[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 77 (Monday, April 24, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18958-18960]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-08159]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

[Docket No. FRA-2017-0002-N-9]


Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment 
Request: Cab Technology Integration Lab (CTIL) Head-up Display Survey

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

ACTION: Notice and comment request.

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SUMMARY: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), this notice 
announces that FRA is forwarding the new Information Collection Request 
(ICR) abstracted below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for 
review and comment. The ICR describes the information collection and 
its expected burden. On November 2, 2016, FRA published a notice 
providing a 60-day period for public comment on the ICR.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before May 24, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert Brogan, Information 
Collection Clearance Officer, Office of Railroad Safety, Regulatory 
Analysis Division, RRS-21, Federal Railroad Administration, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Mail Stop 25, Washington, DC 20590 (Telephone: (202) 
493-6292); or Ms. Kim Toone, Information Collection Clearance Officer, 
Office of Administration, Office of Information Technology, RAD-20, 
Federal Railroad Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Mail Stop 
35, Washington, DC 20590 (Telephone: (202) 493-6132). (These telephone 
numbers are not toll free.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501-3520, and its 
implementing regulations, 5 CFR part 1320, require Federal agencies to 
issue two notices seeking public comment on information collection 
activities before OMB may approve paperwork packages. 44 U.S.C. 3506, 
3507; 5 CFR 1320.5, 1320.8(d)(1), and 1320.12. On November 2, 2016, FRA 
published a 60-day notice in the Federal Register soliciting comment on 
the ICR for which it is now seeking OMB approval. See 81 FR 76411. FRA 
received three comments in response to this notice.
    Comments were received from the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers 
and Trainmen (BLET), the SMART Transportation Division (SMART-TD), and 
the Association of American Railroads (AAR). FRA has contacted all 
three organizations to address any comments and concerns, and will be 
working with these organizations to help facilitate the research study. 
All three commenting organizations were open to participation in the 
design or execution of the study.

BLET's Summary of Recommendations/Concerns

     BLET is supportive of FRA's efforts to study distraction, 
and suggests getting feedback from locomotive engineers as a method to 
gauge the degree of distraction that exists within the locomotive cab;
     BLET is concerned the FRA study is limited to the craft of 
locomotive engineer; and
     BLET is also concerned the FRA study is not addressing 
other sources of distraction, such as Trip Optimizer or Leader. BLET 
encourages FRA to follow up with a study that captures Trip Optimizer 
or Leader experiences in conjunction with the other potential 
distractors.

FRA Responses

     FRA will seek feedback from multiple locomotive engineers

[[Page 18959]]

throughout the course of the study, including but not limited to: The 
design of the study; execution of the study; and the analysis of the 
results;
     FRA will consider conducting a follow-on study related to 
cab distraction and its impact on crew-interaction; and
     FRA acknowledges this study will not address any 
potentially distracting effects from Trip Optimizer or Leader. FRA has 
conducted prior studies of Trip Optimizer and continues to investigate 
Trip Optimizer and Leader systems' safety-related issues as they are 
brought to FRA's attention.

SMART TD's Summary of Recommendations/Concerns

     SMART-TD is concerned the Head-Up Display (HUD) will be 
another electronic device that takes crew members' eyes off the tracks; 
and
     SMART-TD recommends the following alternative ways to deal 
with in-cab distractions: Issuing train crew size rules; limiting 
access by others to radio channels trains use; limiting use of defect 
detectors; investigating distractive effects of Leader and Trip 
Optimizer; and increasing implementation of positive train control 
(PTC).

FRA Responses

     FRA will consider initiating future studies into other 
potential in-cab issues. In the meantime, FRA is reviewing SMART-TD's 
concerns and is working with the railroads to review their locomotive 
engineer certification programs to ensure the programs include training 
on Leader and Trip Optimizer systems or other new technology, if 
utilized. Each railroad's certification program must address how the 
railroad responds to changes such as the introduction of new 
technology, new operating rule books, or significant changes in 
operations--including alteration of the territory over which engineers 
are authorized to operate. FRA has done, and will do further, onboard 
observation inspections regarding Leader and Trip Optimizer 
interaction.

AAR's Summary of Recommendations/Concerns

     AAR recommends their member railroads be included as 
active participants in the design and execution of the study.

FRA Response

     FRA communicated with AAR after receiving its written 
response to the 60-day Federal Register notice. FRA welcomes the 
participation of the AAR's member railroads and believes such 
participation will contribute to the validity of the study results. FRA 
is currently working with AAR to arrange participation throughout the 
study to address any concerns and answer any questions.
    Before OMB decides whether to approve the proposed collection of 
information, it must provide 30 days for public comment. 44 U.S.C. 
3507(b); 5 CFR 1320.12(d). Federal law requires OMB to approve or 
disapprove paperwork packages between 30 and 60 days after the 30-day 
notice is published. 44 U.S.C. 3507(b)-(c); 5 CFR 1320.12(d); see also 
60 FR 44978, 44983, Aug. 29, 1995. OMB believes the 30-day notice 
informs the regulated community to file relevant comments and affords 
the agency adequate time to digest public comments before it renders a 
decision. 60 FR 44983, Aug. 29, 1995. Therefore, respondents should 
submit their respective comments to OMB within 30 days of publication 
to best ensure having their full effect. 5 CFR 1320.12(c); see also 60 
FR 44983, Aug. 29, 1995.
    The summary below describes the ICR and its expected burden. FRA is 
submitting the new request for clearance by OMB as the PRA requires.
    Title: Cab Technology Integration Lab (CTIL) Head-up Display 
Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 2130--New.
    Abstract: FRA is proposing a study which will focus on locomotive 
engineers. Distraction is a common problem in locomotive cabs and 
preliminary research suggests the dispatch radio may have significant 
effects on train crew workload and performance. There are generally two 
categories of dispatcher-engineer communications. Some require 
immediate action and should be provided in the usual manner (over the 
radio). However, others do not require immediate action and could be 
provided as a written message.
    FRA seeks to understand how the dispatch radio could potentially 
lead to human-performance degradation for a locomotive engineer, and if 
a HUD would be an alternative and superior technology to communicating 
information usually conveyed over the dispatch radio.
    HUDs have been incorporated and researched extensively in aviation 
and motor vehicle applications because of their relative advantage over 
head-down displays (HDD). Research in the CTIL, FRA's locomotive 
simulator at Volpe, The National Transportation Systems Center in 
Cambridge, MA, has shown that in-cab displays, such as moving maps, can 
lead to prolonged heads-down time (Young, et al., 2015). Additionally, 
research done in the field in naturalistic studies using passenger 
vehicles has also shown that looking inside a vehicle for interface 
control features increases the risk of an accident/incident (Liang, 
Lee, & Yekhsatyan, 2012). Thus, a HUD has real advantages over a HDD. 
FRA believes investigating alternative technologies that increase 
forward-track viewing time is worth pursuing.
    To test the hypothesis that display communications on a HUD can 
reduce workload and distractions while increasing the time locomotive 
engineers keep their eyes on the forward track, an experiment will be 
run in the CTIL with four different conditions: HUD presence (present 
or absent) will be crossed with radio communications (present or 
absent). Forty locomotive engineers will participate in the simulator 
study and survey data collection. The Massachusetts Institute of 
Technology will develop and install the HUD.
    FRA will use a subjective measure of workload, such as the National 
Aeronautics and Space Administration Task Load Index (NASA-TLX), in 
this study and provide it to the locomotive engineers after the 
simulator experiment. In addition, locomotive engineers will rate the 
usability of the system with a usability scale. Analysis of the 
simulator data, workload data, and usability survey data will allow FRA 
to assess whether a HUD has a relative advantage over a HDD in rail, 
and if it could mitigate any radio-distraction related performance 
declines.
    Type of Request: Approval of a new information collection.
    Affected Public: Railroad Workers.
    Form(s): FRA F 6180.168.
    Total Estimated Annual Responses: 40.
    Total Estimated Annual Burden: 260 hours.
    Addressee: Send comments regarding the information collection to 
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management 
and Budget, 725 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20503, Attention: FRA 
Desk Officer. Comments may also be sent via email to OMB at the 
following address: [email protected].
    Comments are invited on the following: Whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for DOT to properly perform its 
functions, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; the accuracy of DOT's estimates of the burden of the proposed 
information collection; ways to enhance the quality,

[[Page 18960]]

utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, 
including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology.
    A comment to OMB is best assured of having its full effect if OMB 
receives it within 30 days of publication of this notice in the Federal 
Register.

    Authority:  44 U.S.C. 3501-3520.

Sarah L. Inderbitzin,
Acting Chief Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2017-08159 Filed 4-21-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-06-P