Federal Railroad Administration Rail Safety Improvement Act Initial

Federal Railroad Administration Rail Safety Improvement Act: Initial Tasks Washington, DC December 10, 2008

Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 Hours of Service • 9 months to new statutory restrictions • 6 months to get record keeping requirements in place (may skip NPRM if RSAC is employed) • Separate proceeding for passenger railroads within 3 years* • Potential further FRA rulemaking (scheduling) • Potential pilot projects Identified needs: -Expedited rulemaking -Address new data elements required -Provide basic rules for electronic record keeping -Be prepared to revisit after passenger hours of service is set and/or other developments unfold *Why not start passenger rulemaking now? 2

Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 Positive Train Control • Main lines – Passenger – as defined by FRA – Freight – 5 mgt • • • Passenger (intercity or commuter) main lines Class I freight TIH main lines Other lines as FRA requires Plans w/in 18 months Implementing regulations 3

Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 Positive Train Control (open issues for the regulations) • Functionalities • Approval criteria different than 49 CFR 236, subpart H • Safety case showing—scaled to type of service supported? • System acceptance procedures • Allowance for unequipped trains? • Require for switching and terminal operations? • Impact on Amtrak routes with limited freight • Content of railroad programs (4/16/2010): – Roll-out in areas of greatest risk – Interoperability (ergo, what system? ) 4

Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 Conductor Certification • Final rule by 4/16/2010 • May follow part 240 template • Regulations— – Flow-back between certified crafts – What is unacceptable safety conduct? – Are there issues with 240 that should be corrected as conductor certification is developed (e. g. , appeals procedures)? 5

Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 Bridges – Gordon Davids 6

Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 Work already underway that supports mandated actions: • Concrete ties • Rail integrity • Platform gap study (foundation complete) • Locomotive cab environment study (Locomotive Standards Working Group) 7

Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 Future tasking possible: • Passenger hours of service (spring, summer 2009) • Certification report to the Congress? • Minimum training standards? • Dark territory rail safety technology? • Critical Incident Stress Debriefing? 8