A series of high profile rail accidents, culminating in a head on collision on September 12, 2008 between a Union Pacific freight train and a METROLINK passenger train in Chatsworth, California, provided the impetus for the passage of the Rail Safety Improvement Act (RSIA) of 2008 (Public Law 110–432). The RSIA mandated the installation of Positive Train Control Systems across the US rail system by December 31, 2015. These new statutory requirements represent one of the most significant changes in US signal and train control systems since the introduction of track circuits and Centralized Traffic Control in the 1920’s. This paper discusses the background which led to the passage of the RSIA, the new PTC requirements imposed by the law, and highlights the significant changes from existing federal safety regulations associated with voluntary PTC implementations that are being adopted by the to meet the law’s requirement.
Skip Nav Destination
Close
Sign In or Register for Account
2010 Joint Rail Conference
April 27–29, 2010
Urbana, Illinois, USA
Conference Sponsors:
- Rail Transportation Division
ISBN:
978-0-7918-4906-4
PROCEEDINGS PAPER
Positive Train Control and the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008
Mark Hartong
,
Mark Hartong
U. S. Federal Railroad Administration, Washington, DC
Search for other works by this author on:
Duminda Wijesekera
Duminda Wijesekera
George Mason University, Fairfax, VA
Search for other works by this author on:
Mark Hartong
U. S. Federal Railroad Administration, Washington, DC
Rajni Goel
Howard University, Washington, DC
Duminda Wijesekera
George Mason University, Fairfax, VA
Paper No:
JRC2010-36038, pp. 407-414; 8 pages
Published Online:
October 28, 2010
Citation
Hartong, M, Goel, R, & Wijesekera, D. "Positive Train Control and the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008." Proceedings of the 2010 Joint Rail Conference. 2010 Joint Rail Conference, Volume 1. Urbana, Illinois, USA. April 27–29, 2010. pp. 407-414. ASME. https://doi.org/10.1115/JRC2010-36038
Download citation file:
- Ris (Zotero)
- Reference Manager
- EasyBib
- Bookends
- Mendeley
- Papers
- EndNote
- RefWorks
- BibTex
- ProCite
- Medlars
Close
Sign In
4
Views
0
Citations
Related Proceedings Papers
Related Articles
Right On Track
Mechanical Engineering (June,2007)
Laboratory Investigation of Wheel Rail Contact Stresses for U.S. Freight Cars
J. Eng. Ind (May,1981)
Study on Derailment Mechanism and Safety Operation Area of High-Speed Trains Under Earthquake
J. Comput. Nonlinear Dynam (October,2012)
Related Chapters
Application of Probabilistic Methods for the Evaluation of Deterministic Deviations from Technical Specifications (PSAM-0277)
Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference on Probabilistic Safety Assessment & Management (PSAM)
Introduction
Primer on Engineering Standards
Environmental and Regulatory Compliance
Pipeline Geomatics: Practice and Innovation