FRA – Page 2 – Railfanning.org

FRA Proposes Positive Train Control Amendment

October 25, 2024 Railfanning.org News Wire

The Federal Railroad Administration published a notice of proposed rulemaking proposing to amend certain positive train control systems regulations. The feds said the proposed rule seeks to improve the efficiency and safety of railroad operations by standardizing regulations concerning railroad operations when PTC systems are not enabled. This can occur due to a PTC outage or when PTC systems are temporarily disabled to facilitate maintenance, repairs or upgrades. Under the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008, Congress mandated the implementation of PTC systems on Class I railroad main lines that carry high levels of freight traffic and certain hazardous materials,

FRA: Proposes Revised Regulations Would Codify Industry Practices to Enhance Safety

October 23, 2024 Railfanning.org News Wire

The Federal Railroad Administration published a notice of proposed rulemaking requiring certain railroads to supplement visual inspections by operating a Track Geometry Measurement System at specified minimum frequencies on certain track types.

FRA Finalizes New Rule to Enhance Stakeholder Participation in Accident and Incident Investigations

October 1, 2024 Railfanning.org News Wire

The Federal Railroad Administration announced a rule change for how federal investigators gather information following a mishap.

Report: Congress Should Empower Regulatory Agencies to Address Long Trains

September 17, 2024 Railfanning.org News Wire

The heightened safety challenges and operational demands of long freight trains require coordinated actions from major freight railroad companies, the Federal Railroad Administration, and Congress. That’s according to a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Senator Probes Union Pacific Railroad Following Alleged Interference With Federal Audit of Company’s Safety Culture

July 29, 2024 Railfanning.org News Wire

U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Washington, chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, sent a letter to the President of Union Pacific Railroad, Beth Whited, regarding alleged efforts to manipulate the results of a recent Federal Railroad Administration safety culture audit.

FRA’s Final Accident Report on Norfolk Southern Derailment in East Palestine Reaches Similar Conclusions as NTSB

July 19, 2024 Railfanning.org News Wire

The Federal Railroad Administration has published its accident investigation report on the Norfolk Southern Railway train derailment that occurred in East Palestine, Ohio, on Feb. 3, 2023.

Feds: More than $1.1 Billion Available to Reduce Blocked Crossings

July 9, 2024 Railfanning.org News Wire

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration has issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity that makes available more than $1.1 billion in Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant Program funding.

FRA Finalizes New Research Reports, Building on Efforts to Gather Information on Long Trains

May 22, 2024 Railfanning.org News Wire

With train length and the number of long trains increasing, the Federal Railroad Administration finalized three reports on the safety and performance of long trains. FRA recently sent these reports to the National Academy of Sciences to inform an ongoing NAS study mandated by Congress in President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to look at the impact of trains longer than 7,500 feet.

Feds: Billions More to Improve Northeast Corridor

May 14, 2024 Railfanning.org News Wire

The Federal Railroad Administration has issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity that makes available over $2 billion in Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program funding for projects on the Northeast Corridor.

BNSF Railway, ATDA and FRA Reach C3RS Safety Agreement

April 26, 2024 Railfanning.org News Wire

BNSF Railway and The American Train Dispatchers Association (ATDA), along with the Federal Railroad Administration, have reached an agreement to participate in a one-year pilot program of the FRA’s Confidential Close Call Reporting System (C3RS).