Federal Railroad Administration 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

FRA proposes regulations for the certification of signal employees, pursuant to the authority granted in section 402 of the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008.

On April 3, 2023, FRA published an NPRM proposing to amend its Passenger Equipment Safety Standards to modernize Tier I and Tier III safety appliance requirements; update the pre-revenue compliance documentation and testing requirements; establish crashworthiness requirements for individual Tier I-compliant vehicles equipped with crash energy management; establish standards for Tier III inspection, testing, and maintenance and movement of defective equipment; incorporate general safety requirements from FRA's Railroad Locomotive Safety Standards for Tier III trainsets; and provide for periodic inspection of emergency lighting to ensure proper functioning. By this notice, FRA is extending the NPRM's comment period, which will close on June 2, 2023, by 60 days.

This document provides the public with notice that, on May 9, 2023, Metro-North Railroad (MNR) submitted a request for amendment (RFA) to its FRA-approved Positive Train Control Safety Plan (PTCSP). As this RFA involves a request for FRA's approval of proposed material modifications to an FRA-certified positive train control (PTC) system, FRA is publishing this notice and inviting public comment on the railroad's RFA to its PTCSP.

Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) and its implementing regulations, this notice announces that FRA is forwarding the Information Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comment. The ICR describes the information collection and its expected burden. On March 2, 2023, FRA published a notice providing a 60-day period for public comment on the ICR.

This final rule amends the U.S. Department of Transportation's regulated industry drug testing program to include oral fluid testing. This additional methodology for drug testing will give employers a choice that will help combat employee cheating on urine drug tests and provide a less intrusive means of achieving the safety goals of the program. In order for an employer to implement oral fluid testing under the Department's regulation, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will need to certify at least two laboratories for oral fluid testing, which has not yet been done. The final rule includes other provisions to update the Department's regulation and to harmonize, as needed, with the Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs using Oral Fluid established by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In addition, this rule amends the FAA, FMCSA, FRA and FTA regulations to ensure consistency within the Department of Transportation and by removing or adjusting references to the word ``urine'' and/or add references to oral fluid, as well as removing or amending some definitions for conformity and to make other miscellaneous technical changes or corrections.

Freight train length has increased in recent years, and while research is ongoing related to operational aspects of long trains, including brake system performance, it is known that the in-train forces longer trains experience are generally stronger and more complex than those in shorter train consists. FRA is issuing this Safety Advisory to ensure railroads and railroad employees are aware of the potential complexities associated with operating longer trains and to ensure they take appropriate measures to address those complexities to ensure the safe operation of such trains. Among other things, this Safety Advisory recommends that railroads review their operating rules and existing locomotive engineer certification programs to address operational complexities of train length, take appropriate action to prevent the loss of communications between end-of-train devices, and mitigate the impacts of long trains on blocked crossings.

This document provides the public with notice that, on April 11, 2023, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) submitted a request to field test its trains that have been equipped with MBTA's Advanced Civil Speed Enforcement System II (ACSES II) technology on its South Coast Rail commuter rail lines. MBTA states that the tests will be performed and operation verified for all ACSES II PTC functions. FRA is publishing this notice and inviting public comment on MBTA's request to test its PTC system.

This document provides the public with notice that, on April 7, 2023, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) submitted a request for amendment (RFA) to its FRA-certified positive train control (PTC) system in order to support the implementation of PTC on its commuter rail network. On MBTA's North Side, the PTC System in the area is being reconfigured and must be taken out of service during the recommissioning of Automatic Train Control (ATC) and the subsequent recommissioning of MBTA's Advanced Civil Speed Enforcement System II (ACSES II). FRA is publishing this notice and inviting public comment on the railroad's RFA to its PTC system.

This document provides the public with notice that, on April 11, 2023, Metro-North Railroad (MNR) submitted a request for amendment (RFA) to its FRA-approved Positive Train Control Safety Plan (PTCSP). As this RFA involves a request for FRA's approval of proposed material modifications to an FRA-certified positive train control (PTC) system, FRA is publishing this notice and inviting public comment on the railroad's RFA to its PTCSP. MNR state that this RFA is for an update to MNR's PTC Onboard Software, release OBC 5.04.000, correcting existing defects. With the successful completion of Factory and Field Testing and Supplier Safety Certification, MNR confirms the changes meet all technical requirements, provide an equivalent or greater level of safety than the existing PTC System in service, and does not adversely impact interoperability with tenant railroads.

Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) and its implementing regulations, this notice announces that FRA is forwarding the Information Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comment. The ICR describes the information collection and its expected burden. On January 20, 2023, FRA published a notice providing a 60-day period for public comment on the ICR.

This document provides the public with notice that on March 22, 2023, twenty host railroads submitted a joint request for amendment (RFA) to their FRA-approved Positive Train Control Safety Plans (PTCSP) reflecting the updated PTC onboard software, I-ETMS On-Board 6.5.0 and On-Board 6.5.1. This RFA includes modifications to the associated PTC Concept of Operations and PTC System Description documents, change or addition of system safety-critical functionality, modification to target safety levels and changes to the human-machine interface which requires amendments to PTC training for train crews. The functionality changes include: updates to Train Restriction Types to address the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) final rule which restricts operating speeds of High-Hazard Flammable Train; the addition of a new system safety critical function, PTC Suspension, that prevents the generation and enforcement of targets within the limits of a PTC Suspension area with the exception of navigation failure and synchronization errors; and updates to the onboard display to show prompting to the train crew whenever a system fault related to braking prediction calculation exits. As this joint RFA involves requests for FRA's approval of the proposed material modifications to FRA-certified positive train control (PTC) systems, FRA is publishing this notice and inviting public comment on railroads' joint RFA to their PTCSPs.

FRA is providing notice of its intent to review a quiet zone located in Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Oakland Park, Wilton Manors, Dania Beach, Hollywood, and Hallandale Beach, Florida (Cities). Based on a high rate of reported accidents/incidents and related injuries and fatalities that occurred between January and December 2022, FRA has made a preliminary determination that the safety systems and measures implemented within the quiet zone do not fully compensate for the absence of routine sounding of locomotive horns due to a substantial increase in risk. In addition, FRA has made a preliminary determination of significant risk with respect to loss of life or serious personal injury within the quiet zone. Therefore, FRA intends to review existing conditions within the quiet zone to determine whether the quiet zone should be terminated or whether additional safety measures may be necessary to ensure motorist and pedestrian safety.

FRA is proposing to amend its Passenger Equipment Safety Standards to modernize Tier I and Tier III safety appliance requirements; update the pre-revenue compliance documentation and testing requirements; establish crashworthiness requirements for individual Tier I-compliant vehicles equipped with crash energy management (CEM); establish standards for Tier III inspection, testing, and maintenance (ITM) and movement of defective equipment (MODE); incorporate general safety requirements from FRA's Railroad Locomotive Safety Standards for Tier III trainsets; and provide for periodic inspection of emergency lighting to ensure proper functioning.

Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) and its implementing regulations, FRA will seek approval of the Information Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below. Before submitting this ICR to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval, FRA is soliciting public comment on specific aspects of the activities identified in the ICR.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is issuing this notice to encourage development of high-speed rail (HSR) system projects intended for operations over 160 miles per hour by establishing a streamlined process for reviewing domestic sourcing and workforce plans. Specifically, this notice summarizes FRA's intent to invite HSR project sponsors to voluntarily submit for review, in advance of receipt of DOT funding, their domestic sourcing and workforce plans. This notice provides further clarification to the December 7, 2022, Notice of Funding Opportunity for the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program, which stated that FRA expects all applicants to comply with Buy America requirements without needing a waiver. However, to obtain a waiver, an applicant must be prepared to demonstrate how they will maximize the use of domestic goods, products, and materials in constructing their project. If an applicant anticipates it may need a waiver, the applicant should indicate the need in its application and submit materials necessary for such requests together with its application. This notice provides further detail on the recommended content of these materials. This notice also serves as an RFI to assist with planning a U.S. domestic content High Speed Rail Industry Exchange Day (Industry Day).