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The Federal Railroad Administration and Technology

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

FRA field inspectors use discretion to decide on which cases merit the precise and time consuming civil penalty process. This helps ensure that the most serious violations are penalized.

SMART-TD and its allies created history in 2024 when they convinced the FRA that two people should be allowed in the locomotive cabs of freight trains. The fight continues.

Safety

The Federal Railroad Administration implements a variety of safety measures to protect the health of employees and public. It is responsible for developing and enforcing regulations for rail safety. It also oversees the funding for rail and conducts research on improvements to rail strategies and technology. It also develops and implements a strategy to maintain current infrastructure, rail services and capacity, and strategically develops and enhances the national rail network. The department demands that all rail employers adhere to strict regulations and firms empower their employees, and provide them with tools to ensure their safety and success. This includes taking part in the confidential close call reporting system, establishing labor-management occupational health and safety committees with full union participation, as well as anti-retaliation protections and providing employees with needed personal protective equipment.

FRA inspectors are at the forefront of enforcement of rail safety laws and regulations. They conduct routine inspections of equipment and investigate complaints from hundreds of people. Anyone who violates the rail safety laws could be penalized civilly. Safety inspectors from the agency have a broad discretion to determine if a violation falls under the legal definition of an offense that is punishable with civil penalties. The Office of Chief Counsel’s safety division also scrutinizes the reports that regional offices submit to determine if they are legal before assessing penalties. The exercise of this discretion at the regional and field levels ensures that the time-consuming, costly civil penalty process is utilized only in situations which truly warrant the deterrent impact of a civil penalty.

Rail employees must be aware of rules and regulations that govern his actions, and not knowingly violate those standards to commit a criminal offense that is punishable by a civil penalty. The agency does not consider an individual who acted in response to a supervisor's direction has committed a willful offense. The agency defines the "general railroad system of transportation" as the whole network that passengers and goods travel within cities and metropolitan areas, or between them. The trackage of a plant railroad at a steel mill is not considered part of the general transportation system by rail 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 also oversees rail financing which includes loans and grants for infrastructure and service improvements. The agency collaborates with other DOT agencies and the industry to develop strategies for improving the country's railroad system. This includes maintaining the current rail infrastructure and services, addressing the needs for new capacity, expanding the network strategically, and coordinating the national and regional system planning and development.

The agency is responsible for freight transportation, but also supervises passenger transportation. The agency aims to connect people with the places they'd like to visit and offer more alternatives for travel. The agency is focused on improving the passenger experience and enhancing the safety of the existing fleet, and making sure that the rail network is operating efficiently.

Railroads must abide by a variety of federal regulations, including those pertaining to the size of the crews on trains. In recent times, this issue has become a source of controversy. Some states have passed legislation mandating two-person teams on trains. This final rule establishes federally the minimum size crew requirements, making sure that all railroads adhere to the same safety standards.

This rule also requires each railroad that has one-person train crews to inform FRA of the operation and submit an assessment of risk. This will allow FRA to better understand the specifics of each operation and compare them with the typical two-person crew operation. This rule also changes the standard for reviewing a special approval request to determine if an operation is "consistent" with railroad safety, to determining if the operation is safer or less risky than a two-person crew operation.

During the public comment period for this rule, many people backed the requirement of a two-person crew. In a letter to the editor 29 people expressed their concern that a single member of the crew is not capable of responding with the speed required to respond to train malfunctions or incidents at grade crossings or assist emergency personnel on the highway-rail level crossing. The commenters pointed out that human factors account for more than half all railroad accidents and they think that a bigger crew will ensure the safety of the train and its cargo.

Technology

Freight and passenger rails use different technologies to improve efficiency, improve security, and increase safety. The rail industry lingo includes many unique terms and acronyms, however, some of the most significant 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 just replacing certain jobs -- it's empowering individuals to perform their work better and safer. Passenger railroads are using smartphones apps and contactless fare payment cards in order to boost ridership and improve the efficiency of the system. Other innovations, like autonomous rail vehicles, are inching closer to becoming reality.

As part of its ongoing efforts to advance safe, reliable and affordable transportation options for the country The Federal Railroad Administration is focused on modernizing its rail infrastructure. This multi-billion-dollar effort will see tunnels, bridges tracks, power systems, and tracks upgraded and stations renovated or replaced. The FRA's rail improvements program will be greatly expanded by the recently passed bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

The Office of Research, Development and Technology of the agency is a crucial part of this initiative. The most recent National Academies review of the office found it excelled at engaging with, maintaining communication and utilizing inputs of a wide range of stakeholders. But it still needs to be more focused on how its research helps the department achieve its primary strategic goal of ensuring the safe movement of goods and people by rail.

One area in which the agency may be able to increase its effectiveness is in identifying and assisting the development of automated train technology and systems. The Association of American Railroads, the primary freight rail business organization that is focused on research, policy, and standard-setting and has created a Technical Advisory Group on Autonomous Train Operations to assist in the development of industry standards to implement the technology.

FRA will be interested in the development of an automated rail taxonomy, which is a standardization system that can clearly and consistently define the different levels of automation that could be applicable to both rail and on-road transit vehicles. The agency will also need to understand the level of risk to safety that the industry believes is associated with implementing fully automated operation and whether or not the industry is contemplating additional protections to minimize the risk.

Innovation

Rail companies are adopting technology to enhance worker safety, increase efficiency in business processes, and ensure that the freight they transport arrives at its destination in good condition. These innovations vary from cameras and sensors that monitor freight to innovative railcar designs that help keep dangerous cargo safe during transit. Some of these technologies even provide a way for railroads to send emergency responders to the scene of an accident so they can quickly mitigate the damage and reduce the risk to people and property.

One of the most renowned innovations in rail is Positive Train Control (PTC) which will prevent collisions between trains and train, situations where trains are on tracks where they shouldn't be, as well as other accidents that are caused by human errors. This system consists of three parts: onboard locomotive systems which track the train; wayside networks which communicate with the locomotive and a huge server that gathers and analyzes data.

Passenger railroads are also embracing technology to bolster security and safety. Amtrak, for example, is experimenting with the use of drones to assist train security staff locate passengers and other items in the event of an emergency. The company is also looking into other ways to use drones, including deploying drones to conduct inspections of bridges and other infrastructure like replacing the lights on railway towers, which could be hazardous for workers to climb.

Other technologies that could be utilized for passenger railroads include smart track technology, which is able to detect the presence of people or objects on the tracks and send a warning to drivers if it's unsafe to travel. These types of technology are especially beneficial in detecting unsafe crossings and other issues during off-hours, when traffic levels are lower and fewer people are around to witness an accident.

Telematics is a significant technological advance in the rail industry. It lets railways, shippers, and other stakeholders to monitor a traincar in real-time. These capabilities provide railcar operators and crews greater accountability and transparency and aid in improving efficiency, prevent unnecessary maintenance and avoid delays in delivering freight to customers.