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The Federal Railroad Administration and Technology

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

FRA field inspectors use discretion to decide which cases are worthy of the precise and time-consuming civil penalty process. This allows them to ensure that the most serious violations are punished.

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

Safety

The Federal Railroad Administration has a variety of safety measures in place to safeguard the health and welfare of employees and the public. It formulates and enforces regulations for rail safety, administers rail funding and researches strategies for improving rail and technology. It also formulates and implements a strategy to ensure that current rail services, infrastructure and capacity and strategically expands and improves the national rail network. The department requires all rail employers to adhere to the strictest rules and regulations, empower their workers and provide them with tools to succeed and stay secure. This includes participating in the confidential close-call reporting system, setting up labor-management occupational safety and health committees that have full-union participation and antiretaliation provisions and providing employees with the needed personal protective equipment.

Inspectors of the FRA are at the forefront of enforcing rail safety regulations and laws. They conduct routine inspections of equipment and conduct a multitude of investigations of complaints of noncompliance. Those who violate the safety rules for rail can be penalized civilly. Safety inspectors from the agency have a broad discretion to determine whether a violation falls under the legal definition of an offense that is punishable with civil penalties. In addition the Office of Chief Counsel's security division examines all reports submitted by regional offices to determine legality prior to assessing penalties. This discretion is exercised both at the field and regional levels to ensure that civil penalties are only used in situations that warrant them.

Rail employees must be aware of rules and regulations that govern his actions and be aware of the guidelines to commit a civil penalty-worthy offense. However the agency does not consider any individual who is acting under a direction from a supervisor as having committed an intentional violation. The agency defines the "general railroad system of transportation" as the entire network over which goods and passengers travel within metropolitan and city areas and between them. The trackage of a plant railroad in a steelmill is not considered to be part of the overall rail transportation system, even though it is physically connected.

Regulation

The Federal Railroad Administration is responsible for establishing regulations for trains including those related to safety and the transportation of hazardous substances. The agency is responsible for managing rail finance, which includes grants and loan for service and infrastructure improvement. The agency collaborates with other DOT agencies as well as industry to develop strategies for improving the nation's rail system. This includes maintaining the current rail infrastructure and services, addressing the needs for capacity expansion, expanding the network strategically and coordinating regional and national system's development and planning.

The agency is responsible for freight transportation, but also supervises passenger transportation. The agency is working to offer more options for passengers and connect people to the places they'd like to go. The agency is focused primarily on improving the passenger's experience, enhancing safety of the current fleet, and making sure that the rail system continues to operate efficiently.

Railroads must abide by a variety of federal regulations, including those pertaining to the size of crews on trains. This issue has become a controversial one in recent years, with a few states enacting legislation that requires two-person crews on trains. This final rule outlines the minimum size of crew requirements at an international level, and ensures that all railroads are held to the same safety standards.

This also requires every railroad that has one-person train crews to inform FRA of the operation and submit an assessment of risk. This will enable FRA to compare the parameters of each operation with the parameters of a standard two-person crew operation. In addition this rule alters the review standard for a special approval petition from to determining whether an operation is "consistent with railroad safety" to determining if approving the operation would be as safer or more secure than an operation with two crew members.

During the public comment period for this rule, a large number of people expressed support for a two-person crew requirement. In a formal letter 29 people voiced their concern that a single crewmember is not able to respond in a timely manner to incidents or train malfunctions at grade crossings, or assist emergency personnel on a highway-rail level crossing. Commenters emphasized that human factors are responsible for a majority of railroad accidents. They believe that a larger team will ensure the security of the train and its cargo.

Technology

Railroads that transport passengers and freight employ numerous technologies to improve efficiency, add security, improve safety and much more. The language used in the rail industry includes a variety of distinct terms and acronyms however, some of the most notable innovations include machines-vision systems, instrumented rail inspection systems, driverless trains, rolling data centers and drones that are not piloted (commonly called drones).

Technology isn't just replacing certain jobs -- it's empowering individuals to perform their work more efficiently and with greater security. Railroads that transport passengers use smartphones and contactless fare cards to boost ridership and increase the efficiency of their system. Other innovations, such as autonomous rail vehicles, are moving closer to reality.

The Federal Railroad Administration, as part of its ongoing efforts to improve secure, reliable, and affordable transportation in America, is focused on modernizing the railway infrastructure. This is a multi-billion dollar effort that will see tunnels and bridges repaired as well as tracks and power systems upgraded, and stations rebuilt or upgraded. The FRA's rail improvements program will be significantly extended by the recently passed bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

The agency's Office of Research, Development and Technology is a major element in this effort. The National Academies' recent review of the office found that it was successful in engaging, maintaining communications with and using inputs from a variety of stakeholders. It must continue to consider how its research contributes towards the department's primary objective of ensuring the safety of goods and people by railways.

The agency could improve its efficiency by identifying and supporting automated train systems and technology. The Association of American Railroads, the freight rail industry's primary association that focuses on policy, research and standardization the Technical Advisory Group on Autonomous Train Operations to help develop industry standards to implement the technology.

FRA is interested in the development of an automated rail taxonomy, which is a standardization system that can clearly and consistently define the different levels of automation that could be applicable to both on-road and rail transit vehicles. The agency will also want to understand the level of safety risk that the industry believes is associated with implementing fully automated operation and whether or not the industry is considering adding additional safeguards to mitigate that risk.

Innovation

Rail companies are adopting technology to enhance worker safety, improve efficiency in business processes and ensure that the freight they transport is delivered in good condition. These innovations vary from cameras and sensors that monitor freight to innovative railcar designs that keep hazardous cargo safe during transport. Some of these technologies offer railroads the ability to send emergency responders to locations of accidents so they can swiftly mitigate damage and minimize risk to property and lives.

One of the most renowned innovations in rail is Positive Train Control (PTC) which will prevent collisions between trains and train, situations where trains are on tracks they shouldn't be, and other accidents resulting from human error. This system consists of three parts consisting of locomotives onboard that track the train; wayside networks which communicate with the locomotive and a massive server that collects and analyses data.

Trains for passengers are also adopting technology to improve security and safety. Amtrak for instance, is testing the use of drones to assist train security staff locate passengers and other items in the event of an emergency. The company is also examining ways to make use of drones. They could be used to examine bridges and other infrastructures or to replace the lights on railway towers that are dangerous for workers to climb.

Other technologies that can be utilized for passenger railroads include smart track technology, which is able to detect the presence of people or objects on the tracks and send out drivers with a warning if it's unsafe for them to proceed. These kinds of technologies are particularly useful in detecting crossings that are not authorized as well as other issues that can arise in the off-hours, when traffic volumes are lowest and there are fewer people to witness an accident.

Another important technological breakthrough in the rail industry is telematics, which allows railroads, shippers and other stakeholders to monitor the status and condition of a traincar through real-time tracking. Crews and railcar operators can benefit from increased accountability and transparency which will allow them to improve efficiency as well as avoid unnecessary maintenance and reduce delays when delivering freight.