Are You Getting The Most Out From Your Federal Railroad
The Federal Railroad Administration and Technology
The Federal Railroad Administration creates and enforces safety regulations for rail, provides rail funding and conducts research on strategies to improve rail infrastructure.
FRA inspectors on the ground employ discretion to determine which cases are worthy of the time-consuming and precise civil penalty process. This allows them to ensure that the most serious violations are punished.
SMART-TD and its allies made history by 2024 when they convinced the FRA that two persons should be allowed in the locomotive cabs of freight trains. The fight continues.
Safety
The Federal Employers’ Liability fela railroad Administration implements a variety of safety measures to safeguard the health of employees as well as the public. It creates and enforces safety regulations for rail, administers rail funding and researches rail improvement strategies and technology. It also creates plans, implements and maintains an action plan to maintain current rail services and infrastructure. It also expands and improves strategically the national rail network. The department expects all rail employers to adhere to strict rules and regulations, and empower their employees and provide them with the tools to succeed and stay secure. This includes taking part in the secure close call reporting system, establishing labor-management occupational health and safety committees with full union participation and anti-retaliation safeguards, and providing employees with the necessary personal protective equipment.
Inspectors of the FRA are at the forefront of enforcing safety on rail regulations and laws. They conduct routine inspections on equipment and investigate complaints from hundreds of people. Civil penalties are imposed on those who violate railroad safety laws. Safety inspectors at the agency have a wide discretion to determine if an act is within the definition provided by law of an act punishable with civil penalties. Additionally the Office of Chief Counsel's safety department reviews all reports that are received from regional offices to determine their legality prior to assessing penalties. The exercise of this discretion both at the regional and field levels ensures that the time-consuming, costly civil penalty process is utilized only in cases that truly warrant the deterrent impact of a civil penalty.
A rail worker must be aware of the rules and regulations that govern their actions, and not knowingly violate those rules to commit a criminal offense that is punishable by a civil penalty. However the agency doesn't consider anyone 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 whole network over which goods and passengers travel within cities and metropolitan areas, or between them. The trackage of a plant railroad in the steel mill is not considered to be part of the overall rail transportation system, despite the fact that it is physically connected.
Regulation
The Federal Railroad Administration is responsible for establishing train regulations, such as those relating to safety and the movement of dangerous substances. The agency also manages rail financing, including grants and loans for infrastructure and service improvements. The agency collaborates with other DOT agencies as well as industry to develop strategies for improving the rail system of the United States. This includes maintaining the current rail infrastructure and services, addressing the needs for additional capacity, expanding the network strategically and coordinating the regional and national system development and planning.
The agency is responsible for freight transport, but also supervises passenger transportation. The agency is working to connect people to the destinations they desire and offer more alternatives for travel. The agency's primary focus is on enhancing the experience for passengers, enhancing safety of the existing fleet, and ensuring that the rail network is operating 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 some states passing legislation to require 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 rule also requires each railroad that operates a single-person train crew to notify FRA of the operation and submit a risk assessment. This will allow FRA to better identify the specifics of each operation and compare them to those of a typical two-person crew operation. This rule also alters the standard for reviewing an approval request that is a special fela case settlements to determine if an operation is "consistent" with railroad safety to determining if the operation is safer or safer than two-person crew operation.
During the public comment period for this rule, a large number of people expressed support for the requirement for a two-person crew. In a formal letter 29 people expressed their concern that a single crewmember is not in a position to respond in a timely manner to incidents or train malfunctions at grade crossings or assist emergency personnel on an elevated highway crossing. Commenters pointed out that human factors are the reason for more than half all railroad accidents. They believe that a bigger crew will ensure the safety of the train as well as its cargo.
Technology
Trains for passenger and freight use a variety of technologies to improve efficiency, enhance security, and improve safety. The language used in the rail industry includes a variety of unique terms and acronyms, but some of the more significant developments include machines-vision systems, instrumented rail inspection systems, driverless trains, rolling data centers, and unmanned aerial vehicles (commonly known as drones).
Technology isn't just replacing certain jobs, it's also empowering individuals to perform their work better and safer. Passenger railroads use smartphones apps and contactless fare cards to increase passengership and boost the efficiency of their system. Other innovations such as autonomous rail cars are getting closer to becoming reality.
The Federal Railroad Administration, as part of its ongoing efforts to ensure secure, reliable, and affordable transportation in the United States is focusing on modernizing the rail infrastructure. This is a multi-billion dollars effort that will see bridges and tunnels rebuilt, tracks and power systems upgraded and stations rebuilt or replaced. The recently passed bipartisan infrastructure law will substantially grow the agency's rail improvement programs.
The agency's Office of Research, Development and Technology is a major element in this effort. The most recent National Academies review of the office revealed that it was successful in engaging, maintaining communication and using inputs of a wide range of stakeholders. However, it needs to focus more on how its research helps the department achieve its primary objective of ensuring the safe movement of people and goods by rail.
The agency could increase its effectiveness by identifying and implementing automated train systems and technologies. The Association of American Railroads (AAR), the primary industry association for the freight rail industry, which is focused on research policy, standard-setting and policy, established a Technical Advisory Group for Autonomous Train Operations to assist in helping create standards within the industry.
FRA will be interested in the group's development of an automated rail taxonomy. It is a system of standards to clearly and consistently define different levels of automation that would be applicable to both rail and on-road transit vehicles. The agency will also want to know the degree of risk to safety that the industry believes is associated with implementing fully automated operation and whether or not the industry is contemplating additional security measures to reduce the risk.
Innovation
Railroads are embracing technology to increase worker safety, make business processes more efficient, and ensure that the cargo that they transport arrives at its destination intact. Examples of this innovation include the use of sensors and cameras to track freight, to the latest railcar designs that keep hazardous cargo secure during transit. Certain of these technologies allow railroads to send emergency responders directly to the scene of an accident to reduce the danger and minimize the damage to property and people.
One of the most prominent innovations in rail is Positive Train Control (PTC) that will stop collisions between trains and train, situations where trains are on tracks where they shouldn't be and other accidents that result from human mistakes. This system is made up of three parts consisting of locomotives onboard that track the train; wayside networks that communicate with the locomotive; and a huge server that gathers and analyzes data.
Passenger railroads are also embracing technology to enhance safety and security. Amtrak for instance, is testing the use of drones to help train security staff locate passengers and items in the event of an emergency. The company is also looking into other ways to use drones, including deploying them to perform inspections of bridges and other infrastructure for example, replacing the lights on railway towers that could be hazardous for workers to climb.
Smart track technology is a different technology that is used in railways that transport passengers. It can detect objects or people on tracks and warn motorists that it is not safe to continue. These types of technologies are particularly useful in detecting crossings that are not authorized and other issues during off-hours, when traffic volumes are lowest and there are fewer people to witness an accident.
Another important technological advancement in the rail industry is telematics, which allows shippers, railroads and other stakeholders to monitor a traincar's status and condition via real-time tracking. Railcar operators and crews can benefit from increased accountability and visibility, which will help them to increase efficiency and avoid unnecessary maintenance. It will also help delay in the delivery of freight.