The Federal Railroad Administration

The Federal Railroad Administration is one of the DOT's 10 departments involved in intermodal transportation. Its purpose is to ensure secure and reliable transportation of both people and goods.

FRA field inspectors regularly inspect railroad tracks, signals and train control systems, as well as operating practices. They also investigate complaints.

Definition

Federal railroads are rail carriers in the United States controlled by the federal government. Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is a part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, develops and enforces railway regulations as well as manages funds from railroads and conducts research to improve railway transportation. The FRA is one of 10 agencies of the U.S. Department of Transportation that are concerned with intermodal transportation, and its chief executive officers are the Administrator and Deputy Administrator.

The agency is responsible for all freight and passenger transport that uses the rail network of the United States. The agency also coordinates the federal employers liability act funding for rail transportation and assists in the rehabilitation of Northeast Corridor passenger service. The agency also regulates ownership and operation of intermodal facilities, like tracks, rights of way equipment, real estate, and rolling stock. It also oversees federal rail transportation programs.

FRA's duties also include establishing, through regulation and after an opportunity for comment an procedure that anyone can notify the Secretary Homeland Security any railroad security problems or issues. The agency also develops policies, conducts inspections and assesses compliance with its railroad laws in six technical disciplines, which include track signal, track, and train control as well as motive power and equipment; operating procedures; hazmat and highway-rail grade intersections.

The agency has the responsibility of ensuring that the railroad transportation system is operating in a safe, economical, and environmentally friendly manner. The agency also requires railroads maintain a safe work environment and provide adequate training for their employees. The agency also sets and enforces railroad prices to ensure that the public is billed in a fair manner for transportation services.

In addition the Federal Railroad Administration enacts and enforces regulations to prevent discrimination against railroad employees and also protects whistleblowers from retaliation by railroad carriers. The agency also establishes a procedure for railroad employees to file complaints about the company's conduct.

The main goal of the agency is to facilitate the secure, reliable, and efficient transportation of goods and people for a strong America today and into the future. The FRA accomplishes this by overseeing the regulation of rail safety, managing railroad assistance programmes and conducting research in support of better safety of railroads and national transportation policy as well as coordinating the development of rail networks and assisting private companies manage railroads. In the past, railroads were large monopolies, with no competition. As a result, the industry often abused its position in the market. Congress established the Interstate Commerce Commission, as along with other regulatory agencies, to curb railroad monopolies' abuses.

Purpose

The federal railroad is a government agency that makes regulations, manages rail funds and studies ways to improve the nation's rail transportation system. It operates the railway infrastructure of the United States and manages passenger and freight railroads. It is one of the 10 agencies of the U.S. Department of Transportation. It is also charged with maintaining and expanding current rail systems, ensuring the ability of the rail industry to meet the growing travel and freight demands and providing leadership in national and regional system planning.

The government's primary responsibility in the rail transportation industry is safety. The Federal Railroad Administration is responsible for this. It has a number of divisions that supervise the country's passenger and freight rail operations. The Office of Railroad Safety is the largest of these with approximately 350 inspectors. It is responsible for conducting safety inspections in six different technical disciplines, which include track, signal, and train control, motive and equipment, operating procedures, hazmat and highway-rail grade crossings.

FRA has additional departments, including the Office of Railroad Policy and Development. This department oversees programs that aim at improving freight and passenger railway transport, including the Northeast Corridor Future. This department is responsible for the grants given to railways, and collaborates with other agencies to plan the nation's rail requirements.

Another important function of the FRA is the enforcement of federal laws regarding railroads and their employees. This includes stopping railroads from discriminating against workers and ensuring that all railway employees injured are provided with transportation to the nearest hospital for first aid treatment. Railroads are also prohibited from delay or refuse medical treatment for injured railway employees.

The FRA is the main regulator of the passenger and freight railway industries, but there are other organizations that oversee the economic aspects of rail transport. Surface Transportation Board is responsible for determining rates and governing economics in the sector. It is also the regulator for railroad mergers, line-sales construction and abandonment. After a period of public consultation the agency is responsible for establishing rules that permit anyone to report any suspected rail safety violations.

Functions

Rails transport goods and people from and to cities in developed countries as and villages in countries that are less developed. They transport raw materials from manufacturing and processing facilities, and then finished goods from these facilities to stores or warehouses. Rail is an essential mode of transportation for a number of essential commodities including grains, oil, and coal. In 2020, freight railroads carried more than a quarter of the freight in the United States [PDF(PDF).

A federal railroad operates just like any other company, with departments for marketing and sales, operations and an executive department. The marketing and sales department talks with customers and potential clients to determine the services they require and what they will cost. The operations department then develops the rail services that meet these needs at the lowest cost to earn money for the railroad. The executive department supervises the entire operation and ensures that each department is running efficiently.

The government provides support to railways in various ways including grants, to subsidised rates for shipping government traffic. Congress also provides funds to help construct new tracks and stations. These subsidies are often in addition to the revenue the railroads earn from tickets and freight contracts.

In the United States, the government has the passenger railway Amtrak. It is a quasi-public for profit corporation with a large stockholder, which is the United States government.

A major function of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is establishing and enforcing safety regulations for railroads. This includes regulating the mechanical conditions of trains, as well as the health and safety of railroad employees. FRA also collects and analyzes data on rail safety in order to identify patterns and areas that might need improved or increased regulatory attention.

FRA also participates in other projects that help improve the economy and safety of railroad transportation in the United States. For instance, FRA is working to eliminate obstacles that can hinder railroads in implementing positive train control (PTC). PTC is a security technology that utilizes sensors and computers on board to stop a train in the event that it is too close to an object or vehicle.

History

In the 1820s-1830s the first railroads in the United States were built, primarily in New England and Mid-Atlantic. The railroads accelerated industrialization and brought more food products to the market in these regions. This allowed the country become more independent and less dependent on imports.

In the latter part of the nineteenth century the railroad industry was experiencing a "Golden Age," during which many new trains that were more efficient were built, and passenger travel by train became popular. The government's efforts to expand the railroad system were an important factor. For instance the government offered homesteaders land grants to encourage them to move to the West and the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads worked together to complete the first transcontinental railroad, which allowed travel from New York to San Francisco in just six days.

In the first half century however the demand for rail passenger services declined, and other modes of transportation such as cars and planes became more popular. However, stifling regulations stifled railroads' economic ability to compete. A series of bankruptcies, service cuts and deferred maintenance was the next step. In addition, misguided federal railway regulation contributed to the demise of the industry.

Around 1970 the federal government started to loosen the regulatory burdens on railroads. The Surface Transportation Board was established to oversee economic aspects of the industry such as railroad rates and mergers. The Federal Railroad Administration, which oversees passenger and freight transportation and sets rail safety standards was also established.

Since then, a great amount of money has been made in the country's railway infrastructure. The Northeast Corridor has been rebuilt, for instance, to allow for faster and more modern high-speed ground transportation (HSGT). Efforts have also been made to create more efficient freight rail systems. FRA hopes to continue to work with all transportation agencies to ensure reliable and safe rails in the future. FRA's mission is to ensure that the nation's transportation system is running as efficiently as possible.