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The Federal Railroad Administration and Technology

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

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

SMART-TD members and allies made history in 2024 by pushing the FRA to ensure that two people are in the locomotive cab of freight trains. The fight is not over.

Safety

The Federal Railroad Administration implements a number of safety measures to protect the health of employees as well as the public. It is responsible for developing and enforcing rail safety regulations. It also oversees rail funding, and conducts research on rail improvement strategies and technological developments. It also creates and implements a plan to maintain current infrastructure, rail services and capacity, and strategically develops and enhances the national rail network. The department demands that all rail operators adhere to strict rules that empower their employees and provide them with the tools to be safe and successful. This includes a confidential close-call reporting system, setting up labor-management occupational safety and health committees that have full participation from unions and anti-retaliation clauses and providing employees with the required personal protective equipment.

Inspectors of the FRA are at the forefront of enforcing rail safety regulations and laws. They conduct regular inspections of equipment and conduct a myriad of investigations into complaints of noncompliance. Civil penalties may be applied to those who break railroad safety laws. The safety inspectors of the agency have broad discretion over whether an individual violation is in line with the legal definition of a criminal penalty-worthy act. The Office of Chief Counsel's safety division also scrutinizes the reports that regional offices submit to determine if they are legal prior to imposing penalties. The exercise of this discretion at the field and regional levels ensures that the exacting, time-consuming civil penalty process is used only in those situations that truly warrant the deterrent impact of a civil penalty.

To be convicted of a civil offense the employee of a rail company must be aware of the rules and regulations that govern his or her actions. They must also knowingly ignore these rules. The agency does not believe that a person who acts upon a directive from a supervisor has committed a willful offense. The agency defines the "general railroad system of transportation" as the whole network over which goods and passengers travel within cities and metropolitan areas and between them. The trackage of a plant railroad in a steel mill is not considered to be part of the overall transportation system that trains even though it is physically connected to it.

Regulation

The Federal Railroad Administration sets train regulations, ranging from those related to safety and the movement of hazardous materials. The agency is responsible for managing rail finance, including loans and grants for infrastructure and service improvement. The agency collaborates with other DOT agencies as well as industry to develop strategies to improve the rail system of the United States. This includes maintaining current rail services and infrastructure, in addition to addressing the need for additional capacity strategically expanding the network, and coordinating national and regional systems planning and development.

The agency is mostly responsible for freight transportation, but also oversees passenger transport. The agency aims to connect people to destinations they desire and offer more alternatives for travel. The agency is focused primarily on enhancing the experience for passengers, enhancing safety of the existing fleet and ensuring the rail network continues operating efficiently.

Railroads are required to comply with a range of federal regulations, which include those that deal with the size and composition of train crews. In recent times this issue has become controversial. Some states have passed legislation mandating two-person crews in trains. This final rule codifies federally the minimum crew size requirements, ensuring that all railroads adhere to the same safety standards.

This law also requires that each railroad that has a one-person crew notify FRA and submit a risk analysis. This will allow FRA to evaluate the characteristics of each operation with those of a two-person standard crew operation. This rule also changes the criteria for reviewing an approval request that is a special case from determining if an operation is "consistent" with railroad safety, to determining if the operation is as secure or safer than two-person crew operation.

During the public comment period for this rule, many people supported the requirement for a two-person crew. In a formal letter 29 people expressed their concern that a single crew member would not be able to respond with the speed required to respond to train accidents or malfunctions at grade crossings or assist emergency response personnel at a highway-rail level crossing. Commenters noted that human factor are responsible for a majority of railroad accidents. They believe that a larger team would ensure the safety of the train and its cargo.

Technology

Trains for passenger and freight use different technologies to increase efficiency, improve security, and increase safety. Rail industry jargon includes various specific terms and acronyms. Some of the most prominent include machine vision systems (also called drones) and rail-inspection systems that are instrumented, driverless train rolling data centers and unmanned aerial vehicles (also called drones).

Technology isn't merely replacing jobs -- it's empowering individuals to perform their work more efficiently and with greater security. Railroads that transport passengers are using smartphones apps and contactless fare payment cards to improve ridership and make the system more efficient. Other developments, like autonomous rail vehicles, are moving closer to becoming a reality.

The Federal Railroad Administration, as part of its ongoing efforts to ensure secure affordable, reliable, and secure transportation in America, is focused on modernizing the rail infrastructure. This is a multi-billion dollar effort that will see tunnels and bridges rebuilt as well as tracks and fela Lawyers power systems upgraded, and stations rebuilt or replaced. FRA's recently passed bipartisan infrastructure law will substantially grow the agency's rail improvement programs.

The Office of Research, Development and Technology of the agency is a crucial element in this effort. The National Academies' recent review of the office found that it excelled at engaging, maintaining communication with and using inputs from a wide range of stakeholders. It is still required to focus on how its research contributes towards the department's primary goal of ensuring safe movement of people and goods via rail.

The agency could enhance its effectiveness by identifying and supporting automated train systems and technologies. The Association of American Railroads, the primary freight rail industry organization that focuses on research, policy and standardization and has created a Technical Advisory Group on Autonomous Train Operations to assist in the development of industry standards for the implementation of the technology.

FRA is interested in the development of an automated rail taxonomy, a standard that will clearly and consistently define different levels of automation that will be applicable to both rail and on-road transit vehicles. The agency would like to know the amount of risk the industry sees in fully automated operation, and whether the industry is considering additional safeguards to reduce that risk.

Innovation

Rail companies are embracing technology to increase worker safety, improve efficiency in business processes, and ensure that the cargo they transport arrives at 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 transit. Some of these technologies provide a way for railroads to send emergency responders to locations of accidents so they can swiftly mitigate damage and reduce the risk to people and property.

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

Passenger railroads are also embracing technology to bolster security and safety. Amtrak is one example. It is experimenting with the use of drones to help train security staff find passengers and other items in an emergency. Amtrak is also investigating other possibilities to utilize drones, such as using drones to inspect bridges as well as other infrastructure, for example, replacing the lighting on railway towers, which could be hazardous for workers to climb.

Smart track technology is another technology that is used in passenger railroads. It is able to detect people or objects on tracks and warn drivers that it is unsafe to continue. These technologies are especially useful for detecting unauthorized crossings or other issues during the evenings when traffic is less and there are fewer witnesses to an accident.

Another important technological advancement in the rail industry is telematics which enables 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 greater accountability and visibility which can help them improve efficiency and avoid unnecessary maintenance. It will also help avoid delays when delivering freight.