On Tuesday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Administrator Joseph Szabo announced historic safety regulations requiring that Positive Train Control (PTC) technology be installed on the nation’s major rail lines as well as commuter and intercity passenger rail routes.

The final rule will also allow railroads to immediately begin finalizing their PTC Implementation Plans, which are required by statute to be submitted to FRA by April 16, 2010.

“Safety is our highest priority, and we believe the installation of this equipment will make our nation’s railroads safer,” said Secretary LaHood.

“We believe this final rule, as mandated by Congress, is a giant step forward toward ensuring the safety and reliability of our freight, commuter and intercity passenger rail routes,” said FRA Administrator Szabo.

The final rule issued on Tuesday is the result of more than a decade of work by FRA and its stakeholders, carried out in partnership through the Railroad Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC). The Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 mandates that interoperable PTC systems must be fully instituted by the end of 2015.

Train control systems such as PTC are now mandatory for most passenger rail operations and for trains hauling certain hazardous materials, but they are not required for closed passenger rail systems such as light rail, rapid transit and subways.

Unrelated to any deadlines contained in this final rule, FRA is seeking additional comments on a few specific provisions of this final rule as to whether clarity can be improved and whether further opportunities for cost savings, consistent with safety, are available.

The final rulemaking on PTC, published in the Federal Register, can be found here.