Five Killer Quora Answers To Federal Railroad
The Federal Railroad Administration
The Federal Railroad Administration is one of the 10 DOT agencies that deal with intermodal transportation. Its goal is to facilitate the safe and secure movement of goods and people.
FRA field inspectors inspect the railroad track signals, train control and track systems as well as operating procedures. They also investigate complaints.
Definition
Federal railroads are rail transporters in the United States controlled by the federal government. Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), which is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, develops and enforces regulations governing railways and regulates funds for railroads, and conducts research to improve rail transportation. The FRA is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation's intermodal transportation division, and its chief executives are the Administrator as well as the Deputy Administrator.
The agency oversees all freight and passenger transportation that is conducted through the nation's rail network. In addition, the agency also supports the rehabilitation of the Northeast Corridor rail passenger service and consolidates government support for rail transportation activities. Moreover, the agency regulates the ownership and operation of all intermodal facilities, such as tracks, rights-of-way, equipment, real property and rolling stock. It also handles the overall coordination of federal rail transportation programs.
FRA's duties also include establishing, through regulation and after an opportunity for comment, a procedure by which anyone can inform the Secretary of Homeland Security any railroad security problems or railroad injury fela lawyer deficiencies. In addition, the agency creates policies and conducts inspections to determine the compliance with its rail safety laws in six technical disciplines tracks signal and train control, motive power and equipment, operating practices, hazmat and highway-rail grade crossings.
The agency is charged with the responsibility of ensuring that the railway transportation system is safe, efficient, and environmentally friendly. This is why the agency requires railroads to provide an environment that is safe for workers and provide adequate training for their employees. The agency also determines and enforces the cost of railroad services to ensure that the public is charged fair prices for transportation services.
The Federal Railroad Administration also enacts and enforces rules to stop discrimination against railroad employees. They also shield whistleblowers from retaliation by railroad carriers. The agency also establishes an avenue for railroad employees to file complaints regarding the conduct of their company.
The primary goal of the agency is to ensure safe, reliable and efficient transportation of people and goods to ensure a secure America both now and in the future. The FRA accomplishes this through overseeing the regulation of rail safety, managing railroad assistance programmes, conducting research in support of better safety of railroads and national transportation policies and coordinating the development of rail networks and assisting the private sector manage railroads. In the past, railroads were dominant in the market with little competition. In the end, railroads often misused their position in the market. Hence, Congress created the Interstate Commerce Commission and other regulatory agencies to limit the abuses of railroad monopolies.
Purpose
The federal railroad is a federal agency that makes rules, oversees funds for rail and studies ways to improve the nation's rail transport system. It is responsible for both freight and passenger railroads, and manages the nation's rail infrastructure. It is one of 10 agencies within the U.S. Department of Transportation. It is also responsible for maintaining and expanding the current rail infrastructure.
Safety is the main responsibility in rail transportation. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is in charge of this, and has several divisions that oversee the country's freight and passenger railway operations. The Office of Railroad Safety is the largest with a staff of around 350. It is responsible for conducting safety inspections in six technical disciplines, including track signalling, and train control as well as motive and equipment operating procedures, hazmat and highway-rail grade crosses.
FRA has several departments, such as the Office of Railroad Policy and Development. This oversees the programs that are meant to improve passenger and freight railway transportation, including the Northeast Corridor Future. This department is responsible for grants given to railways and works with other agencies in order to plan the nation's railway requirements.
The FRA also has a responsibility to enforce federal laws related to railroads and their employees. This includes preventing railroads from discriminate against employees and making sure that injured railway employees are transported to the nearest hospital to receive treatment. The law also prohibits railroads from deny or delay medical treatment for injured railway workers.
The FRA is the primary regulator for the passenger and freight rail industry, however other agencies oversee the economic aspects of rail transportation. Surface Transportation Board is responsible for establishing rates and managing economics in the industry. It is also the regulator for railroad mergers, line sales, construction and abandonment. Other responsibilities include the establishment of regulations following an opportunity for public input, by which anyone may report alleged rail safety violations to the agency.
Functions
Rails transport people and goods from and to cities in the developed world as well as villages in less developed countries. They transport raw materials from manufacturing and processing facilities, and final products from these facilities to stores or warehouses. Rail is a crucial mode of transportation for a variety of essential commodities like grain, oil and coal. In 2020, freight rail moved more than a quarter of nation's total freight volume [PDF(PDF).
The federal railroad is managed as a business. It has departments for marketing and operations, sale, and an executive department. The marketing and sales department talks with customers and potential clients to determine what services they require and what they will cost. The operations department then produces rail services that meet these requirements at the cheapest cost to earn money for railroad. The executive department supervises the entire operation, ensuring that every department is operating efficiently.
The government provides support to the railways in various ways from grants to subsidised rates for shipping government traffic. Congress also provides funds to support and build new stations and tracks. These subsidies are usually in addition to the earnings the railroads receive from tickets and freight contracts.
In the United States, the government has the passenger railway Amtrak. It is a quasi-public for-profit corporation, with the United States Government as a major stockholder.
The primary function of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is establishing and enforcing safety regulations for railroads. This includes regulating the mechanical properties of trains and the health and safety of railroad employees. FRA also gathers and analyzes data on rail safety in order to identify patterns and areas that might require more or better regulatory attention.
In addition to these fundamental tasks, FRA works on various other projects that aim to improve the security and economy of railroad transportation in the United States. For instance, the agency is working to remove obstacles that could delay railroads' introduction of positive train control systems (PTC). PTC is a safety system that makes use of sensors and on-board computers to automatically stop the train when it gets too close to a vehicle or object.
History
In the 1820s and 1830s, the first railroads in America were constructed, mostly in New England and Mid-Atlantic. The railroads greatly accelerated industrialization in these areas and also brought more food to the market. This helped the country become more self-sufficient and less dependent on imports.
In the latter part of the 19th century the railroad industry enjoyed a "Golden Age" during which new, more efficient raillines were built and passenger travel became popular. This was in large part because of the government's efforts to expand the railroad system. For instance the government offered homesteaders grants of land to encourage them to settle in the West, and the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads worked together to complete the first transcontinental railroad which allowed travel from New York to San Francisco in just six days.
In the first half century, however, the demand for passenger rail services declined, and other modes of transportation like planes and cars became more popular. Meanwhile, stifling regulation hindered railroads' ability to compete. A string of bankruptcies, service cuts, and deferred maintenance followed. In addition, a misguided railroad regulations from the federal government contributed to the decline of the railroad industry.
Around the year 1970, the federal authorities began to ease the restrictions on railroads' regulatory requirements. Surface Transportation Board was created to oversee economic issues like railroad rates and mergers. The Federal Railroad Administration, which regulates freight and passenger transport and sets standards for rail safety, was also created.
Since then, the railroad infrastructure of the United States has seen a lot of investment. The Northeast Corridor has been rebuilt for instance, to accommodate faster and more modern high-speed ground transportation (HSGT). The effort has also been made to develop more efficient freight rail systems. In the future, FRA hopes to continue its partnership with all transportation agencies to ensure the safety and reliability of railroads. FRA's mission is to ensure that the nation's transportation system operates as efficiently as it can.