The Federal Railroad Administration
The Federal Railroad Administration is one of the DOT's 10 departments involved in intermodal transportation. Its mission is enabling the secure and efficient transportation of people and goods.
FRA field inspectors inspect the railroad track, train control and signal systems as well operating practices. They also investigate complaints.
Definition
A federal railroad is a railway in the United States that is controlled by the federal government. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is responsible for the creation and enforcement of railway safety regulations, administers railroad funding, and researches ways to improve the efficiency of rail transportation systems. The FRA is one of the 10 agencies within the U.S. Department of Transportation which is responsible for intermodal transportation. Its chief executive officers are the Administrator and Deputy Administrator.
The agency is responsible for all passenger and freight transport that uses the railway network of the United States. The agency also consolidates the federal funding for rail transportation and assists in the rehabilitation of Northeast Corridor passenger service. The agency also regulates the ownership and operation of intermodal facilities including tracks, right of way equipment, real estate, and rolling stock. It also coordinates federal rail transportation programs.
The FRA's duties include establishing, through regulation, following the notification and comment, a process by which anyone can submit a make a complaint to the Secretary of Homeland Security concerning railroad security issues or shortcomings. The agency also formulates policies, conducts inspections and reviews the compliance of its rail laws in six technical disciplines, including track, signal, and train control; motive power and equipment; operating practices as well as hazmat and highway-rail grade intersections.
The agency is responsible of ensuring that the railroad transportation system operates in a secure, efficient, and environmentally friendly manner. The agency also requires that railroads to provide a safe working environment and provide adequate training to their employees. Additionally, the agency establishes and regulates railroad rates to ensure that the public is receiving an equitable price for their transportation services.
The Federal Railroad Administration also enacts and implements rules to prevent discrimination towards railroad employees. The agency also safeguards whistleblowers against retaliation from railroad companies. The agency also establishes a procedure by which railroad employees can make complaints about the actions of the company.
The agency's main mission is to ensure the safe, reliable and efficient movement of goods and people to ensure a secure America both now and in the future. The FRA achieves this by overseeing the regulation of rail safety, managing railroad assistance programmes conducting research in support of improving safety in the railroad industry and national transportation policies as well as coordinating the development of rail networks and assisting the private sector manage railroads. In the past, railroads controlled the market, with very little competition. As a result, railroads often misused their position in the market. Hence, Congress established the Interstate Commerce Commission and other regulatory agencies to limit abuses by railroad monopolies.
Purpose
Federal railroads are government institutions that make rules, regulate funds for rail and conduct research to improve the rail system in the United States. It is responsible for both freight and passenger railroads, and operates the nation's rail infrastructure. It is one of the ten agencies of the U.S. Department of Transportation. It is also responsible for maintaining and expanding existing railway systems, ensuring ability of the rail industry to meet growing travel and freight demands and providing leadership in regional and national system planning.
The government's primary responsibility in the railway industry is safety. The Federal Railroad Administration is responsible for this. It has a variety of divisions that oversee the country's freight and passenger railroad operations. The Office of Railroad Safety is the largest of these with a staff of around 350. It is responsible for conducting safety inspections across six technical disciplines, including track, signalling, and train control equipment and motives, operating procedures, hazmat and highway-rail grade crosses.
FRA has additional departments, including the Office of Railroad Policy and Development. It is responsible for the programs that are meant to improve passenger and freight rail transportation, such as the Northeast Corridor Future. This department is also responsible for the grants that help railways, and it works with other agencies to plan for the nation's rail requirements.
Another important duty of the FRA is the enforcement of certain federal laws pertaining to railroads and their employees. This includes preventing railroads to discriminate against workers and ensuring that railway workers injured are transported to the nearest hospital for treatment. The law also prohibits railroads from refusing or delaying medical treatment for injured railway workers.
The FRA is the primary regulator for the rail passenger and freight industry, however other agencies manage the economic aspects of rail transportation. Surface Transportation Board is responsible for setting rates and managing the economics of the industry. It is also the regulator for railroad mergers, line sales, construction, and abandonment. Other responsibilities include establishing regulations after opportunity for public input and participation, where anyone can complain about alleged safety violations to the agency.
Functions
Railroads transport goods and people between cities in developed nations as well as remote villages in less developed countries. They transport raw materials from processing and manufacturing facilities, and final goods from these facilities to stores or warehouses. Rail is an essential mode of transportation for a number of essential commodities including grains, oil and coal. In 2020, freight railroads carried more than a quarter of the freight volume in the United America [PDF(PDF).
Federal railroads function like any other business with departments for marketing, operations, sales, and an executive department. The department for marketing and sales collaborates with potential and current customers to determine the kind of rail services they need and how much they will cost. The operations department then creates rail services that meet these needs at the lowest price possible to earn money for railroad. The executive department is responsible for the entire operation, making sure every department is running smoothly.
The government provides support to railways in various ways, from grants to subsidized rates for shipping government traffic. Congress also provides funds to help build and maintain new tracks and stations. These subsidies are usually in addition to the revenue the railroads receive from tickets and freight contracts.
Amtrak is owned by the United States government. It is a quasi public for-profit corporation, which has the United States Government as a major stockholder.
fela lawyer 's (FRA) principal task is to formulate and enforce safety regulations for railroads. This includes regulating the mechanical conditions of trains as well as the safety and health of railroad employees. FRA also collects data about rail security to identify trends and areas that require improvement or attention from regulators and to identify trends.
In addition to these core functions, FRA works on various other projects related to improving the security and economy of railway transportation in the United States. For instance, FRA seeks to eliminate obstacles that could delay railroads' introduction of positive train control systems (PTC). PTC is a safety system that makes use of sensors and computers on board to automatically stop the train when it gets too close to a vehicle or other object.
History
The first railroads in the United States were constructed in the 1820s and 1830s largely in New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. The railroads significantly accelerated the industrialization process in these regions, and also brought more food items to the market. This allowed the country to become more independent and less dependent on imports from abroad, which in turn resulted in a solid economic base.
In the latter part of the 19th century the railroad industry enjoyed the benefits of a "Golden Age" during which new, more efficient raillines were built and passenger travel became popular. This was in large part due to the government's efforts to expand the railroad system. The government, for instance provided homesteaders land grants to encourage them to settle the West. Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads also collaborated to build the first transcontinental railroad, which allowed passengers to travel from New York City to San Francisco within six days.
However in the early part of the 20th century, the demand for passenger railroad services declined and other modes of transport like automobiles and planes gained in popularity, while regulations choked railroads' ability to compete economically. The industry was plagued by a string of bankruptcies, service cuts, and delayed maintenance. Additionally, a misguided railroad regulations from the federal government caused the decline of the railroad industry.
Around the year 1970, the federal government began loosening the regulatory restrictions on railroads. Surface Transportation Board was created to oversee economic aspects such as railroad rates and mergers. The Federal Railroad Administration was also established, which is responsible for establishing rules for safety in rail and is one of 10 agencies within the U.S. Department of Transportation which oversees passenger and freight transportation.
Since then, a large amount of investment has been made in the nation's railway infrastructure. The Northeast Corridor, for example was rebuilt to accommodate faster, more modern high-speed ground transportation (HSGT) trains. There have also been efforts to create more efficient freight rail systems. In the future, FRA hopes to continue its partnership with all transportation agencies to ensure safe and reliable railroads. It is the job of FRA to help make sure that the transportation system of the United States is as efficient as it can be.