On January 11, Representative Peter DeFazio (OR-D) introduced legislation designed to accelerate implementation of a key train safety feature.
H.R. 4766, the Positive Train Control Implementation and Financing Act, would give railroads until the end of the year to put in place Positive Train Control (PTC), which automatically decreases the speed of a train traveling over the speed limit. It would also prevent the Department of Transportation from granting extensions to railroads seeking to delay that deadline.
“Since Congress first passed legislation to mandate PTC implementation in 2008, some railroads have been diligent in implementing PTC while others have clearly been dragging their feet,” DeFazio said.
All Members of the Washington delegation cosponsored the bill in reaction to the December train derailment that occurred south of Seattle.
The bill also requires Amtrak to provide updates on its progress in implementing PTC. On January 17, DeFazio, Ranking Minority Member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and Michael Capuano (MAD), Ranking Minority Member of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials, sent a letter to Amtrak President and Chief Executive Officer Richard Anderson requesting a detailed update on Amtrak’s safety policies and implementation of PTC on routes owned or operated by Amtrak. The letter stated:
“We would like to know what ‘safety culture’ weaknesses Amtrak has identified throughout the organization and what specific steps Amtrak is taking to resolve them immediately. … the traveling public should not have to wait for another incident to know whether Amtrak has sufficiently addressed those issues. Amtrak should be the safest passenger rail service provider in the world, and we hope to help you on that trajectory.”
The letter also asked that Amtrak provide a detailed report on the status of PTC implementation by February 16, 2018.
The new push for train safety comes as Congress debates infrastructure spending and awaits a comprehensive plan for infrastructure investment from the White House.
For more on this topic, see the December 2001 issue of Congressional Digest on “Train Travel in America” and the October 2012 issue of Congressional Digest on “Transportation Infrastructure Investment.”
