Proposed Rule 1 Jul 2025 compliance, regulations, reporting and recordkeeping requirements, penalties, freight, tourism, railroad safety, cost savings, railway, freight cars

🚂Proposed Rule to Remove Stenciling for Tourist-Use Freight Cars

FRA proposes to exclude railroad freight cars used exclusively for tourist, historic, excursion, educational, recreational, or private purposes and that are not interchanged from the requirement that all restricted freight cars, including cars more than 50 years old, be stenciled with specific information.

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Proposed Rule 1 Jul 2025 compliance, safety standards, regulation, reporting and recordkeeping requirements, railroad, penalties, freight, federal railroad administration, railroad safety, cost-saving, freight cars

🚂Proposed Rule on Freight Car Age Requirements by FRA

FRA proposes to amend its freight car safety regulations to repeal the requirement for special approval to place or continue a freight car in service if it is more than 50 years old or equipped with any design or type component listed in appendix A to this part. Instead, railroads would be able to continue or place such "overage" cars in service after complying with uniform safety requirements. Those requirements would include comprehensive shop inspections by a designated inspector, single-car air brake testing, recordkeeping, and, as appropriate, stenciling. The proposed requirements are consistent with the most important conditions that FRA now requires through the existing special approval process. Repealing the special approval process and replacing it with the proposed, uniform requirements would provide equivalent safety outcomes while reducing burdens on railroads and eliminating the added delay involved in petitioning FRA for a special approval.

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