Jump to content


Photo

PTC Deadline Extended - 12/31/20


  • Please log in to reply
151 replies to this topic

#1 CNJRoss

CNJRoss

    Administrator

  • Admin
  • PipPip
  • 43390 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Fairfax, VA

Posted 24 July 2015 - 01:07 PM

The New York Times, 7/23:

 

Senate to Debate 3-Year Delay for Rail Safety System

 

WASHINGTON — Two months after the high-speed derailment of an Amtrak train killed eight people and injured hundreds more in Philadelphia, a Senate transportation bill headed for debate this week calls for a three-year delay of the deadline for installing a rail safety system that experts say would have almost certainly prevented the Pennsylvania accident.

 

Lawmakers from the Northeast and train safety experts expressed outrage over the provision, which is included in the 1,000-page legislation to finance highway and transit projects for the next three years. Several lawmakers vowed to fight the extension of the deadline to install the safety system, called positive train control, beyond December 2015.

 

“It should be done immediately. There shouldn’t be an extension,” said Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York. “Given the high number of accidents, and given the fact that P.T.C. is really effective, they should stick with 2015.”

 

Continue here.



#2 CNJRoss

CNJRoss

    Administrator

  • Admin
  • PipPip
  • 43390 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Fairfax, VA

Posted 24 July 2015 - 01:12 PM

The New York Times, 7/23:

 

Senate to Debate 3-Year Delay for Rail Safety System

 

 

 

 

 

Several senators said concern about the rail safety provision could become a central part of the debate over the bill in the days ahead. Mr. Blumenthal said he disliked the language extending the deadline for railroads to install positive train control.

 

But in an interview, he said he might be able to accept a new deadline if Congress agreed to dedicate money from the Highway Trust Fund specifically for installation of the rail safety systems, especially for commuter train systems that are struggling to afford the equipment.Mr.

 

Blumenthal said he intended to propose amendments that would dedicate $570 million a year for three years to commuter-rail safety improvements. He said it was unclear whether Republicans, who control the Senate, would allow the amendments to be offered. And he said it was not certain how hard the Obama administration was willing to fight for them.

 

“I’m hoping they will lend the full weight of their authority,” he said. “It would make a difference.”

 



#3 CNJRoss

CNJRoss

    Administrator

  • Admin
  • PipPip
  • 43390 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Fairfax, VA

Posted 24 July 2015 - 07:27 PM

The New York Times "First Draft," 7/24:

 

 

Haggling Over a Deadline for Railroad Safety Measures

 

On Thursday, several Democratic senators expressed their objections to a provision, buried deep in a proposed highway funding measure, that would delay for three years the requirement that railroads install safety features that might have prevented May’s terrible Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia.

 

One of them was Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, who said, “There shouldn’t be an extension.” Another was Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, who added that he was “deeply disturbed about yet another delay in a potential safety measure.”

 

But it’s fair to point out — as several Republicans did on Friday — that both senators were co-sponsors of earlier legislation in April, before the crash in Philadelphia, that also would have pushed back the current Dec. 31, 2015, deadline by three years.

 

Continue here.



#4 jis

jis

    Member

  • Global Moderator
  • PipPip
  • 1753 posts

Posted 25 July 2015 - 10:19 AM

Given the hash that the federal government made of managing both the permits for installing radio towers and the licensing of bandwidth, it just makes sense to delay by three years.

 

Schumer's grandstanding is about as cynical as it gets. Initially before Spuyten Duyvil he was all forg etting exemptions from PTC for MTA! Then before Frankford he was OK with three years delay to deadline, and now suddenly he can't live with the delay. And mind you none of this is going to change anything about when this stuff gets actually delivered. merely making a law will not cause the federal government to untangle itself from itself and start dealing with issuing permits afaster and provide bandwidth at all.



#5 CNJRoss

CNJRoss

    Administrator

  • Admin
  • PipPip
  • 43390 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Fairfax, VA

Posted 07 August 2015 - 12:51 PM

USDOT/FRA news release:

 

Detailed Report Shows Most Railroads Will Miss Positive Train Control Deadline

U.S. Department of Transportation

Office of Public Affairs,

 

07 Aug 2015

 

ABSTRACT: The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today sent its Status of Positive Train Control Implementation report to Congress. The report is mandated by the House of Representatives Appropriations Committee and shows that after seven years and significant assistance from FRA, most railroads will miss the Dec. 31, 2015 positive train control (PTC) implementation deadline that Congress established in 2008.
 
 
 

WASHINGTONThe Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) today sent its Status of Positive Train Control Implementation report to Congress. The report is mandated by the House of Representatives Appropriations Committee and shows that after seven years and significant assistance from FRA, most railroads will miss the Dec. 31, 2015 positive train control (PTC) implementation deadline that Congress established in 2008.

 

“Positive Train Control is the most significant advancement in rail safety technology in more than a century. Simply put: it prevents accidents and saves lives, which is exactly what we seek to do at The Department of Transportation every single day. We will continue to do everything in our power to help railroads install this technology,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said.

 

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) began calling for train control systems like PTC in 1969, and FRA was involved in establishing PTC standards with stakeholders for more than a decade before the 2008 mandate. Three years before Congress passed the PTC mandate, FRA issued its final rule that established uniform PTC standards for railroads willing to voluntarily install the technology.

 

PTC prevents train-to-train collisions, over-speed derailments, incursions into established work zone limits and a train going to the wrong track because a switch was left in the wrong position.

 

In 2008, Congress passed the Rail Safety Improvement Act (RSIA), requiring all Class I railroads transporting poisonous-by-inhalation hazardous (PIH) or toxic-by-inhalation hazardous (TIH) materials and all railroads providing passenger service to implement Positive Train Control by Dec. 31, 2015.

 

FRA has provided significant assistance and support to railroads in order to help them become PTC compliant. Those efforts include:

  • Providing more than $650 million to passenger railroads, including nearly $400 million in Recovery Act funding.
  • Issuing a nearly $1 billion loan to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to implement PTC on the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North.
  • Building a PTC testbed in Pueblo, Colorado.
  • Working directly with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation to resolve issues related to spectrum use and improve the approval process for PTC communication towers.
  • Dedicating staff to continue work on PTC implementation in March 2010, including establishing a PTC task force.

“The Federal Railroad Administration will continue to use its resources and expertise to help railroads achieve the critical goal to have Positive Train Control implemented,” FRA Acting Administrator Sarah Feinberg said.

 

Read the full report here.

####



#6 CNJRoss

CNJRoss

    Administrator

  • Admin
  • PipPip
  • 43390 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Fairfax, VA

Posted 08 August 2015 - 12:42 PM

The New York Times, 8/7:

 

Most Railroads Won’t Meet Deadline for Safety Controls, Report Says

 

WASHINGTON — A majority of freight railroads and passenger trains will not be able to meet a year-end deadline to install technology that prevents trains from exceeding speed limits and helps avoid collisions, the Federal Railroad Administration said Friday in a report to Congress.

 

Congress set a deadline of Dec. 31 for freight and commuter rail companies to install the technology, which is known as positive train control, after a California passenger train derailed in 2008, killing 25 people.

 

But the report, which was provided to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, said few railroads were on schedule to meet the deadline.

 

The largest railroads would only have 39 percent of their trains fitted with the technology by the end of the year, the report said. In addition, just 34 percent of the employees who need to be trained on the equipment would be ready by Dec. 31.

 

Continue here.



#7 CNJRoss

CNJRoss

    Administrator

  • Admin
  • PipPip
  • 43390 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Fairfax, VA

Posted 08 August 2015 - 10:01 PM

Times Union, Albany, NY 8/7:

 

Editorial

Railroads running away

 

When Congress decided seven years ago to impose new regulations to make the rail industry much safer, nobody was even talking about the dangers of oil trains that carry thousands of tankers loaded with highly combustible crude oil through populated areas.

 

SNIP

 

But the latest Senate version of the transportation funding bill would delay by at least three more years the implementation of this important safety system.  .  .  .

 

What makes this legislation even more outrageous is that it cuts funding for one of the only industry sectors that seems to be making an honest effort to comply with the PTC deadline, Amtrak.  .  .  .

 

More here.



#8 CNJRoss

CNJRoss

    Administrator

  • Admin
  • PipPip
  • 43390 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Fairfax, VA

Posted 11 August 2015 - 09:21 AM

McClatchey News Service, 8/7:

 

 Railroads face big fines for failure to meet federal safety deadline

 

Highights

Feds plan to enforce Dec. 31 deadline

Penalties could add up for railroads

Congress hasn’t provided much funding

 

The Federal Railroad Administration plans to impose big penalties on railroads that fail to meet a year-end deadline to install a new collision avoidance system, including more than 70 percent of the nation’s commuter railroads.

 

Congress mandated Positive Train Control in 2008, but most of the nation’s commuter and freight railroads won’t have the system ready by Dec. 31. The technology is required for about 60,000 miles of track, including those that carry passengers or chemicals that are poisonous or toxic by inhalation.

 

A push in Congress to extend the deadline by three to five years has stalled, and lawmakers aren’t scheduled to return to the Capitol until next month.

 

 

Continue here



#9 CNJRoss

CNJRoss

    Administrator

  • Admin
  • PipPip
  • 43390 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Fairfax, VA

Posted 12 August 2015 - 10:15 AM

USA Today via Poughkeepsie (NY) Journal, 8/10:

 

Metro-North among rail lines to test accident avoidance in 2016

 

 

WASHINGTON – Federal rail regulators have renewed a warning that railroads that don’t have crash avoidance systems operating by the end of this year could face enforcement penalties.

 

Metro-North, which has two train lines that run into Dutchess County, and the Long Island Rail Road are among a half dozen commuter rail lines that expect to begin testing accident avoidance equipment known as positive train controls by the end of 2016, according to a survey released Friday by the Federal Railroad Administration.

 

But testing falls short of full certification for their entire track system, which would come in later years.

 

Continue here.



#10 CNJRoss

CNJRoss

    Administrator

  • Admin
  • PipPip
  • 43390 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Fairfax, VA

Posted 12 August 2015 - 07:35 PM

NJ.com, 8/11:

 

Amtrak, SEPTA on schedule to meet federal train control system mandate

 

PHILADELPHIA — Of the 41 railroads required to meet a federal mandate for implementing Positive Train Control (PTC), SEPTA and Amtrak are among the 11 expected to complete the project by the end of this year.

 

SNIP

 

PTC prevents train-to-train collisions, derailments caused by excessive speed, accidentally entering work zones and trains going down the wrong track.  .  .  .

 

Continue here.






0 user(s) are reading this topic

0 members, 0 guests, 0 anonymous users