The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) was created by the Department ofTransportation Act of 1966. It is one of ten agencies within the U.S. Department ofTransportation concerned with intermodal transportation. FRA promotes safe,environmentally sound, successful railroad transportation to meet the needs of all customers today and tomorrow.
FRA's Office of Railroad Safety promotes and regulates safety throughout the Nation's railroad industry. The office executes its regulatory and inspection responsibilities through a diverse staff of railroad safety experts.
The Federal Railroad Administration is responsible for working with stakeholders to develop cohesive goals and policies for maintaining and improving the U.S. freight and passenger rail networks. This section covers various efforts across America and the world in helping to deliver safe, reliable, and efficient rail transportation.
FRA Research & Development (R&D) projects contribute to the FRA's safety regulatory processes, to railroad suppliers, to railroads involved in the transportation of freight, intercity passengers, commuters, and to railroad employees and their labor organizations.
In this section, we provide descriptions and comprehensive, official sources for FRA's regulations (also called rules), selected legislation, as well as policy and guidance documents. Additionally, you will find current topics of high interest or significant impact to Congress, railroads, employees, labor, public interest groups and other stakeholders.
FRA supports passenger and freight railroading through a variety of competitive grant, dedicated grant, and loan programs to develop safety improvements, relieve congestion, and encourage the expansion and upgrade of passenger and freight rail infrastructure and services. FRA also provides training and technical assistance to grantees and stakeholders.
The Federal Railroad Administration Office of Communications is the primary link between the agency and reporters, the public and others who have an interest in our nation's rail network.
The FRA eLibrary contains all the documents that are found throughout the FRA Public Website. Multiple pages on the website may link to the same eLibrary item based on its set of metadata.
Fatality Analysis of Maintenance-of-way Employees and Signalmen (FAMES) Committee was formed by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) in collaboration with railroad labor and management representatives, to form an ad-hoc committee to review roadway worker fatalities.
FAMES is a voluntary, consensus-based Committee focused on identifying risks, trends, and factors impacting roadway worker safety. FAMES will periodically issue findings and recommendations based upon its review of available safety data. The Committee’s activities are focused on education and prevention.
FAMES: Worker Safety at Highway-Rail Grade Crossings
Roadway Worker Good faith Challenge
Fatalities in Controlled Points/Manual Interlockings
Fatalities Involving Roadway Maintenance Machine Strikes
Fourth Quarter Safety Alert (Sep 2014)
FAMES: Fatalities on Adjacent Tracks
FAMES: Fatal Accidents Under Train Approach Warning (Watchman / Lookout)
Introduction to the FAMES Committee
Fatal Accidents Involving Roadway Workers-In-Charge and Lone Workers
The Importance of Effective On-Track Safety Briefings
The Importance of Effective On-Track Safety Briefings (June 2016)
Fatal Accident Patterns - Hours of Day
FAMES Safety Alert: Use of Electronic Devices