The Federal Railroad Administration and Technology

The federal Employers’ liability Railroad Administration is responsible for the safety of rail, regulations and enforcement, as well as funding for rail, and research on improving rail strategies.

FRA field inspectors employ discretion to decide which cases warrant the exact and time-consuming civil penalty process. This helps ensure that the most serious violations are punished.

SMART-TD, along with its allies, made history in 2024 when they convinced the FRA that two persons should be in the cabs of freight trains. The fight continues.

Safety

The Federal Railroad Administration has a range of safety measures in place to ensure the health and welfare of its employees and the general public. It formulates and enforces rail safety regulations, administers rail funding and researches rail improvement strategies and new technologies. It also formulates and implements a plan to maintain current infrastructure, services, and capacity, and strategically develops and enhances the national rail network. The department requires that all rail operators adhere to strict guidelines, 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 occupational health and safety committees, with full union participation, as well as anti-retaliation protections and providing employees with the necessary personal protection equipment.

Inspectors of the FRA are at the forefront of enforcing safety on rail regulations and laws. They conduct regular inspections of equipment and conduct a myriad of investigations of complaints of noncompliance. Civil penalties are applied to those who break rail safety laws. The safety inspectors of the agency are able to decide on the extent to which an incident falls within the statutory definition of a civil penalty-worthy act. The Office of Chief Counsel's safety division also scrutinizes the reports submitted by regional offices to determine if they are legal before assessing penalties. This discretion is exercised at the field and regional levels to ensure that civil penalties are only used when they are necessary.

A rail worker must be aware of the rules and regulations that govern his actions and knowingly disregard those standards to commit a civil penalty-worthy offense. The agency doesn't consider 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 entire system that passengers and goods travel within metropolitan and city areas or between them. The trackage of a plant railroad in a steel mill is not considered part of the general rail system of transportation, even although 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 oversees railway finance, including grants and loan for infrastructure and service improvement. The agency works with other DOT agencies and industry to develop strategies to improve the nation's rail system. This work includes maintaining current rail services and infrastructure and addressing the need for new capacity and strategically expanding the network, as well as coordinating regional and national systems planning and development.

Although the majority of the agency's work is focused on freight transportation, it also oversees the transportation of passengers. The agency is working to provide more options for passenger travel and connect people with the places they would like to travel to. The agency's focus is on improving the experience of passengers as well as enhancing the safety of its current fleet, and making sure that the rail network is operating efficiently.

Railroads must comply with many federal regulations, including those pertaining to the size of crews on trains. This issue has become an issue of contention in recent years, with a few states passing legislation that requires two-person crews on trains. This final rule codifies the minimum size of crew requirements at an international level, and ensures that all railroads are subject to the same safety standards.

This law also requires that each fela railroad accident lawyer that has a one-person crew notify FRA and submit an analysis of risk. This will allow FRA to identify the specifics of each operation and compare them to the standard two-person crew operation. This rule also alters 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 safer or more secure than a two-person crew operations.

During the public comment period for this rule, a lot of people backed a two-person crew requirement. A form letter sent by 29 people expressed their concern that a single crew member might not be as quick to respond to train malfunctions or grade crossing incidents, or assist emergency responders at a highway-rail grade crossing. Commenters pointed out that human factors are responsible for more than half all railroad accidents. They believe that a bigger crew could ensure the safety of the train as well as its cargo.

Technology

Railroads that transport passengers and freight employ various technologies to increase efficiency, improve security, increase safety and much more. The rail industry vernacular includes many unique terms and acronyms, but some of the more notable developments 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 only able to replace certain jobs. It helps people perform their jobs more effectively and safer. Passenger railroads are using smartphone apps and contactless fare payment cards to improve ridership and make the system more efficient. 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 for the entire nation The Federal Railroad Administration is focused on modernizing its rail infrastructure. This multi-billion dollar project will see bridges, tunnels tracks, power systems, and tracks updated, and stations renovated or replaced. FRA's recently enacted bipartisan infrastructure law will significantly grow the agency's rail improvement programs.

The agency's Office of Research, Development and Technology is a major component of this effort. The National Academies' recent review of the office concluded that it excelled in engaging, maintaining communication with and using inputs from a variety of stakeholders. It must continue to be aware of how its research contributes to the department's primary objective of ensuring the safe movement of people and goods by railways.

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

The FRA is interested in the group's development of a taxonomy for automated rail vehicles, a system that defines clearly and consistently different levels of automation. This would apply to both rail transit and on-road vehicles. The agency will want to know the amount of risk that the industry perceives with fully automated operation, and if the industry is contemplating any additional safeguards to minimize that risk.

Innovation

Rail companies are adopting new technologies to increase worker safety, increase efficiency in business processes, and ensure that the cargo they transport is delivered intact. Examples of such technological advancement vary from the use cameras and sensors to monitor freight, to new railcar designs that help keep hazardous cargo secure during transit. Some of these technologies allow railroads dispatch emergency personnel directly to the scene of an accident to minimize risk and damage to people and property.

One of the most well-known innovations in rail is Positive Train Control (PTC) which will prevent collisions between trains and trains, situations in which trains are on tracks that shouldn't be and other accidents that are caused by human mistakes. This system is a three-part process consisting of locomotives onboard that track the train, wayside networks that communicate with the locomotive, and an enormous backend server that collects and analyzes data.

Trains for passengers are also adopting technology to improve security and safety. For instance, Amtrak is experimenting with the use of drones to assist passenger security personnel in finding passengers and other items onboard trains in the event in an emergency. The company is also looking into different ways to use drones, for instance, using them to perform inspections of bridges as well as other infrastructure, such as replacing the lights on railway towers, which could be dangerous for workers to climb.

Other technologies that can be utilized for railways for passengers include smart track technology, which is able to detect the presence of people or objects on the tracks and issue a warning to drivers if it's unsafe to proceed. These technologies are particularly effective in detecting unsafe crossings or other issues in the evenings, when traffic is low and there are fewer witnesses to an accident.

Another important technological advancement in the rail industry is telematics, which allows railroads, shippers and other stakeholders to see the status and condition of a traincar through real-time tracking. These capabilities provide railcar operators and crews greater control and visibility. They can also help them improve efficiency, prevent unnecessary maintenance and avoid delays in delivering freight to customers.