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The Federal Railroad Administration The Federal Railroad Administration is one of the DOT's 10 departments concerned with intermodal transportation. Its goal is to facilitate the secure and reliable transportation of both people and goods. FRA field inspectors routinely inspect railroad tracks, signals and train control systems, as and operating practices. They also investigate complaints. Definition A federal railroad is a rail carrier in the United States that is controlled by the federal government. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is responsible for the creation and enforcement of railway safety regulations, administers funds for railroads, and investigates ways to improve rail transportation systems. The FRA is one of the 10 agencies of the U.S. Department of Transportation that is concerned with intermodal transportation, and its chief executive officers are the Administrator and Deputy Administrator. The agency is responsible for all passenger and freight transportation that uses the nation's railway network. Additionally the agency supports the rehabilitation of the Northeast Corridor rail passenger service and consolidates support from the federal government for rail transportation activities. The agency also regulates ownership and operation of intermodal facilities, such as tracks, right of way, equipment, real estate, and rolling stock. It also manages federal rail transportation programs. The FRA's duties include establishing, through regulation, after opportunity for notice and comment an avenue through which anyone can submit a make a complaint to the Secretary of Homeland Security concerning railroad security issues or inconsistencies. In addition, the agency establishes policies and conducts inspections to determine the compliance with its rail safety laws in six technical disciplines tracks, signal and train control, motive power and machinery operating practices, hazmat, and highway-rail grade crossings. The agency is charged with the responsibility to make sure the railroad transportation system is safe, efficient and sustainable. In turn, the agency requires railroads to provide a safe working environment and provide appropriate training for their employees. In addition, the agency sets and regulates railroad rates to ensure that the public receives fair prices for their transportation services. The Federal Railroad Administration also enacts and enforces rules to prevent discrimination towards railroad employees. They also shield whistleblowers against retaliation from railroad carriers. The agency also has a procedure by which railroad employees can make complaints regarding the company's actions. The agency's primary mission is to enable the safe, reliable, and efficient movement of goods and people to ensure a secure America today and into the future. The FRA accomplishes this by overseeing the safety of railroads, regulating programs for assistance to railroads conducting research to help better safety of railroads and national rail transportation policies, coordinating and supporting the development of rail networks, and helping the private sector manage railroads. In the past, railroads were essentially monopolies with little competition. As a result, the industry often abused its position in the marketplace. Therefore, Congress created the Interstate Commerce Commission and other regulatory agencies to curb the abuses committed by railroad monopolies. Purpose The federal railroad is a government agency that sets regulations, manages rail funds and studies ways to improve the nation's rail transportation system. It supervises freight and passenger railroads, and also manages the nation's railway infrastructure. It is one of 10 agencies in the U.S. Department of Transportation. It is also charged with maintaining and expanding existing rail systems, ensuring the capacity of the rail industry to meet the growing demand for freight and travel as well as providing leadership in regional and national system planning. Security is the primary responsibility in the field of rail transportation. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is in charge of this, and it has several divisions responsible for overseeing the country's passenger and freight rail operations. The Office of Railroad Safety is the largest of them, with around 350 inspectors. It is responsible for conducting safety inspections in six technical disciplines, including track signalling, and train control equipment and motives operating procedures, hazmat, and highway-rail grade crossings. FRA has various departments, including the Office of Railroad Policy and Development. This oversees the programs designed to improve passenger and freight rail transportation, such as the Northeast Corridor Future. This department also is responsible for the grants that are made to railways and collaborates with other agencies in planning for the nation's rail requirements. The FRA also has a responsibility to enforce federal laws pertaining to railroads and their workers. This includes preventing railroads from discriminating against employees, and making sure that all railway employees injured are provided with transportation to the nearest hospital for initial aid treatment. The law also prohibits railroads from delay or refuse medical treatment for injured railway workers. The FRA is the primary regulator of the freight and passenger railway industries, but there are other organizations that manage the economic aspects of rail transport. Surface Transportation Board is responsible for determining rates and governing economics in the sector. It also has the authority to regulate railroad mergers lines sales construction and abandonment. After the public consultation period the agency is responsible for establishing regulations that permit anyone to report any suspected safety issues with rail. Functions Railroads transport people and goods to and from cities in developed nations, as well as remote villages in less-developed countries. They transport raw materials from processing and manufacturing facilities, and finished goods from these facilities to warehouses or stores. Rail is a crucial mode of transportation for a number of essential commodities including grains, oil and coal. In 2020, freight rail moved over a quarter of the nation's total freight volumes [PDF(PDF). Federal railroads operate as a business just like other businesses with departments for marketing and sales, operations and an executive department. The department for marketing and sales works with potential and existing customers as well as clients to determine what services they need and how much they should cost. The operations department then creates rail services that meet these requirements at the lowest price possible to make money for railroads. The executive department oversees the entire operation and ensures that every department is operating efficiently. fela claims railroad employees offers support to the railways in various ways from grants to subsidised rates for shipping government traffic. Congress also provides money to build new tracks and stations. These subsidy funds are often added to the money that railroads earn through tickets and freight contracts. Amtrak is owned by the United States government. It is a quasi public for-profit corporation, with the United States Government as a major stockholder. A key role of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is developing and enforcing safety regulations for railroads. This includes regulating the mechanical conditions of trains as well as the safety and health of railroad employees. FRA also collects and analyzes data on rail safety to identify patterns and areas that might require more or better regulatory attention. In addition to these primary duties, FRA works on various other projects that aim to improve the security and economy of railroad transportation in the United States. For instance, FRA aims to reduce barriers that could delay railroads' implementation of positive train control systems (PTC). PTC is a security technology that utilizes sensors and computers on board to stop a train automatically when it is too close to an object or vehicle. History In the 1820s-1830s the first railroads in America were constructed, mostly in New England and Mid-Atlantic. The railroads significantly accelerated the industrialization process in those areas, and also brought more food products to the market. This made the country more self-sufficient and less dependent on imports. In the late nineteenth century the railroad industry was experiencing an “Golden Age,” during which many new railway lines that were more efficient were constructed, and passenger travel by train became more popular. The government's efforts in expanding the railroad system was an important factor. For example the government provided homesteaders grants of land to encourage them to move to the West and the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads collaborated to build the first transcontinental railroad which made it possible to travel from New York to San Francisco in six days. In the first half century, however the demand for rail passenger services declined, and other modes of transportation like planes and automobiles became more popular. In the meantime, the stifling of regulation made it difficult for railroads to compete. The industry was plagued by a series of bankruptcies as well as service cuts and deferred maintenance. Additionally, a misguided federal railway regulations led to the demise of the industry. Around 1970, federal authorities began to ease the regulations governing railroads. The Surface Transportation Board was established to oversee economic aspects of the industry such as mergers and rates for railroads. The Federal Railroad Administration, which supervises freight and passenger transportation and sets safety standards for rail was also established. Since then, a large amount of money has been made in the nation's railroad infrastructure. The Northeast Corridor has been rebuilt for instance, in order to allow for faster and more modern high-speed ground transportation (HSGT). There have also been efforts to develop more efficient systems for freight rail. In the future, FRA hopes to continue its partnership with all transportation agencies to ensure reliable and safe railroads. It is the responsibility of FRA to ensure that the transportation system of the United States operates as efficiently as possible.