House T&I Committee introduces legislation for three-year PTC deadline extension

Written by Mischa Wanek-Libman, editor
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The U.S. House of Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure Committee leadership introduced legislation to extend the deadline for U.S. railroads to implement Positive Train Control (PTC).

 

The bill, Positive Train Control Enforcement and Implementation Act of 2015, gives railroads until the end of 2018, a three-year extension, to implement PTC, provides limited authority for the U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary to extend the deadline beyond 2018 if railroads demonstrate they are facing continued difficulties in completing the mandate, but have made every effort to install PTC as soon as possible and requires railroads to complete progress reports on implementation.

Association of American Railroads (AAR) President and CEO Edward R. Hamberger provided the following response to legislation, “The freight rail industry is pleased the House T&I bipartisan leadership has introduced legislation to extend the PTC deadline. The committee leadership clearly recognizes the need for immediate action to forestall the looming economic crisis that would result from widespread freight and passenger rail service disruption. We look forward to working with both the house and senate bipartisan leadership to quickly get the PTC extension across the finish line and to the President’s desk for signature.”

The Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 mandates that freight rail lines carrying certain toxic materials, passenger railroads and commuter railroads implement PTC by December 31, 2015. However, it is no secret that most of those rail providers required to install the technology will not meet the deadline. A recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) study on the issue confirmed that railroads have faced a number of challenges in implementing the complex technology and most will not be able to meet the deadline.

“Completion of the Positive Train Control mandate by the end of the year is not achievable, and extending the deadline is essential to preventing significant disruptions of both passenger and freight rail service across the country,” said Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA), one of the sponsors of the Positive Train Control Enforcement and Implementation Act of 2015 (H.R. 3651). “Railroads must implement this important but complicated safety technology in a responsible manner, and we need to give them the necessary time to do so.”

“This extension will ensure our nation’s railroads can continue to function and hold them accountable to implement necessary safety measures on a public timeline,” said Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee Chairman Jeff Denham (R-CA), also a sponsor of the bill. “Passenger and freight railroads have stated they can’t meet the current deadline and will shut down later this year. This includes ACE in my district. We must protect communities across the country from a railroad shutdown, which would damage local economies nationwide.”

All seven Class 1 railroads have said that without an extension, they will be forced to suspend shipments of certain chemicals, including some used in treating drinking water and in fertilizers; commuter railroads will need to cease operations, significantly impacting commutes in major metropolitan regions and all Amtrak service outside of portions of the Northeast Corridor will be suspended.

The Federal Railroad Administration and the GAO have also previously recommended extending the PTC deadline. Additionally, groups such as the American Water Works Association, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, American Chemistry Council, American Farm Bureau Federation, National Association of Manufacturers, National Retail Federation and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce have all expressed support of a PTC deadline extension.

U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, released a statement on the legislation that read, “I applaud Reps. Shuster, DeFazio, Denham and Capuano for introducing legislation to extend the deadline for [PTC] and avert a disastrous rail service shutdown, the effects of which we will start to see in November. The Senate has passed a bipartisan proposal to avoid commuter and freight rail service disruptions with case-by-case oversight to ensure continued progress is made towards full implementation. Along with my colleagues, I am committed to securing enactment of an extension that meets the needs of railroad passengers, railroads, and freight customers while important safety enhancements move forward.

“Our country’s economy cannot afford the significant disruptions that will occur if we don’t act soon. Reaching an agreement and passing legislation in the coming weeks is the only way to avert a rail service shutdown.”

 

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