On Thursday, July 28, 2022, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) published its proposed Train Crew Size Safety Requirements rule in the Federal Register.
The public comment period has been extended until December 21, 2022 (see, 2022-23418.pdf (govinfo.gov) and correction at 2022-24117.pdf (govinfo.gov)).
FRA has scheduled a public hearing on its proposed rule for December 14, 2022. In advance of that public hearing, the Office of Advocacy has scheduled a small business roundtable to discuss small business concerns with the proposed rule. FRA’s proposed rule would establish safe minimum requirements for the size of train crews depending on the type of operation, including a minimum requirement of two crewmembers for all railroad operations, with exceptions proposed for those operations that do not pose significant safety risks to railroad employees, the public, or the environment. The proposed rule would also establish minimum requirements for the location of crewmembers on a moving train and promote safe and effective teamwork and permit special approval procedures to allow railroads to petition FRA to continue legacy operations with one-person train crews and allow any railroad to petition.
The roundtable agenda is being finalized. To attend the roundtable meeting on December 12th, please email your RSVP to Bruce Lundegren at Bruce.Lundegren@sba.gov. If you would like to discuss any issues during the meeting or would like to make a presentation, please include that information in your email.