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The Federal Railroad Administration The Federal Railroad Administration is one of the DOT's 10 departments involved in intermodal transportation. Its purpose is to ensure the safe and secure movement of goods and people. FRA field inspectors regularly check railroad tracks, signals and train control systems as and operating practices. They also investigate complaints. Definition A federal railroad is a railway in the United States that is controlled by the government. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) establishes and enforces safety regulations, manages railroad funding, and researches ways to improve the efficiency of rail transportation systems. The FRA is one of the 10 agencies within the U.S. Department of Transportation that is concerned with intermodal transportation. Its chief executive officers are the Administrator and Deputy Administrator. The agency is responsible for all freight and passenger transportation that uses the nation's railway network. Additionally the agency supports the rehabilitation of Northeast Corridor rail passenger service and consolidates support from the federal government for rail transportation activities. The agency also regulates the ownership and operation of intermodal facilities, such as tracks, right of way equipment, real estate and rolling stock. It also oversees federal rail transportation programs. FRA's duties also include establishing, through regulation and after an opportunity to comment an procedure that anyone can notify the Secretary Homeland Security any railroad security problems or issues. Additionally, the FRA establishes policies and conducts inspections to assess the compliance with its rail safety regulations in six technical disciplines: track signals and train control motive power and equipment, operating practices, hazmat and highway-rail grade crossings. fela railroad has the responsibility to make sure the railway transportation system is safe, efficient, and environmentally friendly. The agency also requires railroads to maintain a safe workplace and provide adequate training for their employees. The agency also determines and enforces the cost of railroad services to ensure that the public is billed fair prices for transportation services. The Federal Railroad Administration also enacts and enforces rules to stop discrimination against railroad employees. The agency also safeguards whistleblowers against retaliation from railroad companies. The agency also has a procedure by which railroad employees can file complaints regarding the company's actions. The primary goal of the FRA is to ensure the safe, reliable, and efficient transportation of goods and people to ensure a secure America both now and in the future. The FRA achieves this by regulating railroad safety, managing railroad assistance programs conducting research to help the improvement of safety for railroads and national rail transportation policy as well as coordinating and assisting with rail networking development, and helping the private sector manage railroads. In the past, railroads were essentially monopolies, with no competition. As a result, railroads often misused their position in the marketplace. Therefore, Congress established the Interstate Commerce Commission and other regulatory agencies to prevent abuses by railroad monopolies. Purpose Federal railroads are federal institutions that make rules, regulate rail funds and conduct research to improve the rail system in the United States. It supervises freight and passenger railroads and operates the nation's rail infrastructure. It is one of the 10 agencies within the U.S. Department of Transportation. It is also charged with maintaining and expanding existing rail systems, ensuring the capability of the railroad industry to meet the growing travel and freight demands and providing leadership in regional and national system planning. The main responsibility of the federal government in the field of rail transportation is safety. The Federal Railroad Administration is responsible for this. It has several divisions which oversee the country's passenger and freight railroad operations. The Office of Railroad Safety is the largest with a staff of around 350. It is responsible for conducting safety inspections in six technical disciplines, which include track, signalling, train control, motive and equipment, operating procedures, hazmat, and highway-rail grade crossings. FRA has additional departments that include the Office of Railroad Policy and Development. This department oversees programs that aim at enhancing passenger and freight rail transportation, like the Northeast Corridor Future. This department is responsible for granting grants given to railways, and collaborates with other agencies in order to plan the nation's rail requirements. The FRA also has a duty to enforce federal laws that pertain to railroads and their employees. This includes stopping railroads from discriminating against employees and ensuring that all railway employees injured are provided with transportation to the nearest hospital for initial aid treatment. Additionally, railroads are prohibited from denying or delaying medical treatment to injured railway employees. The FRA is the main regulator of the freight and passenger rail industries, however there are other agencies which manage the economic aspects of rail transport. The Surface Transportation Board, for example, is in charge of setting rates and managing the financial aspects of the industry. It is also the regulator for railroad mergers, line-sales, construction and abandonment. Other responsibilities include establishing a process through regulations, after a public input opportunity, by which anyone may report alleged rail safety violations to the agency. Functions Railroads transport people and goods between cities in the developed countries as well as remote villages in less-developed countries. They transport raw materials to processing and manufacturing factories, and the finished products from these facilities to stores and warehouses. Rail is a crucial mode of transportation for a range of essential commodities like grains, oil, and coal. In 2020, freight railroads carried more than a quarter of the freight volumes in the United America [PDF(PDF). Federal railroads operate just like any other company with departments for marketing, operations, sales, and an executive department. The marketing and sales department talks with customers and potential clients to determine the services they require and what they will cost. The operations department then produces the rail services that meet these requirements at the lowest possible cost to generate revenue for the railroad. The executive department supervises the entire operation, making sure every department is operating efficiently. The government provides support to railways with a variety means, including grants and subsidized rates for government traffic. Congress also provides funds to support and construct new tracks and stations. These subsidies are often in addition to the earnings the railroads earn from tickets and freight contracts. Amtrak is owned by the United States government. It is a quasi-public for-profit corporation with a significant shareholder that is the United States government. A key role of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is developing and enforcing safety regulations for railroads. This includes regulating the mechanical condition of trains as well as the health and safety of railroad employees. FRA also collects data on rail security to identify trends areas that require improvement or regulatory attention and to track trends. In addition to these primary duties, FRA works on various other projects related to improving the security and economy of rail transportation in the United States. For example, the agency aims to reduce barriers that could hinder railroads' implementation of positive train control systems (PTC). PTC is an emergency safety system that utilizes sensors and computers on board to stop the train when it gets too close to a vehicle or other object. History In the 1820s-1830s, the first railroads in America were built, primarily in New England and Mid-Atlantic. The railroads significantly accelerated the industrialization process in these areas and also brought more food to the market. This allowed the country to become more self-sufficient and less dependent on foreign imports, which resulted in a solid economic base. In the latter part of the nineteenth century, the railroad industry experienced an “Golden Age,” during which many new, more efficient rail lines were built, and passenger travel by train became more popular. The government's efforts to expand the railroad system were a major reason. For instance the government offered homesteaders land grants to encourage them to move to the West, and the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads collaborated to build the first transcontinental railroad, which allowed travel from New York to San Francisco in just six days. However, in the first half of the 20th century, demand for passenger railroad services declined and other modes of transportation such as airplanes and cars gained popularity, while regulations choked railroads competitiveness economically. The industry was plagued by a series of bankruptcy as well as service cuts and deferred maintenance. Misguided federal rail regulations also contributed to the decline. Around 1970 the federal government started to loosen the regulatory burdens on railroads. The Surface Transportation Board was established to oversee the economic aspects of the industry, such as railroad rates and mergers. The Federal Railroad Administration, which regulates freight and passenger transport and sets rail safety standards, was also created. Since then, a great amount of investment has been made in the country's railroad infrastructure. The Northeast Corridor, for example was rebuilt to accommodate faster, more modern high-speed ground transportation (HSGT) trains. The effort has also been made to develop more efficient freight rail systems. In the future, FRA hopes to continue its partnership with all transportation agencies in order to ensure the safety and reliability of railroads. The role of FRA is to ensure that the nation's transportation system is running as efficiently as possible.