[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 100 (Thursday, May 22, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29838-29841]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-11532]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

[Docket No. FRA-2000-7257; Notice No. 47]


Railroad Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC); Working Group Activity 
Update

AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

[[Page 29839]]


ACTION: Announcement of Railroad Safety Advisory Committee working 
group activities.

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SUMMARY: FRA is updating its announcement of RSAC's Working Group 
activities to reflect its current status.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Larry Woolverton, RSAC Coordinator, 
FRA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Mailstop 25, Washington, DC 20590, 
(202) 493-6212, or Grady Cothen, Deputy Associate Administrator for 
Safety, FRA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Mailstop 25, Washington, DC 
20590, (202) 493-6302.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice serves to update FRA's last 
announcement of working group activities and status reports as of 
February 1, 2008, (73 FR 6257). The 34th full RSAC Committee meeting 
was held February 20, 2008, and the 35th meeting is scheduled for June 
11, 2008, at the National Housing Center in Washington, DC.
    Since its first meeting in April of 1996, the RSAC has accepted 25 
tasks. The status for each of the tasks is provided below.

Open Tasks

    Task 96-4--Tourist and Historic Railroads. Reviewing the 
appropriateness of the agency's current policy regarding the 
applicability of existing and proposed regulations to tourist, 
excursion, scenic, and historic railroads. This task was accepted on 
April 2, 1996, and a working group was established. The working group 
monitored the steam locomotive regulation task. Planned future 
activities involve the review of other regulations for possible 
adaptation to the safety needs of tourist and historic railroads. 
Contact: Grady Cothen, Jr., (202) 493-6302.
    Task 03-01--Passenger Safety. This task includes updating and 
enhancing the regulations pertaining to passenger safety, based on 
research and experience. This task was accepted on May 20, 2003, and a 
working group was established. Prior to embarking on substantive 
discussions of a specific task, the working group set forth in writing 
a specific description of the task. The working group reports planned 
activities to the full Committee at each scheduled full RSAC meeting, 
including milestones for completion of projects and progress toward 
completion. At the first meeting held September 9-10, 2003, a 
consolidated list of issues was completed. At the second meeting held 
November 6-7, 2003, four task groups were established: Emergency 
preparedness, mechanical, crashworthiness, and track/vehicle 
interaction. The task groups met and reported on activities for working 
group consideration at the third meeting held May 11-12, 2004, and a 
fourth meeting was held October 26-27, 2004. The working group met on 
March 21-22, 2006, and again on September 12-13, 2006, at which time 
the group agreed to establish a task force on general passenger safety. 
The full Passenger Safety Working Group met on April 17-18, 2007, and 
again on December 11-12, 2007. The next meeting is scheduled for June 
18, 2008. Contact: Charles Bielitz, (202) 493-6314.
    (Emergency Preparedness Task Force) At the working group meeting of 
March 9-10, 2005, the working group received and approved the consensus 
report of the Emergency Preparedness Task Force related to emergency 
communication, emergency egress, and rescue access. These 
recommendations were presented to, and approved by, the full RSAC on 
May 18, 2005. The working group met on September 7-8, 2005, and 
additional supplementary recommendations were presented to, and 
accepted by, the full RSAC on October 11, 2005. The Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking (NPRM) was published on August 24, 2006, and was open for 
comments until October 23, 2006. The working group agreed upon 
recommendations for resolution of final comments during the April 17-
18, 2007, meeting. The recommendations were presented to, and approved 
by, the full RSAC on June 26, 2007. The final rule regarding emergency 
communication, emergency egress, and rescue access was published on 
February 1, 2008 (73 FR 6370). The task force met on October 17-18, 
2007, and the group reached consensus on draft rule text for a followup 
NPRM on passenger train emergency systems. The task force presented the 
draft rule text to the Passenger Safety Working Group on December 11-
12, 2007, and the consensus draft rule text was presented and approved 
by a full RSAC vote during the February 20, 2008, meeting. The next 
meeting is scheduled for May 13-14, 2008. Contact: Brenda Moscoso, 
(202) 493-6282.
    (Mechanical Task Force) (Completed) Initial recommendations on 
mechanical issues (revisions to Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations 
(CFR) part 238) were approved by the full Committee on January 26, 
2005. At the working group meeting of September 7-8, 2005, the task 
force presented additional perfecting amendments and the full RSAC 
approved them on October 11, 2005. An NPRM was published in the Federal 
Register on December 8, 2005, (70 FR 73070). Public comments were due 
by February 17, 2006. The final rule was published in the Federal 
Register on October 19, 2006, (71 FR 61835) effective December 18, 
2006.
    (Crashworthiness Task Force) Among its efforts, the Crashworthiness 
Task Force provided consensus recommendations on static-end strength 
that were adopted by the working group on September 7-8, 2005. The full 
Committee accepted the recommendations on October 11, 2005. The Front-
End Strength of Cab Cars and Multiple-Unit Locomotives NPRM was 
published in the Federal Register on August 1, 2007 (72 FR 42016), with 
comments due by October 1, 2007. A number of comments were entered into 
the docket and FRA is considering each of them in drafting a final 
rule. To demonstrate the means of determining compliance with the 
crashworthiness requirements of the rule, FRA scheduled deformation 
tests as prescribed in the NPRM. A dynamic impact test per the 
performance standard was conducted on April 16, 2008. Additionally, two 
quasi-static tests are planned for May 22, 2008 and June 25, 2008. The 
objectives of the tests are to show alternative means for demonstrating 
compliance with dynamic performance and quasi-static strength-based 
standard outlined in the NPRM. Contact: Gary Fairbanks, (202) 493-6322.
    (Vehicle/Track Interaction Task Force) The task force is developing 
proposed revisions to 49 CFR Parts 213 and 238 principally regarding 
high-speed passenger service. The task force met on October 9-11, 2007, 
and again on November 19-20, 2007, in Washington, DC and presented the 
final task force report and final recommendations and proposed rule 
text for approval by the Passenger Safety Working Group at the December 
11-12, 2007, meeting. The final report and the proposed rule text were 
approved by the working group and were presented to, and approved by, 
full RSAC vote during the February 20, 2008, meeting. The group last 
met on February 27-28, 2008, and FRA is currently drafting an NPRM. No 
additional task force meetings are currently scheduled. Contact: John 
Mardente, (202) 493-1335.
    (General Passenger Safety Task Force) At the working group meeting 
on April 17-18, 2007, the task force presented a progress report to the 
working group. The task force met on July 18-19, 2007, and afterward it 
reported proposed reporting cause codes for injuries involving the 
platform gap that were approved by the working group by mail ballot in 
September 2007. The full

[[Page 29840]]

RSAC approved the recommendations for changes to 49 CFR Part 225 
accident/incident cause codes on October 25, 2007. The task force 
continues work on passenger train door securement, ``second train in 
station,'' trespasser incidents, and system safety based solutions by 
developing a regulatory approach to system safety. The General 
Passenger Safety Task Force presented draft guidance material for 
management of the gap that was considered and approved by the working 
group during the December 11-12, 2007, meeting and was presented and 
approved by full RSAC vote during the February 20, 2008, meeting. The 
group met last on April 23-24, 2008. Contact: Dan Knote, (631) 567-
1596.
    Task 05-01--Review of Roadway Worker Protection Issues. This task 
was accepted on January 26, 2005, to review 49 CFR Part 214, Subpart C, 
Roadway Worker Protection, and related sections of Subpart A; recommend 
consideration of specific actions to advance the on-track safety of 
railroad employees and contractors engaged in maintenance-of-way 
activities throughout the general system of railroad transportation, 
including clarification of existing requirements. A working group was 
established and reported to the RSAC any specific actions identified as 
appropriate. The first meeting of the working group was held on April 
12-14, 2005. The group drafted and accepted regulatory language for 
various revisions, clarifications, and additions to 32 separate items 
in 19 sections of the rule. However, two parties raised technical 
concerns regarding the draft language concerning electronic display of 
track authorities. The working group reported recommendations to the 
full Committee at the June 26, 2007, meeting. FRA, through the NPRM 
process, is to address this issue along with eight additional items on 
which the working group was unable to reach a consensus. Comments were 
received and were considered during the drafting of the NPRM. In early 
2008, the external working group members were solicited to review the 
consensus text for errata review. A draft NPRM is currently under 
review for legal sufficiency by the Office of Safety staff and legal 
counsel, and is expected to be published in late 2008. Contact: 
Christopher Schulte, (610) 521-8201.
    Task 05-02--Reduce Human Factor-Caused Train Accident/Incidents. 
This task was accepted on May 18, 2005, to reduce the number of human 
factor-caused train accidents/incidents and related employee injuries. 
The Railroad Operating Rules Working Group was formed and the group 
extensively reviewed the issues presented. The final working group 
meeting devoted to developing a proposed rule was held February 8-9, 
2006. The working group was not able to deliver a consensus regulatory 
proposal, but did recommend that it be used to review comments on FRA's 
NPRM, which was published in the Federal Register on October 12, 2006, 
(FR 71 60372) with public comments due by December 11, 2006. Two 
reviews were held, one February 8-9, 2007, and the other April 4-5, 
2007. Consensus was reached on four items and those items were 
presented and accepted by the full RSAC Committee at the June 26, 2007, 
meeting. A final rule was published in the Federal Register on February 
13, 2008 (73 FR 8442) with an effective date of April 14, 2008. The 
most recent working group meetings were held September 27-28, 2007, and 
January 17-18, 2008. The next meeting is scheduled for May 21-22, 2008. 
Contact: Douglas Taylor, (202) 493-6255.
    Task 06-01--Locomotive Safety Standards. This task was accepted on 
February 22, 2006, to review 49 CFR Part 229, Railroad Locomotive 
Safety Standards, and revise as appropriate. A working group was 
established with the mandate to report any planned activity to the full 
Committee at each scheduled full RSAC meeting, to include milestones 
for completion of projects and progress toward completion. The first 
working group meeting was held May 8-10, 2006. Working group meetings 
were held on August 8-9, 2006; September 25-26, 2006; October 30-31, 
2006; January 9-10, 2007; and the working group presented 
recommendations regarding revisions to requirements for locomotive 
sanders to the full RSAC on September 21, 2006. The NPRM regarding 
Sanders was published in the Federal Register on March 6, 2007 (72 FR 
9904). Comments received were discussed by the working group for 
clarification, and FRA published a final rule on October 19, 2007 (72 
FR 59216). The working group is continuing the review of 49 CFR Part 
229 with a view to proposing further revisions to update the standards. 
The working group met on November 27-28, 2007, and February 5-6, 2008. 
The next meeting is scheduled for May 20-21, 2008, and a followup 
meeting is scheduled for August 5-6, 2008. Contact: George Scerbo, 
(202) 493-6249.
    Task 06-02--Track Safety Standards and Continuous Welded Rail. 
Section 9005 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient 
Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (Pub.L. No. 109-59, 
``SAFETEA-LU''), the 2005 Surface Transportation Authorization Act, 
requires FRA to issue requirements for inspection of joint bars in 
continuous welded rail (CWR) to detect cracks that could affect the 
integrity of the track structure. (49 U.S.C. 20142(e)). FRA published 
an interim final rule (IFR) establishing new requirements for 
inspections on November 2, 2005 (70 FR 66288). On October 11, 2005, FRA 
offered the RSAC a task to review comments on this IFR, but the 
conditions could not be established under which the Committee could 
have undertaken this with a view toward consensus. Comments on the IFR 
were received through December 19, 2005, and FRA reviewed the comments. 
On February 22, 2006, the RSAC accepted this task to review and revise 
the CWR related to provisions of the Track Safety Standards, with 
particular emphasis on reduction of derailments and consequent injuries 
and damage caused by defective conditions, including joint failures, in 
track using CWR. A working group was established. The working group 
will report any planned activity to the full Committee at each 
scheduled full RSAC meeting, including milestones for completion of 
projects and progress toward completion. The first working group 
meeting was held April 3-4, 2006, at which time the working group 
reviewed comments on the IFR. The second working group meeting was held 
April 26-28, 2006. The working group also met May 24-25, 2006, and July 
19-20, 2006. The working group reported consensus recommendations for 
the final rule that were accepted by the full RSAC Committee by mail 
ballot on August 11, 2006. The final rule was published in the Federal 
Register on October 11, 2006, (71 FR 59677). The working group is 
continuing its review of 49 CFR Section 213.119 with a view to 
proposing further revisions to update the standards. The working group 
met January 30-31, 2007; April 10-11, 2007; June 27-28, 2007; August 
15-16, 2007; October 23-24, 2007; and January, 8-9, 2008. The working 
group reported consensus recommendations for revisions to 49 CFR 
Section 213.119 regulations to the full RSAC Committee on February 20, 
2008, and the recommendations were accepted. The next meeting is 
scheduled for September 16-17, 2008. Contact: Ken Rusk, (202) 493-6236.
    Task 06-03--Medical Standards for Safety-Critical Personnel. This 
task was accepted on September 21, 2006, to enhance the safety of 
persons in the railroad operating environment and the public by 
establishing standards and

[[Page 29841]]

procedures for determining the medical fitness for duty of personnel 
engaged in safety-critical functions. A working group has been 
established and will report any planned activity to the full Committee 
at each scheduled full RSAC meeting, including milestones for 
completion of projects and progress toward completion. The first 
working group meeting was held December 12-13, 2006. The working group 
met on February 20-21, 2007; July 24-25, 2007; August 29-30, 2007; 
October 31-November 1, 2007; December 4-5, 2007; February 13-14, 2008; 
March 26-27, 2008; and April 22-23, 2008. A task force of physicians 
was established in May 2007 to work on specific medical exam-related 
issues. The task force of physicians has had meetings or conference 
calls on July 24, 2007; August 20, 2007; October 15, 2007; and October 
31, 2007, and is scheduled to meet again on June 23-24, 2008. Contact: 
Alan Misiaszek, (202) 493-6002.
    Task 07-01--Track Safety Standards. This task was accepted on 
February 22, 2007, to consider specific improvements to the Track 
Safety Standards (TSS) or other responsive actions, supplementing work 
already underway on CWR specifically: review controls applied to reuse 
of rail in CWR ``plug rail,'' review the issue of cracks emanating from 
bond wire attachments, consider improvements in the TSS related to 
fastening of rail to concrete ties, and ensure a common understanding 
within the regulated community concerning requirements for internal 
rail flaw inspections. These tasks were assigned to the Track Safety 
Standards Working Group. The working group will report any planned 
activity to the full Committee at each scheduled full RSAC meeting, 
including milestones for completion of projects and progress toward 
completion. The first working group meeting was held on June 27-28, 
2007, and the group met again on August 15-16, 2007, and October 23-24, 
2007. Two task forces were created under the working group; the 
Concrete Ties Task Force and the Rail Integrity Task Force. The 
Concrete Ties Task Force met on November 26-27, 2007; February 13-14, 
2008; and April 16-17, 2008, and the next meeting is scheduled for July 
9-10, 2008. The Rail Integrity Task Force met on November 28-29, 2007; 
February 12-13, 2008; and April 15-16, 2008, and the next meeting is 
scheduled for July 8-9, 2008. Contact: Ken Rusk, (202) 493-6236.
    Task 08-01--Report on the Nation's Railroad Bridges. This task was 
accepted on February 20, 2008, to report to the Federal Railroad 
Administrator on the current state of railroad bridge safety 
management, update the findings and conclusions of the 1993 Summary 
Report of the FRA Railroad Bridge Safety Survey, and include 
recommendations for further action with a target date of November 3, 
2008. The working group first met on April 24-25, 2008 and the next 
meeting is scheduled for June 12-13, 2008.

Completed Tasks

    Task 96-1--(Completed) Revising the Freight Power Brake 
Regulations.
    Task 96-2--(Completed) Reviewing and recommending revisions to the 
TSS (49 CFR part 213).
    Task 96-3--(Completed) Reviewing and recommending revisions to the 
Radio Standards and Procedures (found under 49 CFR part 220).
    Task 96-5--(Completed) Reviewing and recommending revisions to 
Steam Locomotive Inspection Standards (49 CFR part 230).
    Task 96-6--(Completed) Reviewing and recommending revisions to 
miscellaneous aspects of the regulations addressing Locomotive Engineer 
Certification (49 CFR part 240).
    Task 96-7--(Completed) Developing Roadway Maintenance Machines (On-
Track Equipment) Safety Standards.
    Task 96-8--(Completed) This planning task evaluated the need for 
action responsive to recommendations contained in a report to Congress, 
titled, ``Locomotive Crashworthiness & Working Conditions.''
    Task 97-1--(Completed) Developing crashworthiness specifications 
(49 CFR part 229) to promote the integrity of the locomotive cab in 
accidents resulting from collisions.
    Task 97-2--(Completed) Evaluating the extent to which 
environmental, sanitary, and other working conditions in locomotive 
cabs affect the crew's health and the safe operation of locomotives, 
proposing standards where appropriate.
    Task 97-3--(Completed) Developing event recorder data survivability 
standards.
    Task 97-4 and Task 97-5--(Completed) Defining positive train 
control functionalities, describing available technologies, evaluating 
costs and benefits of potential systems, and considering implementation 
opportunities and challenges, including demonstration and deployment.
    Task 97-6--(Completed) Revising various regulations to address the 
safety implications of processor-based signal and train control 
technologies, including communications-based operating systems.
    Task 97-7--(Completed) Determining damages qualifying an event as a 
reportable train accident.
    Task 00-1--(Completed-task withdrawn) Determining the need to amend 
regulations protecting persons who work on, under, or between rolling 
equipment and persons applying, removing, or inspecting rear-end 
marking devices (Blue Signal Protection).
    Task 01-1--(Completed) Developing conformity of FRA's regulations 
for accident/incident reporting (49 CFR Part 225) to revised 
regulations of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. 
Department of Labor, and to make appropriate revisions to the FRA Guide 
for Preparing Accident/Incident Reports (Reporting Guide).
    Please refer to the notice published in the Federal Register on 
March 11, 1996, (61 FR 9740) for more information about the RSAC.

    Issued in Washington, DC on May 15, 2008.
Michael J. Logue,
Associate Administrator for Safety Compliance and Program 
Implementation.
[FR Doc. E8-11532 Filed 5-21-08; 8:45 am]
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