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The Federal Railroad Administration and Technology

The Federal Railroad Administration creates and enforces rail safety regulations, provides rail funding and researches rail improvement strategies.

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

Allies and members of SMART-TD made history in 2024 when they began pushing the FRA to keep two people in the cabs of locomotives of freight trains. The fight continues.

Safety

The Federal Railroad Administration has a variety of safety measures in place to safeguard the safety and health of employees and the public. It creates and enforces regulations for rail safety as well as manages funding for rail and researches strategies for improving rail and technologies. It also creates, implements and maintains a plan for maintaining the current infrastructure and services for rail. It also develops and improves the national rail network. The department expects all rail companies to abide by strict rules and regulations, empower their workers and provide them with the tools to succeed and stay safe. This includes taking part in the secure close call reporting system, establishing occupational health and safety committees, with full participation from unions and protection against retaliation and providing employees with needed personal protection equipment.

Inspectors of the FRA are at the forefront of enforcing rail safety regulations and laws. They conduct regular inspections of equipment and conduct hundreds of investigations into complaints of non-compliance. Civil penalties may be applied to those who break the rail safety laws. Safety inspectors from the agency have wide discretion to determine whether an act is within the legal definition of an act that is punishable with civil penalties. The Office of Chief Counsel’s safety division also reviews all reports that regional offices submit to ensure that they are legal before assessing penalties. This discretion is exercised at the field and regional levels to ensure that civil penalties are only used in situations that warrant them.

To be guilty of a civil offense an employee of a railroad must be aware of the rules and regulations that govern their actions. They must also be aware of and disregard these standards. fela railroad settlements does not 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 over which goods and passengers travel within cities and metropolitan areas and between them. The trackage of a plant railroad in a steelmill is not considered to be part of the general rail transportation system, even though it is physically connected.

Regulation

The Federal Railroad Administration is responsible for establishing train regulations that pertain to safety and the transportation of hazardous substances. The agency also manages financing for rail which includes loans and grants for improvements to infrastructure and service. The agency collaborates with other DOT agencies as well as industry to develop strategies to improve the rail system of the United States. This includes ensuring the current rail infrastructure and services, addressing the needs for additional capacity, expanding the network strategically, as well as coordinating the regional and national system's planning and development.

While most of the agency's activities are focused on freight transportation, it also oversees passenger transportation. The agency is aiming to provide more options for passengers and connect people to the places they want to travel to. The agency is focused on improving the passenger experience and improving the safety of the current fleet, and making sure that the rail network continues to operate efficiently.

Railroads must abide by a variety of federal regulations, relating to the size of the crews on trains. In recent years the issue has been a source of contention. Some states have passed legislation mandating two-person crews in trains. This final rule establishes federally the minimum size of crew requirements, making sure that all railroads follow the same safety standards.

This rule also requires that each railroad operating with a crew of one notify FRA and submit an analysis of risk. This will allow FRA to better identify the specifics of each operation and compare them to those of a normal two-person crew operation. Additionally this rule will change the standard of review for the special approval petition from determining whether the operation is "consistent with railroad safety" to determining whether approving the operation is safer or more secure than a two-crewmember operation.

During the time of public comment for this rule, a lot of people voiced their support for a requirement of two people on the crew. A letter from 29 people outlined their concerns that a lone crewmember could not be as quick to respond to train malfunctions or grade crossing incidents or assist emergency response personnel at a highway rail grade crossing. Commenters noted that human factor are responsible for a majority of railroad accidents. They believe that a larger crew would ensure the security of the train and its cargo.





Technology

Freight and passenger rails employ various technologies to increase efficiency, improve security, and improve safety. The rail industry lingo contains a myriad of distinct terms and acronyms but some of the most notable developments include machine vision systems, instrumentsed 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 better and safer. Railroads for passengers use apps on smartphones and contactless fare cards to boost ridership and increase the efficiency of their system. Other innovations like autonomous rail cars are moving closer to reality.

The Federal Railroad Administration, as part of its ongoing efforts to improve safe reliable, affordable, and cost-effective transportation in America, is focused on modernizing the rail infrastructure. This is a multi-billion-dollar effort that will see tunnels and bridges restored as well as tracks and power systems upgraded, and stations rebuilt or replaced. The recently passed bipartisan infrastructure law will dramatically increase the agency's rail improvement programs.

The Office of Research, Development and Technology of the agency is an essential component in this effort. The most recent National Academies review of the office found that it excelled in engaging, maintaining communication and using inputs of a wide range of stakeholders. But it still needs to focus more on how its research aids in the department's main strategic goal of ensuring the safe movement of people and goods via rail.

One area where the agency might be able improve its effectiveness is by identifying and assisting the development of automated train systems and technologies. The Association of American Railroads, the primary freight rail industry organization that focuses on research, policy and standard-setting and has created a Technical Advisory Group on Autonomous Train Operations to help develop industry standards for the implementation of the technology.

The FRA is interested in the development of a taxonomy to describe 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 need to know the level of risk the industry is assessing with fully automated operation, as well as whether the industry is considering any additional safeguards to reduce that risk.

Innovation

Rail companies are embracing technology to improve worker safety, increase efficiency in business processes, and ensure that the freight they transport arrives at its destination intact. Examples of this kind of innovation range from the use of cameras and sensors to keep track of freight, and to new railcar designs that keep dangerous cargo safe during transit. Certain of these technologies allow railroads to send emergency response personnel to the scene of an accident so they can quickly mitigate the damage and reduce the risk to property and lives.

One of the most renowned innovations in rail is Positive Train Control (PTC) which will prevent train-to-train collisions, situations where trains are on tracks that shouldn't be, as well as other accidents that result from human errors. This system is a three-part process consisting of locomotives onboard that track the train and wayside networks that communicate with the locomotive, and a huge backend server that gathers and analyzes data.

Passenger railroads also embrace technology to improve security and safety. For instance, Amtrak is experimenting with drones to aid security staff in locating passengers and other items aboard trains in case in the event of an emergency. Amtrak is also investigating different 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.

Smart track technology is a different technology that is used in passenger railroads. It is able to detect objects or people on tracks and alert drivers if it is unsafe to continue. These kinds of technologies are particularly beneficial in detecting unsafe crossings and other problems during off-hours, when traffic levels are lower and there are fewer people around to witness an accident.

Telematics is a significant technological breakthrough in the railway industry. It allows shippers, railways and other parties to track a traincar in real-time. Crews and railcar operators can benefit from greater accountability and visibility which can help them increase efficiency, avoid unnecessary maintenance and delay in the delivery of freight.