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The Federal Railroad Administration and Technology The Federal Railroad Administration creates and enforces rail safety regulations It also provides rail funding and researches rail improvement strategies. FRA field inspectors employ discretion to decide on which cases warrant the exact and lengthy civil penalty process. This ensures that those violations most deserving of punishment are punished. fela settlements of SMART-TD and their allies have made history in 2024 by pushing the FRA to allow two people in the cabs of locomotives 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 establishing and enforcing rail safety regulations. It also administers the funding for rail and studies rail improvement strategies and technological developments. It also formulates and implements a plan to ensure that current infrastructure, services, and capacity, and strategically develops and improves the nation's rail network. The department requires that all rail companies adhere to strict guidelines that empower their employees and provide them with the tools to be safe and successful. This includes participating in the secure close call reporting system, setting up occupational health and safety committees that have full union participation and protection against retaliation and providing employees with personal safety equipment. FRA inspectors are on the front lines of enforcement of rail safety laws and regulations. They conduct routine inspections of equipment and conduct hundreds of investigations into complaints of non-compliance. Anyone who is in violation of the safety rules for rail can be subject to civil penalties. The agency's safety inspectors have a broad discretion on whether an incident falls within the statutory definition of a crime that is punishable by civil penalties. The Office of Chief Counsel's safety division also examines all reports that regional offices submit to ensure they are legal before assessing penalties. The exercise of this discretion both at the field and regional levels helps ensure that the time-consuming, costly civil penalty process is applied only in situations that are truly deserving of the impact of a civil penalty. To be convicted of a civil violation, a rail employee must know the rules and regulations that govern his or her actions. They must also knowingly not adhere to these rules. However the agency doesn't consider anyone who is acting under a direction by a supervisor as having committed a willful violation. The agency defines “general railroad system” as the entire network that transports passengers and goods between cities and metropolitan areas. A plant railroad's trackage in the steel mill isn't considered to be part of the general transportation system by rail, even being physically connected to it. Regulation The Federal Railroad Administration is responsible to establish regulations for train operations that pertain to safety and the transportation of dangerous substances. The agency is responsible for managing rail finance, including grants and loan to improve service and infrastructure. The agency works with other DOT agencies as well as industry to develop strategies for improving the nation's rail system. This includes ensuring the existing rail infrastructure and services and making sure that there is enough capacity strategically expanding the network as well as coordinating regional and national systems planning and development. The agency is mostly responsible for freight transportation but also oversees passenger transport. The agency is aiming to provide more options for passenger travel and connect passengers with the places they'd like to go. The agency's primary focus is on enhancing the experience for passengers and enhancing the safety of the existing fleet and ensuring the rail network continues operating efficiently. Railroads must abide by a variety of federal regulations, including those pertaining to the size of crews on trains. In recent times this issue has become a source of controversy. Certain states have passed legislation that requires two-person teams on trains. This final rule defines federally the minimum size crew requirements, making sure that all railroads adhere to the same safety standards. This rule also requires each railroad that operates one-person train crews to inform FRA of the operation and submit an assessment of risk. This will allow FRA to better identify the specifics of each operation and compare them with the normal two-person crew operation. This rule also changes the criteria for reviewing a special approval request to determine if an operation is “consistent” with railroad safety standards to determining whether the operation is as secure or less risky than a two-person crew operations. During the public comment period on this rule, a lot of people supported the requirement of a two-person crew. A form letter sent by 29 people expressed their concern that a lone crewmember could not be as quick to respond to issues with trains or grade crossing incidents or assist emergency response personnel at a highway-rail grade crossing. The commenters pointed out that human factors are responsible for more than half railroad accidents and they think that a bigger crew could help ensure the safety of both the train and its cargo. Technology Trains for passenger and freight use various technologies to increase efficiency, enhance safety, and boost security. The rail industry lingo includes many distinct terms and acronyms but some of the most notable developments include machine vision systems, instrumented rail inspection systems, driverless trains rolling data centers, and unmanned aerial vehicles (commonly called drones). Technology isn't only able to replace certain jobs. It allows people to perform their jobs better and with greater security. Railroads for passengers use apps on smartphones and contactless fare cards to boost ridership and improve the efficiency of their system. Other innovations, such as autonomous rail vehicles, are inching closer to becoming reality. The Federal Railroad Administration, as part of its ongoing efforts to improve safe reliable, affordable, and cost-effective transportation in the United States is focusing on modernizing the railway infrastructure. This multi-billion-dollar effort will see tunnels, bridges tracks, power systems, and tracks upgraded and stations rebuilt or replace. The recently passed bipartisan infrastructure law will significantly expand the agency's rail improvements programs. The Office of Research, Development and Technology of the agency is a key element in this initiative. The most recent National Academies review of the office found that it excelled in engaging with, maintaining communication and utilizing inputs of a wide range of stakeholders. It is still required to focus on how its research contributes to the department's main goal of ensuring safe movement of people and goods via railways. One area where the agency may be able to increase its effectiveness is by identifying and assisting the advancement of automated train systems and technologies. The Association of American Railroads, the main freight rail industry business organization that is focused on research, policy and standardization the Technical Advisory Group on Autonomous Train Operations to help develop industry standards to implement the technology. The FRA is interested in the group's development of a taxonomy for automated rail vehicles, a system that defines clearly and consistently different levels of automation. This would apply to rail transit as well as on-road vehicles. The agency will also want to know the degree of safety risk that the industry perceives associated when implementing a fully automated system and whether or not the industry is considering additional protections to minimize the risk. Innovation Railroads are embracing technology to improve worker safety and make business processes more efficient and ensure that the cargo they move reaches its destination in good condition. Examples of such innovations include the use of cameras and sensors to monitor freight, to new railcar designs that keep dangerous cargo safe during transport. Some of these technologies enable railroads to dispatch emergency responders directly to accident sites to minimize the danger and minimize the damage to property and people. One of the most renowned 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, as well as other accidents that result from human mistakes. It is a three-part system comprised of locomotives onboard that track the train and wayside networks that communicate with the locomotive and an enormous backend server that analyzes and collects data. Trains for passengers are also adopting technology to bolster security and safety. For instance, Amtrak is experimenting with the use of drones to aid security staff in locating passengers and other items onboard trains in the event of an emergency. Amtrak is also looking into ways to make use of drones. They could be used to check bridges and other infrastructure, or to replace the lighting on railway towers that are hazardous for workers to climb. Smart track technology is a different technology that is used in railways that transport passengers. It can detect people or objects on tracks and notify drivers if it is unsafe to continue. These technologies are particularly useful for detecting unauthorized crossings or other problems in the evenings when traffic is less and there are fewer witnesses to an accident. Telematics is a significant technological breakthrough in the railway industry. It allows shippers, railways and other parties to monitor a traincar in real-time. These capabilities provide railcar operators and crews better accountability and visibility and can assist them in improving efficiency, prevent unnecessary maintenance and avoid delays in delivering freight to customers.