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The Federal Railroad Administration
The Federal Railroad Administration is among the 10 agencies of DOT that are accountable for intermodal transportation. Its goal is to facilitate the safe and reliable movement of goods and people.
FRA field inspectors regularly inspect railroad track, signal and train control systems as well as operating procedures. They also investigate complaints.
Definition
A federal railroad is a type of rail transport in the United States that is controlled by the government. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) establishes and enforces safety regulations, administers railway funding, and studies ways to improve the efficiency of rail transportation systems. The FRA is one of 10 agencies of the U.S. Department of Transportation that are concerned with intermodal transportation. Its chief executive officers are the Administrator and Deputy Administrator.
The agency oversees all freight and passenger transport that is conducted through the nation's rail network. The agency also coordinates government funding for rail transportation and assists in the rehabilitation of Northeast Corridor passenger service. The agency also regulates ownership and operation of intermodal facilities, like tracks, rights of way, equipment, real estate, and rolling stock. It also oversees federal rail transportation programs.
The FRA's duties include establishing, through regulation, following an notice and comments are allowed an avenue through anyone can submit a report to the Secretary of Homeland Security concerning railroad security problems or deficiencies. The agency also establishes guidelines, conducts inspections and assesses compliance with its railroad laws in six technical disciplines, which include track signal, track, and train control as well as motive power and equipment; operating procedures hazardous materials and highway-rail grade intersections.
The agency is tasked with the responsibility of making sure the railway transportation system is secure, economical and environmentally sustainable. This is why the agency requires railroads to ensure an environment that is safe for workers and provide the appropriate training to their employees. The agency also sets and enforces railroad prices to ensure that the public is charged in a fair manner for transportation services.
The Federal Railroad Administration also enacts and implements rules to prevent discrimination towards railroad employees. They also shield whistleblowers from retaliation by railroad carriers. The agency also establishes a procedure by which railroad employees can file complaints about the actions of the company.
The main goal of the agency is to facilitate the safe reliable and efficient movement of people and goods to build a stronger America today and into the future. The FRA accomplishes this through controlling rail safety, coordinating programs for assistance to railroads conducting research to support improved railroad safety and national transportation policies and coordinating the development of rail networks and helping the private industry manage railroads. In the past, railroads were large monopolies that had no competition. The railroad industry abused its dominance in the market, resulting in. fela lawsuits is why Congress established the Interstate Commerce Commission and other regulatory agencies to prevent the abuses of railroad monopolies.
Purpose
The federal railroad is a government agency that establishes regulations, manages rail funds and researches ways to improve the nation's rail transportation system. It manages the railroad infrastructure of the United States and supervises passenger and freight railroads. It is one of 10 agencies in the U.S. Department of Transportation. It is also responsible for maintaining and expanding the current rail systems, ensuring the capacity of the rail industry to meet growing demand for freight and travel as well as providing leadership in national and regional system planning.
The primary responsibility of the government in the railway industry is safety. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is in charge of this, and has several divisions that manage the country's passenger and freight rail operations. The Office of Railroad Safety is the largest with approximately 350 inspectors. It is responsible for conducting safety inspections in six different technical disciplines, including track, signalling, train control equipment and motives operating procedures, hazmat, and highway-rail grade crosses.
FRA has several departments, including the Office of Railroad Policy and Development. It oversees programs that aim to improve freight and passenger railway transportation, including the Northeast Corridor Future. This department is responsible for grants given to railways, and collaborates with other agencies in order to plan the nation's railway requirements.
Another essential duty of the FRA is the enforcement of certain federal laws that pertain to railroads and their employees. This includes stopping railroads from discriminating against employees, and making sure that injured railway workers are transported to the nearest hospital for initial aid treatment. The law also prohibits railroads from delay or deny medical treatment for injured railway employees.
The FRA is the main regulator of the passenger and freight rail industries, but there are other agencies that manage the economic aspects of rail transport. The Surface Transportation Board, for instance is responsible for setting rates and governing the financial aspects of the industry. It is the regulatory authority for railroad mergers, line-sales, construction, and abandonment. After a period of public consultation, the agency is also responsible for establishing rules that will allow anyone to report any suspected rail safety violations.
Functions
Rails transport people and goods from and to cities in the developed world as and villages in less developed countries. They transport raw materials to processing and manufacturing plants, and finished products from those factories to warehouses and stores. Railroads are a critical form of transportation for many vital products, including coal, oil and grains. In 2020, freight railroads transported more than a quarter of the freight volume in the United States [PDF(PDF).
Federal railroads function as a business just like other businesses with departments for marketing and operations, sales and an executive department. The department of marketing and sales works with potential and current customers to determine the kind of rail services they need and how much they will cost. The operations department then develops the rail services that meet these requirements at the lowest possible cost in order to earn money for the railroad. The executive department supervises the entire operation and makes sure that every department is operating efficiently.
The government provides support to railways by a variety of methods that include grants and subsidized rates for government-owned traffic. Congress also provides money to help build and maintain new stations and tracks. These subsidies are often added to the revenues that railroads receive through 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.
A major role of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is to develop and enforce safety regulations for railroads. This involves regulating the mechanical condition of trains and the health and safety of railroad employees. FRA also gathers and analyzes information on rail safety to identify patterns and areas that might require improvement or more regulatory attention.
FRA also works on other projects to improve the safety and economy of rail transportation in the United States. The agency, for example, aims to reduce the obstacles that hinder railroads in the implementation of positive train control (PTC). PTC is a safety system that makes use of sensors and computers on board to automatically stop the train when it is too close to another vehicle or other object.
History
In the 1820s-1830s, the first railroads in the United States were built, mostly in New England and Mid-Atlantic. Railroads helped speed up industrialization and brought more food items to market in these areas. This made the country more independent and less dependent on imports.
In the late 19th century the railroad industry enjoyed an "Golden Age" during which new, more efficient raillines were constructed and passenger travel became popular. The government's efforts to expand the railroad system was a major reason. For instance, the government, gave land grants to homesteaders in order to encourage them to move to the West. Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads also partnered to construct the first transcontinental railroad which allowed travelers to travel from New York City to San Francisco in just six days.
In the first half century, however the demand for rail passenger services dwindled, while other modes of transport like planes and automobiles increased in popularity. However, stifling regulations made it difficult for railroads to compete. The industry was plagued by a succession of bankruptcies, service cuts, and deferred maintenance. In addition, misguided federal railway regulations led to the decline of the industry.
In the year 1970 the federal government started to ease the regulatory shackles on railroads. Surface Transportation Board was created to oversee economic issues such as railroad rates and mergers. The Federal Railroad Administration was also established to set rail safety regulations and is one of 10 agencies in the U.S. Department of Transportation which oversees passenger and freight transportation.
Since then, a large deal of investment has been made in the nation's railroad infrastructure. The Northeast Corridor, for example, has been rebuilt to accommodate faster, more modern high-speed ground transportation (HSGT) trains. There have also been efforts to create more efficient systems for freight rail. FRA hopes to continue working with all transportation agencies to ensure the safety and reliability of rails in the coming years. FRA's mission is to ensure that the nation's transport system runs as efficiently as possible.