The Federal Railroad Administration

The Federal Railroad Administration is one of the DOT's 10 departments involved in intermodal transportation. Its mission is to enable the safe and secure transportation of goods and people.

FRA field inspectors inspect the railroad track, train control and signal systems as well operating practices. They also investigate complaints.

Definition

Federal railroads are the rail carriers in the United States controlled by the federal government. Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), which is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, develops and enforces regulations for railways and regulates funds for railroads, and conducts research to improve the efficiency of rail transportation. The FRA is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation's intermodal transportation division, and its chief executives are the Administrator as well as the Deputy Administrator.

The agency supervises all passenger and freight transportation that uses the nation's railway network. Additionally the agency is also involved in the rehabilitation of Northeast Corridor rail passenger service and consolidates support from the federal government for rail transportation. Moreover, the agency regulates the operation and ownership of all intermodal facilities such as tracks, right-of-way, equipment, real property and rolling stock, and also provides the overall coordination of federal rail transportation programs.

The FRA's responsibilities are to establish through regulation, following the opportunity for notice and comment, a process by anyone can submit a report to the Secretary of Homeland Security concerning railroad security issues or shortcomings. In addition, the agency creates policies and conducts inspections to determine compliance with its rail safety regulations in six technical disciplines that include track signals and train control, motive power and machinery operating practices, hazmat and highway-rail grade crossings.

The agency has the responsibility of ensuring that the railroad transportation system is safe, efficient and sustainable. This is why the agency requires railroads to provide a safe working environment and provide adequate training for their employees. The agency also sets and enforces railroad prices to ensure that the public is charged fair prices for transportation services.

The Federal Railroad Administration also enacts and implements rules to prevent discrimination towards railroad employees. They also shield whistleblowers against retaliation from railroad carriers. The agency also sets up a complaint procedure for railroad employees to make complaints about the conduct of the company.

The main goal of the agency is to facilitate the secure reliable and efficient movement of goods and people to ensure a secure America, now and in the future. The FRA accomplishes this by regulating rail safety, managing programs to assist railroads and conducting research to support better safety of railroads and national transportation policies, coordinating rail networking development and assisting the private sector manage railroads. In the past, railroads were huge monopolies, with no competition. The railroad industry abused its dominance in the market as a result. Hence, Congress established the Interstate Commerce Commission and other regulatory agencies to prevent the abuses committed by railroad monopolies.

Purpose

The federal employers’ liability railroad is a federal agency that sets regulations, manages rail funds and researches ways to improve the nation's rail transportation system. It manages the railway infrastructure of the United States and oversees freight and passenger railroads. It is one of the 10 agencies within the U.S. Department of Transportation. It is also responsible for maintaining and expanding the existing rail systems.

Safety is the main responsibility when it comes to rail transportation. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is in charge of this, and it has several divisions responsible for overseeing the country's passenger and freight rail operations. The largest of them is the Office of Railroad Safety, with approximately 350 safety inspectors and is responsible for conducting inspections to determine the compliance with regulations in six technical disciplines: track signals, train control, motive power and equipment, operating practices as well as hazmat and highway rail grade crossings.

FRA has several departments which include the Office of Railroad Policy and Development. This department oversees programs that aim to improve passenger and freight railway transport, including the Northeast Corridor Future. The department also is responsible for the grants that are made to railways and works with other agencies to plan for the nation's rail requirements.

The FRA also has a duty to enforce federal laws pertaining to railroads and workers. This includes preventing railroads from discriminate against workers and making sure that all injured railway staff are taken to the nearest hospital for treatment. Additionally, railroads are prohibited from denying or delaying medical treatment for injured railway employees.

The FRA is the main regulator of the rail passenger and freight industry, but other organizations manage the economic aspects of rail transportation. The Surface Transportation Board, for instance, is in charge of setting rates and governing the economics of the sector. It also has the authority to regulate mergers in the railroad industry lines sales, construction and abandonment. After an open consultation period the agency is responsible for establishing rules that allow anyone to file a complaint about any alleged safety issues with rail.

Functions

Railroads carry people and goods to and from cities in developed nations, as well as remote villages in less developed countries. They transport raw materials to manufacturing and processing factories, and then the final products from these facilities to warehouses and stores. Railroads are a vital mode of transportation for a variety of essential products, including coal, oil and grains. In 2020, freight rail carried over a quarter of the nation's total freight volume [PDF].

A federal railroad operates as a business just like other businesses with departments for marketing, operations, sales and an executive department. The department for marketing and sales talks with customers and potential clients to determine the services they require and what they will cost. The operations department then develops rail services that meet these needs at the lowest price possible to generate revenue for railroads. The executive department supervises the entire operation, ensuring that every department is operating efficiently.

The government provides support to railways with a variety means that include grants and subsidized rates on government-owned traffic. Congress also provides funds to support and construct new tracks and stations. These subsidies are usually in addition to the earnings the railroads receive from tickets and freight contracts.

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

A major role of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is developing and enforcing safety regulations for railroads. This includes regulating the mechanical state of trains, as well as the safety and health of railroad employees. FRA also collects data on security of rail lines to identify trends, areas that need improvement or regulatory attention and to determine trends.

In addition to these primary duties, FRA works on various other projects that aim to improve the economy and security of railway transportation in the United States. For instance, the agency is working to remove obstacles that could hinder railroads' introduction of positive train control systems (PTC). PTC is an emergency safety system that utilizes sensors and on-board computers to automatically stop the train when it is too close to another vehicle or other object.

History

The nation's first railroads were constructed in the 1820s and 1830s mostly in New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. The railroads accelerated industrialization and brought more food to the market in these regions. This made the country more independent and less dependent on imports.

In the latter part of the 19th century the railroad industry enjoyed an "Golden Age" during which new, more efficient rail lines were built and passenger transportation became popular. This was in large part due to the government's efforts to expand the railroad system. For instance, the government, gave homesteaders land grants in order to encourage them to move to the West. Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads also partnered to build the first transcontinental railway, which allowed travelers to travel from New York City to San Francisco within six days.

However in the first half of the 20th century, the demand for passenger railroad services declined and other modes of transport like airplanes and cars gained popularity, while stifling regulations hampered railroads' ability to compete economically. The industry was plagued by a series of bankruptcies, service cuts, and deferred maintenance. In addition, misguided federal railway regulations contributed to the decline of the railroad industry.

In the year 1970, the federal authorities began to ease the regulatory restrictions on railroads. Surface Transportation Board was created to oversee economic issues such as railroad rates and mergers. The Federal Railroad Administration was also established, which is responsible for establishing standards for rail safety and is one of the 10 agencies within the U.S. Department of Transportation that oversees freight and passenger transportation.

Since then, a great deal of investment has been made in the nation's railroad infrastructure. The Northeast Corridor has been rebuilt for instance, to accommodate faster and more modern high-speed ground transportation (HSGT). There have also been efforts to develop more efficient freight rail systems. FRA hopes to continue working with all transportation agencies to ensure the safety and reliability of rails in the near future. It is the responsibility of FRA to help make sure that the nation's transportation system operates as efficiently as it can.