safety, boost security and more. The language used in the rail industry includes a variety of unique terms and acronyms, but some of the more notable developments include machine vision systems, instrumentsed rail inspection systems, driverless trains rolling data centers, and drones that are not piloted (commonly called drones).
Technology isn't just about replacing certain jobs. It empowers people to perform their jobs better and safer. Passenger railroads are using smartphones apps and contactless fare payment cards to increase ridership and improve the efficiency of the system. Other innovations, such as autonomous rail vehicles, are moving closer to becoming reality.
As part of its ongoing efforts to ensure secure, reliable and affordable transportation options for the country 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 upgraded and stations being rebuilt or replaced. The FRA's rail improvement program will be substantially extended by the recently passed bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
The agency's Office of Research, Development and Technology is a major piece in this effort. Recent National Academies review of the office found it excelled at engaging with, maintaining communication and utilizing inputs from a variety of stakeholders. But it still needs to be more focused on how its research aids in the department's main objective of ensuring the safe transportation of goods and people by railway.
One area in which the agency might be able to increase 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 standardization and has created a Technical Advisory Group on Autonomous Train Operations to help develop industry standards to implement the technology.
The FRA is interested in the group's creation of a taxonomy for automated rail vehicles which defines clearly and consistently the different levels of automation. This would apply to both rail transit and vehicles on the road. The agency would like to know the level of risk the industry sees in fully automated operation, and whether the industry is contemplating any additional safeguards to minimize the risk.
Innovation
Rail companies are adopting new technologies to increase worker safety, improve efficiency in business processes and ensure that the cargo they transport reaches its destination in good condition. These innovations range from sensors and cameras that monitor freight, to new railcar designs which keep hazardous cargo safe during transit. Some of these technologies allow railroads to send emergency responders directly to accident sites to minimize the risk and damage to people and property.
Positive Train Control (PTC) is one of the most significant developments in rail. It will stop train-to-train accidents, instances where trains are on track they shouldn't, and other incidents caused by human error. This system is a three-part system comprised of onboard locomotive systems that track the train, wayside networks that communicate with the locomotive, and a massive backend server that collects and analyzes data.
Railroads that transport passengers also use technology to increase safety and security. Amtrak is one example. It is experimenting with the use of drones to assist security personnel on trains find passengers and other items in an emergency. The company is also examining ways to use drones. They could be used to inspect bridges and other infrastructure, or to replace the lights on railway towers that are dangerous for workers to climb.
Other technologies that can be used for railways for passengers include smart track technology, which can detect the presence of people or objects on the tracks and send a warning to drivers if it's unsafe for them to proceed. These technologies are particularly useful in detecting crossings that are not authorized or other problems in the evenings when traffic is less and there are fewer witnesses to an accident.
Another significant technological advance in the rail industry is telematics which allows shippers, railroads and other stakeholders to see the condition and status of a traincar by real-time tracking. Such capabilities give railcar operators and crews better accountability and transparency and assist them in improving efficiency, prevent unnecessary maintenance and avoid delays in delivering freight to customers.