"America Builds: The Role of Innovation and Technology in Rail Modernization

House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Railroads

2025-06-24

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Source: Congress.gov

Summary

This meeting of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials focused on the role of technology and innovation in improving the safety and efficiency of the rail industry, alongside discussions on regulatory frameworks and workforce implications. Witnesses presented various technological advancements and debated the appropriate balance between automated systems and traditional human inspections in maintaining safety standards[ 00:18:27-00:18:52 ] [ 00:23:17-00:23:20 ]

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Themes

Rail Innovation and Technology Adoption

The discussion highlighted several technological advancements aiming to modernize the rail industry[ 00:21:33-00:21:38 ]

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. Rail Pulse, LLC, introduced telematics on rail cars, utilizing GPS and smart sensors to provide real-time information on location, condition, and health, with the goal of making rail freight more competitive, transparent, and reliable. This innovation is seen as crucial for shifting freight from road to rail, benefiting sustainability and safety. Wabtec Corporation showcased innovations in accident prevention through electronic train management and positive train control systems, asset health monitoring via kinetics inspection technologies, and network utilization optimization with TripOptimizer. The bipartisan Tank Car Modernization Act (HR 2515) was discussed as a means to accelerate the adoption of telematics across the 1.6 million rail cars in North America, enhancing supply chain visibility, safety, and maintenance efficiency. Challenges to widespread adoption include the initial investment cost, especially for smaller businesses and car owners, and the need for financial incentives like CRISI grants.

Regulatory Modernization and its Impact on Innovation

A central theme was the inadequacy of the current regulatory framework in keeping pace with technological advancements[ 00:19:30 ] . Many Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) regulations are prescriptive and were written decades ago, hindering the deployment of new technologies[ 00:20:09-00:20:24 ] . The waiver process for testing new technologies was criticized for being less than transparent and subject to political interference, leading to delays and uncertainty for innovators[ 00:20:52-00:21:03 ]

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. There was a strong call for reforming the regulatory structure towards an outcome-based approach, focusing on objective standards and transparent decision-making rather than prescriptive methods. Permitting reform was also raised as crucial for enabling new infrastructure projects and facilitating the implementation of technology.

Balancing Technology with Human Safety Inspections

A significant portion of the discussion revolved around the role of automated track inspection (ATI) technology versus visual human inspections. While ATI systems like track geometry measurement systems (TGMS) are acknowledged as valuable supplemental tools for identifying certain track defects, there is concern that they should not replace in-person visual inspections. Witnesses, particularly from the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division (BMWD) of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, emphasized that ATI cannot detect many critical track defects that a human inspector can, such as broken rails, drainage issues, or switch defects. A proposed safety waiver by the Association of American Railroads (AAR) to reduce visual track inspections from twice a week to twice a month, and to allow 72 hours to address defects instead of immediately, was strongly opposed due to potential safety risks. The East Palestine derailment was cited as a stark reminder of the importance of thorough inspections and the need for adequate time for workers to perform their duties.

Collaboration and Workforce Impact

The impact of technology on the rail workforce was a key concern[ 01:09:10-01:09:10 ]

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. Unions clarified that they are not anti-technology but support innovation when it genuinely improves safety and enhances working conditions, rather than solely cutting costs or eliminating jobs. While technology has historically led to job reductions, the focus should be on making work more effective and productive, redeploying workers to areas where human expertise is indispensable[ 01:10:45 ]

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. There was a call for greater collaboration between industry, technology developers, and labor unions to ensure that new technologies are developed and implemented in a way that safeguards communities and workers[ 02:09:17 ]

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Tone of the Meeting

The tone of the meeting was largely serious and concerned, particularly regarding rail safety and the regulatory environment[ 00:19:30-00:20:00 ] . There was a clear tension between the desire for technological innovation to improve efficiency and competitiveness, and the need to uphold robust safety standards and protect the rail workforce[ 00:24:14 ]

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. While an optimistic outlook on technology's potential was evident, skepticism was voiced about regulatory slowness and the railroads' motivations behind certain waivers[ 01:54:38 ]

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. The discussion featured earnest calls for a more balanced, outcome-based approach to regulation and genuine collaboration among all stakeholders.

Participants

Transcript

Thank you.
Thank you.
All right.
Railroads, hazardous materials, pipelines, come to order.  I ask to an honest extent that the chairman be authorized to declare a recess at any time.  Without objection, show that ordered.  I ask to an honest extent that members who are not on the subcommittee be permitted to sit on the subcommittee and ask questions.  Without objection, show that ordered.   As a reminder to the members, if you wish to insert a document into the record, please also email it to documents, ti, at mail.house.gov.  I recognize myself for the purpose of opening statement for five minutes.   The free enterprise system is responsible for generating the most efficient and innovative technologies for our modern world.  In the global economy, technology advancements are some of our nation's greatest competitive achievements.  Our national freight and passenger rail networks are no different from other sectors of the economy.  Innovation and technology are vital to improving the rail industry's growth and safety outcomes.   Ensuring the technology advancements and innovations continue to flourish will require a combination of right policies, particularly regulatory policies, to incentivize current and future research developed   development and deployment of new technology.  Unfortunately, our other government agencies, including those in the Department of Transportation, are embracing the promise of innovative and developing the right regulatory framework for its promotion.  Much of the Federal Railroad Administration   regulatory framework remains a relic of the past.  For example, most FRA regulations are prescriptive in how they require safety inspection and tasks to be conducted.
They determine the frequency and means used to achieve regulatory compliance.  Many of those regulations are written decades ago at a time when technology was limited and or sometimes non-existent.   However, we are here to examine technology's progress.  Technological progress moves on.  Although the law allows railroads to apply for waivers to test new processes and technologies that can achieve safety objectives while improving efficiency, this current waiver process is less than transparent and subject to political interference.   This regulatory uncertainty hinders both innovation of the rail industry's ability to compete with others against other modes of freight transportation.  As Congress begins consideration of legislation authorizing surface transportation programs,   We should look to promote policies that encourage innovation and investment in our rail system, improving both its safety and its ability to survive and thrive.  This includes reforming the antiquated regulatory structure that is inhibiting innovation.   Today's witnesses will provide important insight into how technologies have the potential to revolutionize freight and passenger rail transportation.  We are interested in learning their views on what Congress can do to encourage innovation and bring to railroads into the 21st century.  So now I recognize Representative Titus, a ranking member, for five minutes.
Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman.  Thank you for holding this hearing and for our witnesses for testifying.  As you mentioned, we're here today to discuss rail innovation.  In the United States, our innovative spirit is one of our greatest strengths, and we should be harnessing this spirit to improve our transportation networks.  Innovation has transformed both passenger and freight rail since the 19th century.  This includes how locomotives are powered as we move from steam   to diesel to electric.  And now Brightline, which is gonna be in my district running from Las Vegas to Southern California, is bringing zero emission, all electric high speed rail to the forefront.  This will create good union jobs, it will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and it'll make it easier, more convenient, quicker for people to travel between Las Vegas and Los Angeles.  And once that's established, we think it will go far beyond   I'm interested in exploring today and hearing from the witnesses how we can use emerging technologies to combat cargo theft.  This cost our economy between $15 and $30 billion each year.  I held a roundtable to explore this issue earlier in the year and co-led a bipartisan bill that would create a federal task force to help address the issue.   In addition to improving federal enforcement, technology can help shippers track rail cars and packages in real time, and that can be immensely helpful to combating this growing issue and make it safer for communities and people working on the rail lines.  And speaking of real-time tracking, I'm also very interested in how innovation can make the shipping of hazardous materials safer.   Hazardous material runs right through the heart of my district in Las Vegas, goes right by train right down through the heart of town, and I want to be sure that my constituents and first responders are equipped with the information they need to respond to any incidents that might occur involving hazmat.
Now, any conversation about innovation in the rail industry, like I mentioned, or others that may come up, have to include discussions of rail safety.   We have a duty to ensure that advancements in technology do not come at the expense of the safety of workers, passengers, and the communities that trains pass through.

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