Passenger Equipment Safety Standards

Subpart E

Specific Requirements

 (Design Standards) for Tier II

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Module 6

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Module Objectives
        - Apply FRA Passenger Equipment Safety Standards when inspecting passenger equipment
        - Identify deviations from the standards

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Scope – 238.401
        - Unless otherwise noted, the specific items presented in the following slides apply to Tier II equipment, operating at speeds of at least 125 mph, but not exceeding 150 mph

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Structural Requirements
        - Crash energy management – 238.403
        - Longitudinal static compressive strength - 238.405
        - Anti-climbing mechanism - 238.407
        - Forward end structures of power car cabs - 238.409
        - Rear end structures of power car cabs - 238.411
        - End structures of trailer cars - 238.413
        - Rollover strength - 238.415
        - Side loads - 238.417
        - Truck-to-car-body and truck component attachment - 238.419
        - Glazing - 238.421
        - Fuel tanks - 238.423
        - Electrical system - 238.425
        - Suspension system - 238.427
        - Safety appliances - 238.429
        - Brake system - 238.431
        - Draft system - 238.433
        - Interior fittings and surfaces - 238.435
        - Emergency communication - 238.437
        - Doors - 238.439
        - Emergency roof entrance location - 238.441
        - Headlights - 238.443
        - Automated monitoring - 238.445
        - Train operator's controls and power car cab layout - 238.447

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Structural RequirementsValidation
        - With a few exceptions and excluding a post collision or derailment investigation, most  structural design (components), requirements cannot be validated by casual observation
        - Many of the structural standards incorporated in this rule were designed to meet or exceed specific load criteria during collision or derailment
        - These criteria are based on empirical analysis and mathematical models which generally, will not require validation by the FRA Field Inspector

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Let’s take a look at a few few components that you can validate by casual observation

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Anti-climbing Mechanism238.407
        - Each power car shall be equipped with an anti-climbing mechanism at the forward end 

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No allowances for tight lock coupler on Tier II equipment

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Truck Car-body Attachment 238.419 
        - Each truck shall be equipped with a truck-to-car-body attachment

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Glazing – 238.421
        - Compliance with impact criteria contained in this section in addition to the following requirements for each end-facing glazing;

Permanently clearly marked material with the words “FRA TYPE IHP”,

Name of manufacturer,

Type or brand identification of material.

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Glazing ContinuedOlder Equipment
        - Tier II passenger equipment ordered prior to May 12, 1999 may comply with the alternative requirements in lieu of the requirements described in the previous slide until the window is replaced and the railroad has exhausted inventory of replacement windows held as of May 12, 1999

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Glazing Alternative Requirements
        - Compliance with impact criteria contained in this section in addition to the following requirements for each end-facing and side-facing glazing;

Permanently clearly marked material with the words “FRA TYPE IH” for each end-facing glazing,

Permanently clearly marked material with the words “FRA TYPE IIH” for each side-facing glazing,

Name of manufacturer,

Type or brand identification of material.

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Glazing Continued
        - Each exterior window on a power car cab or passenger car shall remain in place when subjected to forces due to air pressure differences when two trains pass in opposite directions at minimum separation traveling at maximum authorized speed
        - Each car that meets the requirements of this section shall be stenciled on an interior wall, “Fully Equipped with FRA Part 238 Glazing” or similar words at least 3/8 of an inch high

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Electrical System – 238.425
        - The main propulsion power line shall be protected with a lightning arrestor, automatic circuit breaker, and overload relay.These overload protection devices shall be housed in an enclosure designed specifically for that purpose with the arc chute vented directly to outside air
        - Head end power, including trainline power distribution, shall be provided with both overload and ground fault protection
        - Circuits used for purposes other than propelling the equipment shall be connected to their power source through circuit breakers or equivalent current-limiting devices
        - Each auxiliary circuit shall be provided with a circuit breaker located as near as practical to the point of connection to the source of power for that circuit; however, such protection may be omitted from circuits controlling safety-critical devices

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Electrical System Continued
        - Main battery shall compartments be isolated from cab and passenger seating areas by a non-combustible barrier
        - Batteries that produce explosive gasses shall be vented to prevent explosive concentrations of these gases
        - Power dissipating resistors shall be adequately vented to prevent overheating under any loaded condition
        - Power dissipation grids shall be designed and installed with sufficient isolation to prevent combustion between resistor elements and combustible material
        - Power dissipation resistor circuits shall incorporate warning or protective devices for low ventilation air flow, over-temperature, and short circuit failures

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Safety Appliances – 238.429General Requirements
        - Handrails for passengers on both sides of all steps for boarding and departing the train
        - Exits on a power vehicle shall be equipped with handrails and handholds so that crewmembers can get on and off the vehicle safely
        - Throughout their entire length, handrails and handholds shall be a color that contrasts with the color of the vehicle body to which they are fastened
        - The maximum distance above the top of the rail to the bottom of vertical handrails and handholds shall be 51 inches, and the minimum distance shall be 21 inches

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Safety Appliances General Requirements Continued
        - Vertical handrails and handholds shall be installed to continue to a point at least equal to the height of the top edge of the control cab door
        - The minimum hand clearance distance between a vertical handrail or handhold and the vehicle body shall be 2 1⁄2  inches for the entire length
        - All vertical handrails and handholds shall be securely fastened to the vehicle body
        - If the length of the handrail exceeds 60 inches, it shall be securely fastened to the power vehicle body with two fasteners at each end

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Safety AppliancesMechanical Fasteners
        - All safety appliances shall be securely fastened to the car body structure with mechanical fasteners that have mechanical strength greater than or equal to that of a  1⁄2 inch diameter SAE grade steel bolt mechanical fastener
        - Safety appliance mechanical fasteners shall have mechanical strength and fatigue resistance equal to or greater than a  1⁄2 inch diameter SAE steel bolt
        - Mechanical fasteners shall be installed with a positive means to prevent unauthorized removal, self-locking threaded fasteners do not meet this requirement
        - Mechanical fasteners shall be installed to facilitate inspection

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Safety AppliancesSemi-permanently Coupled Equipment
        - The following safety appliances are required on semi-permanently coupled equipment;

Automatic couplers that couples on impact on leading and trailing ends of trainset,

An uncoupling lever or other device shall be provided that does not require a person to go between units, 

Hand or parking brake in the train, that can be applied and released manually, and capable of holding the train on a 3% grade

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Safety Appliances Non-semi-permanently Coupled Equipment
        - The following safety appliances are required on non- semi-permanently coupled equipment;

Automatic couplers that couple on impact on each unit in the trainset, 

An uncoupling lever or other device shall be provided that does not require a person to go between units,

Handbrakes, sill steps, end and side handholds (231.14). 

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Safety AppliancesExceptions
        - The following safety appliances exceptions apply as follows;

Semi-permanently coupled units need not be equipped with sill steps,  end or side handholds that would normally be used to safely perform coupling and uncoupling operations,  if the uncoupling is done only at maintenance facilities,

Non-semi-permanently coupled units shall be equipped with handbrakes, sill steps, end and side handholds in accordance with Part 231.14

Two trainsets coupled to form a single train that is not semi-permanently coupled (e.g., that is coupled by an automatic coupler), the automatically coupled ends shall be equipped with hand brakes, sill steps, end handholds, and side handholds that meet the requirements of Part 231.14 

If the trainsets are semi-permanently coupled, these safety appliances are not required.

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Brake System 238.431General
        - A passenger train's brake system shall be capable of stopping the train from its maximum operating speed within the signal spacing existing on the track over which the train is operating under worst-case adhesion conditions
        - The brake system shall be designed to allow an inspector to determine that the brake system is functioning properly without having to place himself or herself in a dangerous position on, under, or between the equipment

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BrakesEmergency Operation
        - Passenger equipment shall be provided with an emergency brake application feature that produces an irretrievable stop, using a brake rate consistent with prevailing adhesion, passenger safety, and brake system thermal capacity
        - An emergency brake application shall be available at any time, and shall be initiated by an unintentional parting of the train

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Emergency Brake Valve
        - A means to initiate an emergency brake application shall be provided at two locations in each unit of the train, unless
        - Unit of the train is 45 feet or less in length a means to initiate an emergency brake application need only be provided at one location in the unit

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Emergency Communication 238.437
        - A means of emergency transmission throughout a train shall be provided at each end of each passenger car, adjacent to the car's end doors, and accessible to both passengers and crewmembers without requiring the use of a tool or other implement, unless
        - Passenger car does not exceed 45 feet in length, then only one transmission location is required

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Transmission LocationsVisibility Etc.
        - Transmission locations shall be clearly marked with luminescent material, in
        - Clear and understandable operating instructions at or near each transmission location, and
        - Have back-up power for a minimum period of 90 minutes

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Doors – 238.439
        - Each passenger car shall have a minimum of two exterior side doors, each door providing a minimum clear opening with dimensions of 30 inches horizontally by 74 inches vertically
        - Each powered, exterior side door on each such passenger car shall have a manual override device that can;

Capable of releasing the door to permit it to be opened without power from both inside and outside the car,

Located adjacent to the door which it controls, 

Designed and maintained so that a person may access the override device from both inside and outside the car without requiring the use of a tool or other implement, and

The status of each powered, exterior side door in a passenger car shall be displayed to the crew in the operating cab. If door interlocks are used, the sensors used to detect train motion shall be nominally set to operate at 3 mph.

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Doors  Manual Override Device Cover
        - Each powered, exterior side door in a passenger car shall be connected to an emergency back-up power system
        - A railroad may protect a manual override device used to open a powered, exterior door with a cover or a screen capable of removal without requiring the use of a tool or other implement
        - A passenger compartment end door (other than a door providing access to the exterior of the trainset) shall be equipped with a kick-out panel, pop-out window, or other similar means of egress in the event the door will not open, or shall be so designed as to pose a negligible probability of becoming inoperable in the event of car body distortion following a collision or derailment

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Emergency Roof Entrance238.441
        - Each passenger car and power car cab shall have a minimum of one roof hatch emergency entrance location with a minimum opening of 18 inches by 24 inches, or at least one clearly marked structural weak point in the roof having a minimum opening of the same dimensions to provide quick access for properly equipped emergency response personnel

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Automated Monitoring – 238.445
        - Each passenger train shall be equipped to monitor the performance of the following systems or components;

Reception of cab signals and train control signals,

Truck hunting,

Dynamic brake status,

Friction brake status,

Fire detection systems,

Head end power status,

Alerter or deadman control,

Wheel slide,

Tilt system, if so equipped, and

On-board bearing-temperature sensors, if so equipped.

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Automated MonitoringCorrective Action
        - Immediate corrective action shall be taken, if the system or component defect impairs the train operator's ability to safely operate the train. Immediate corrective action includes limiting the speed of the train
        - The monitoring system shall be designed with an automatic self-test feature that notifies the train operator that the monitoring capability is functioning correctly and alerts the train operator when a system failure occurs

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Train Operator Controls/Power Car Cab Layout – 238.447
        - An alerter shall be provided in the power car cab. If not acknowledged, the alerter shall cause a brake application to stop the train
        - Power car cab information displays shall be designed with the following characteristics;

Simplicity and standardization,

Essential, safety-critical information shall be displayed as a default condition,

Operator selection shall be required to display other than default information,

Cab or train control signals shall be displayed for the operator, and

 Displays shall be readable from the operator's normal position under all lighting conditions.

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Power Car CabSeats

	Seats shall be;
        - Provided for an employee regularly assigned to occupy a power car cab,
        - Floor mounted seats shall secured to the car body,
        - Equipped with lumbar support that is adjustable from the seated position,
        - Equipped with force-assisted, vertical-height adjustment, operated from the seated position,
        - Equipped with a manually reclining seat back, adjustable from the seated position,
        - Equipped with an adjustable headrest, and
        - Equipped with folding, padded armrests.

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Mention that there are other specific load and design criteria.  This slide illustrates items than one can validate by observation

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End of Module 6
        - Take a break!

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