[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 169 (Friday, September 1, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60531-60532]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-18996]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

[Docket No. FRA-2010-0060]


Norfolk Southern Railway's Request To Operate During a Temporary 
Outage of Its Positive Train Control System

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

ACTION: Notice of availability, request for comments, and notice of 
planned decision.

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SUMMARY: This document provides the public with notice that, on August 
28, 2023, Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) submitted a request for 
amendment (RFA) to its FRA-certified positive train control (PTC) 
system. On August 28, 2023, NS experienced a system-wide outage of its 
PTC back office, temporarily impacting the operations of NS and its 
tenant railroads. NS is seeking FRA's authorization under FRA's PTC 
regulations to continue operations, with certain restrictions, while 
NS's PTC system is temporarily disabled.

DATES: FRA will review comments received by September 21, 2023. FRA may 
consider comments received after that date to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: 
    Comments: Comments may be submitted by going to https://www.regulations.gov and following the online instructions for 
submitting comments.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and the 
applicable docket number. The relevant PTC docket number for this host 
railroad is Docket No. FRA-2010-0060. For convenience, all active PTC 
dockets are hyperlinked on FRA's website at https://railroads.dot.gov/train-control/ptc/ptc-annual-and-quarterly-reports. All comments 
received will be posted without change to https://www.regulations.gov; 
this includes any personal information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gabe Neal, Staff Director, Signal, 
Train Control, and Crossings Division, telephone: 816-516-7168, email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In general, Title 49 United States Code 
(U.S.C.) Section 20157(h) requires FRA to certify that a host 
railroad's PTC system complies with Title 49 Code of Federal 
Regulations (CFR) part 236, subpart I, before the technology may be 
operated in revenue service. Before making

[[Page 60532]]

certain changes to an FRA-certified PTC system or the associated FRA-
approved PTC Safety Plan or disabling the PTC system, a host railroad 
must submit, and obtain FRA's approval of, an RFA under 49 CFR 
236.1021.
    Under 49 CFR 236.1021(e), FRA's regulations provide that FRA will 
publish a notice in the Federal Register and invite public comment in 
accordance with 49 CFR part 211, if an RFA includes a request for 
approval of a material modification or discontinuance of a signal or 
train control system. Accordingly, this notice informs the public that, 
on August 28, 2023, NS submitted an RFA to its PTC system under 49 CFR 
236.1021(m), and that RFA is available in Docket No. FRA-2010-0060. 
Interested parties are invited to comment on NS's RFA by submitting 
written comments or data.
    FRA typically invites the public to comment on such RFAs for a 
period of 20 days, as FRA must issue a decision to the railroad within 
45 days of receipt of the RFA. 49 CFR 236.1021(e), (m)(3)(i). However, 
FRA's PTC regulations, at Sec.  236.1021(m)(3)(ii), recognize that FRA 
may issue a decision before the standard 45-day decision deadline in 
emergencies or under other circumstances necessitating immediate 
approval. Given the circumstances and impact to NS's entire network, 
FRA intends to issue a decision immediately, subject to conditions and 
other limitation to ensure rail safety. FRA will review and consider 
any comments received during the comment period, even after issuing a 
decision.

Privacy Act Notice

    In accordance with 49 CFR 211.3, FRA solicits comments from the 
public to better inform its decisions. DOT posts these comments, 
without edit, including any personal information the commenter 
provides, to https://www.regulations.gov, as described in the system of 
records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at https://www.transportation.gov/privacy. See https://www.regulations.gov/privacy-notice for the privacy notice of regulations.gov. To facilitate 
comment tracking, we encourage commenters to provide their name, or the 
name of their organization; however, submission of names is completely 
optional. If you wish to provide comments containing proprietary or 
confidential information, please contact FRA for alternate submission 
instructions.

    Issued in Washington, DC
Carolyn R. Hayward-Williams,
Director, Office of Railroad Systems and Technology.
[FR Doc. 2023-18996 Filed 8-31-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P