‘There are disconnects all through the system’ By Joanna Marsh for freightwaves.com Although February’s train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, has renewed calls to bolster railroad safety, the rail industry needs to be more proactive about how research and development efforts can advance the utilization of freight rail and encourage the railroads to think across departments, sources […]
Agency cites concerns over how trains are built as a factor in several derailments The Federal Railroad Administration on Friday issued a safety advisory calling on railroads to address potential safety risks resulting from the structure of long freight trains, saying it has “noticed a rising trend in recent incidents where train build and makeup […]
Norfolk Southern, the company behind the Ohio train crash, and other rail firms spent millions on marketing and lobbying By Adam Lowenstein for theguardian.com Six children, smiling and laughing, sit at a table with lunch boxes open in front of them. “Hey guys! My dad can stop a train with his finger,” one brags. “My […]
BY PRESS ASSOCIATES Using safety of workers and communities as their main argument, two top railroad unions and the AFL-CIO Transportation Trades Department strongly argued for mandatory two-person crews on all freight trains. TTD and unions carried their campaign to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) hearing on crews on Dec. 14, a day after rail workers’ […]
Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor for railwayage.com “Examining Freight Rail Safety” was the theme of a June 14 hearing of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials. The aim: for members “to hear from government and stakeholder witnesses about the state of freight rail safety and issues […]
By: AJOT.com The Federal Railroad Administration today released its Annual Enforcement Report summarizing regulatory compliance inspections and audits that FRA or state inspectors participating in FRA’s rail safety program conducted during the past fiscal year (FY), as well as civil penalty enforcement actions arising from them. In FY 2021, over 70,000 inspections were conducted to assess railroad […]
A final Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) rule will expand the scope of alcohol and drug regulations to cover mechanical employees as mandated by the SUPPORT Act of 2018. The rule will amend 49 CFR part 219 and will define a mechanical employee as any employee who, on behalf of a railroad, performs mechanical tests or […]
Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor for railwayage.com Amit Bose on Jan. 12 was confirmed as the 15th Federal Railroad Administrator in a 68-29 Senate vote. He was nominated by President Joe Biden on April 22, 2021, to lead the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), succeeding Ronald L. (Ron) Batory. Batory, who was sworn in Feb. 28, 2018, stepped down […]
The Wyoming Legislature has long wrestled with the question of whether to mandate two-person crews on the freight trains that traverse Wyoming’s more than 1,800 miles of track. Now, the federal government may take action that resolves the issue — if the infrastructure package currently stalled in Congress passes. The two-person crew mandate was adopted […]
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-Chief for railwayage.com Effective Aug. 26, 2021, the Federal Railroad Administration is revising regulations governing changes to Positive Train Control (PTC) systems and reporting on PTC system performance. “Recognizing that the railroad industry intends to enhance FRA-certified PTC systems to continue improving rail safety and PTC technology’s reliability and operability […]