DOT Secretary LaHood, TSA Administrator Pistole visit TTCI

Secretary Ray LaHood's made his first visit to his research and testing facility on July 28, 2010. FRA Associate Administrator for Safety Jo Strang, AAR President & CEO Ed Hamberger and TTCI President Roy Allen quickly welcomed the Secretary to the site with a brief history lesson and an update on various safety related research and testing programs performed under interagency agreement.

Secretary LaHood’s first
stop on his tour was at the Rail Dynamics Laboratory where he saw the Vibration
Test Unit in operation. The VTU is a computer-controlled test device that
reproduces the ride environment seen in revenue service. It is used for evaluating
and restraining the movement of loads in railcars to improve safety and damage
prevention.

After arriving at the
Security and Emergency Response Training Center SERTC, Secretary LaHood viewed
class demonstrations by National Domestic Preparedness Consortium funded
students. The Department of Homeland Security (FEMA) funds this program through
the NDPC. TTCI received Congressional authorization to become one of two new
members of the seven-member consortium on August 3, 2007.

FRA has a long history of
collaborative work with TTCI in developing new and innovative safety
technologies such as Crash Energy Management. And while the Secretary was there,
he viewed live video of train to train impact tests before and after the
application of CEM and heard the successful story of how the equipment distributes
the crush to unoccupied areas throughout the train, reducing the risk of passenger
injuries and fatalities in the unlikely event of a collision.

FRA Chief, Equipment and
Operating Practices Division, Kevin Kesler presented the Secretary with FRA’s
vision of TTCI being the center of excellence for high-speed rail technology
and concepts for testing at speeds up to at least 200 mph.

Rounding up his trip, Secretary
LaHood saw the various detection systems being tested at TTCI, including the
cracked wheel detector, which allows for automatic inspection of internal wheel
defects as the train rolls slowly by the detector and machine-vision technology
that is being developed for automated inspection of the entire trainset for
improved safety. The technology also has the potential for security
applications. He was also made aware that through FRA funding, a substantial
Positive Train

Control test bed has been
set up at TTC, which will play a major role in developing the technology prior
to the mandated 2015 implementation.

TSA Administrator John
Pistole made a stop at TTCI July 27 on his tour of transportation facilities
and airports across the nation, to observe demonstrations at the Security and
Emergency Response Training Center and to talk to students in training at the
TSA Surface Transportation Security Training Center.

"I applaud the
Administrator for recognizing the great work that is done at TTCI every day,
and for coming to Pueblo and touring the facility, which we believe has the
ability to lead our nation in preparation for potential rail and subway
terrorist attacks," said Colorado Congressman John T. Salazar. "I share the
Administrator’s belief that more attention needs to be paid to surface
transportation, and appreciate that he chose to visit TTCI."

In 2009, TSA entered into
an agreement with the FRA to establish STSTC at TTC. The STSTC currently serves
as a security testing and training facility for rail and other surface modes of
transportation, combining classroom-style instruction with hands-on practical
experience. Through the STSTC, the Department of Homeland Security and TSA also
provide training to other federal, state, and local security partners, and intend
to offer training classes to industry stakeholders in all modes of surface transportation.

"The fact that
Administrator Pistole took the time to visit our facility in the very early days
of his tenure is a testament to his astute recognition of TTC as the world’s
leading rail safety and security testing and training facility," said Hamberger.