The FRA has approved the agency to begin Revenue Service Demonstration of the safety technology.
Press event coincided with the 50th anniversary of a train collision in Darien, Conn., that killed four people and injured 43 others.
Designed to ensure the driver always maintains full control over the vehicle by using digital track data and visual odometry.
Commuter rail operator utilizing power washers and drones to reduce impact of slippery rail created by leaves, debris on tracks.
With the grant funding, Metra plans to help fund installation of PTC on its Milwaukee West Line to Elgin and North line to Fox Lake.
The freight rail industry needs until the end of 2018 to install the necessary hardware and until the end of 2020 to have it fully tested and operational, said Ed Hamberger, president and CEO for the Association of American Railroads.
The new laboratory is initially offering pre-compliance evaluation Electromagnetic Interference/Electromagnetic Compatibility services, including EMI, EMC, Lightning testing and Electrostatic Discharge (ESD).
While PTC may have just recently entered the consciousness of the public at-large, it has been an issue for freight and commuter rail systems since Congress passed the Rail Safety Improvement Act (RSIA) (P.L. 110-432) in 2008 following the collision between a Metrolink commuter train and a Union Pacific freight train in Los Angeles. Since that time, rail organizations have been working toward meeting the federally-mandated PTC implementation deadline of December 31, 2015. With less than six months to go, several commuter rail systems have said that, not only will they not meet the deadline, they will need several more years before having full PTC implementation on their trains.
The detection systems, being tested at a secret location, feature thermal imaging cameras, laser-beam transmitters and other high-tech tools intended to alert the motorman if someone falls on the tracks.
The board committees approved the expansion of a contract with a joint venture of Bombardier Transportation/Siemens Rail Automation by an additional $11.3 million.
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