[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1380 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1380

 To eliminate unsafe railway-road grade crossings, to enhance railroad 
  safety through new safety technology, safety inspections, accident 
                investigations, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 11, 2005

Mr. Vitter (for himself and Mrs. Boxer) introduced the following bill; 
 which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and 
                              Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To eliminate unsafe railway-road grade crossings, to enhance railroad 
  safety through new safety technology, safety inspections, accident 
                investigations, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 
2005''.

SEC. 2. RAILWAY-ROAD GRADE CROSSINGS.

    (a) Elimination of Crossings.--
            (1) In general.--Section 20134 of title 49, United States 
        Code, is amended--
                    (A) in subsection (a), by inserting ``and motorists 
                at railroad grade crossings'' after ``rights of way'';
                    (B) by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:
    ``(c) Automated Video Image Analysis Pilot Program.--(1) The 
Secretary of Transportation, in consultation with the National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration, shall establish a pilot program in the 5 
States with the highest rates of collisions, injuries, and fatalities 
at highway-rail grade crossings that uses automated video image 
analysis technology to record violations by motorists at crossings 
equipped with automatic warning devices.
    ``(2) There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out the program established under this paragraph 
(1).''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) Plan to Eliminate Highway-Rail Grade Crossings.--(1) Not 
later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 
Secretary of Transportation, in consultation with appropriate 
transportation officials of States and units of local government with 
jurisdiction over highway-rail grade crossings, shall submit, to the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, the 
Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate, and the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
Representatives, a plan--
            ``(A) for annually eliminating highway-rail grade crossings 
        in the United States that, as of the date of enactment of this 
        subsection--
                    ``(i) are considered by the Secretary of 
                Transportation to pose a safety threat; and
                    ``(ii) have insufficient or outdated protective 
                equipment;
            ``(B) that includes guidelines for establishing new 
        crossings, if necessary, through careful traffic, zoning, and 
        land use planning; and
            ``(C) that includes an estimate of the cost to carry out 
        subparagraph (A).
    ``(2) In determining the order for closing highway-rail grade 
crossings under the plan developed under paragraph (1), the Secretary 
shall give priority to crossings in States that are among the top 5 
States in terms of--
            ``(A) the number of accidents at highway-rail grade 
        crossings per mile of railroad tract;
            ``(B) the number of highway-rail grade crossings with 
        insufficient or outdated protective equipment; or
            ``(C) the number of rail lines with a high volume of goods 
        movement.
    ``(3) In developing the plan under paragraph (1), the Secretary 
shall consider--
            ``(A) the feasibility of closing and improving a group of 
        highway-rail grade crossings in a single community;
            ``(B) the impact of closure on access by emergency 
        vehicles;
            ``(C) traffic delays;
            ``(D) public inconvenience; and
            ``(E) the willingness of units of local government to 
        participate in the elimination or consolidation of highway-rail 
        grade crossings.''.
            (2) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall 
        update and reissue ``A Guide to Crossing Consolidation and 
        Closure'', which was originally published in July 1994.
    (b) Grants to Improve the Safety of Railway-Highway Grade 
Crossings.--Section 130 of title 23, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in subsection (d)--
                    (A) by striking ``Each State'' and inserting the 
                following:
            ``(1) In general.--Each State''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Federal safety review.--Using information compiled by 
        States under paragraph (1), the Secretary of Transportation 
        shall conduct a comprehensive review of the safety of all 
        public railway-highway grade crossings in the United States. 
        The matters reviewed shall include security measures, safety 
        conditions, past accidents, possible safety improvements, and 
        any other factors that the Secretary considers relevant.
            ``(3) Priority list.--Based on the information collected 
        from the review conducted under paragraph (2), the Secretary of 
        Transportation shall compile, maintain, and submit to Congress 
        a list of the 5,000 railway-highway grade crossings most in 
        need of safety improvements, grouped based on relative need for 
        such improvements.'';
            (2) in subsection (f)--
                    (A) by striking ``and 50'' and inserting ``25''; 
                and
                    (B) by striking ``States.'' and inserting ``States, 
                and 25 percent of such funds shall be apportioned to 
                the States in the ratio that total highway and rail 
                traffic through railway-highway crossings in each State 
                bears to the total of such traffic in all States.'';
            (3) in subsection (i)(3)(B), by striking ``$7,500'' and 
        inserting ``$15,000'';
            (4) by redesignating subsection (j) as subsection (k); and
            (5) by inserting after subsection (i) the following:
    ``(j) Railway-Highway Grade Crossing Safety Improvement Grants.--
            ``(1) Grants authorized.--The Secretary of Transportation 
        may award grants to States to make necessary safety 
        improvements to the railway-highway grade crossings identified 
        under subsection (d)(3).
            ``(2) Prioritization.--In awarding grants under this 
        subsection, the Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) give priority to projects to install 
                automated warning systems at railway-highway grade 
                crossings in States with the highest number of 
                accidents at such crossings; and
                    ``(B) strive to reduce the number of railway-
                highway grade crossings without automated warning 
                systems by not less than 50 percent.
            ``(3) Application.--Each State desiring a grant under this 
        subsection shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 
        time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as 
        the Secretary may reasonably require.
            ``(4) Matching requirement.--The Secretary may not award a 
        grant to a State under this subsection unless that State agrees 
        that, with respect to the costs to be incurred by the State in 
        carrying out the program for which the grant was awarded, the 
        State will make available non-Federal contributions in an 
        amount equal to not less than $1 for every $9 of Federal 
        financial assistance provided under the grant.''.
    (c) Funding.--Section 104(d) of title 23, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) by amending the subsection header to read as follows: 
        ``Funds Reserved for Improving Safety at Railway-Highway 
        Crossings'';
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) Railway-road grade crossing safety improvements.--
        Before making an apportionment of funds under subsection (b)(3) 
        for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall set aside $178,000,000 
        of the funds made available for the surface transportation 
        program for the fiscal year for grants under section 130(j).''.

SEC. 3. PENALTIES FOR VIOLATING CROSSING SIGNS, SIGNALS, OR GATES.

    (a) Prevention of Trespassing and Vandalism on Railroad Property.--
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of Transportation shall--
            (1) analyze Federal, State, and local laws for preventing 
        and responding to trespassing and vandalism on railroad 
        property; and
            (2) update model strategies to prevent such trespassing and 
        vandalism.
    (b) Model Legislation.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation, after 
consultation with States, units of local government, and railroad 
carriers shall develop and make available model legislation providing 
for civil and criminal penalties for individuals who violate grade 
crossing signs, signals, or gates.

SEC. 4. OPERATION LIFESAVER FUNDING.

    Section 104(d)(1) of title 23, United States Code, is amended by 
striking ``set aside'' and all that follows and inserting the 
following: ``set aside, to carry out a public information and education 
program to help prevent and reduce motor vehicle accidents, injuries, 
and fatalities, and to improve driver performance at railway-road 
crossings--
            ``(1) $1,250,000 for fiscal year 2006;
            ``(2) $1,300,000 for fiscal year 2007;
            ``(3) $1,350,000 for fiscal year 2008;
            ``(4) $1,400,000 for fiscal year 2009; and
            ``(5) $1,460,000 for fiscal year 2010.''.

SEC. 5. INSPECTIONS AND INVESTIGATIONS.

    (a) Annual Inspections.--Section 20107 of title 49, United States 
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Annual Inspections.--The Secretary of Transportation, acting 
through the Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration, 
shall, physically inspect, on an annual basis, not less than 2 percent 
of all highway-rail grade crossings in the 10 States with the highest 
rates of collisions at such crossings during the 3-year period ending 
on the date of enactment of this Act.''.
    (b) Accident Investigations.--Section 20902 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (d); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the following:
    ``(c) Investigation of Fatal Accidents.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary of Transportation, acting 
        through the Administrator of the Federal Railroad 
        Administration, shall conduct an investigation of--
                    ``(A) all fatal accidents in the United States 
                during the 1-year period ending on the date of 
                enactment of this subsection; and
                    ``(B) any fatal railroad accident occurring in the 
                United States on or after the date of enactment of this 
                subsection.
            ``(2) Report to congress.--Not later than 18 months after 
        the date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the 
        Secretary shall submit a report to Congress on the results of 
        the investigations conducted under paragraph (1) during the 1-
        year period ending on the date of enactment of this Act and 
        during each successive 1-year period.''.

SEC. 6. DEFINITION.

    As used in this Act, and the amendments made by this Act, the term 
``highway'' has the meaning given the term in section 101 of title 23, 
United States Code.
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