The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) Oct. 23 that aims to improve railroad track safety by pairing automated track inspection technology and human inspections.
The FRA’s proposed changes would require specific railroads to supplement visual inspections by operating a Track Geometry Measurement System (TGMS) at specified minimum frequencies on certain types of track, according to the 54-page NPRM.
“Workers performing visual inspections remain essential, as visual inspections check for numerous conditions beyond the scope of track geometry,” FRA Administrator Amit Bose said. “By requiring TGMS inspections in addition to the currently required visual inspections, FRA proposes to enhance safety while promoting innovation through the use of technology.”
Specifically, Class I and II railroads, as well as intercity passenger railroads and commuter railroads, would have to meet specified inspection frequencies on mainline and controlled siding track that transports annual tonnage greater than 10 million gross tons, regularly scheduled passenger rail service, or trains containing hazardous materials, according to the NPRM.
“Today, every Class I and II railroad uses some form of TGMS to measure track geometry. FRA regulation already requires TGMS inspections for high-speed track (Class 6 and above), as well as lower-speed track with cant deficiency of higher than five inches,” FRA says in the proposed rulemaking. “While these existing requirements are applicable to a relatively small subset of railroads in the United States, FRA’s research indicates that all railroads covered by this proposed rulemaking are already performing TGMS inspections on their networks at or above the frequencies FRA is proposing in this rule.
“Therefore, the purpose of this rulemaking is to codify this industry practice while also setting baseline requirements for areas such as TGMS calibration, recordkeeping, defect remediation timeframes, and training,” says FRA.
The NPRM also would set timeframes by which the railroads must act to remediate any identified track defects, and proposes recordkeeping and training requirements for TGMS inspections, as well as minimum requirements for what must be included in TGMS reports.
“TGMS technology, developed through an FRA-led research effort in collaboration with the rail industry, has been proven to quickly and accurately detect small changes in track geometry,” said Bose. “This proposed rulemaking would codify a standard for TGMS inspection frequencies to ensure that railroads live up to their safety responsibilities, now and in the future.”
The FRA is soliciting comments for 60 days on the NPRM, which was published Oct. 24 in the Federal Register.