Blocked Rail Crossings Safety Improvement Act of 2021

To amend title 49, United States Code, to provide for highway-rail grade crossing separation grants, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Blocked Rail Crossings Safety Improvement Act of 2021 2. Highway-rail grade crossing separation grants (a) In general Chapter 229 22911. Highway-rail grade crossing separation grants (a) General authority The Secretary of Transportation shall make grants under this section to eligible entities to assist in funding the cost of highway-rail grade crossing separation projects. (b) Application requirements To be eligible for a grant under this section, an eligible entity shall submit to the Secretary an application in such form, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require, including— (1) an agreement between the entity that owns or controls the railroad right-of-way and the applicant addressing access to the railroad right-of-way throughout the project; and (2) a cost-sharing agreement with the funding amounts that the entity that owns or controls the railroad right-of-way shall contribute to the project, which shall be not less than 10 percent of the total project cost. (c) Eligible projects The following projects are eligible to receive a grant under this section: (1) Installation, repair, or improvement, including necessary acquisition of real property interests, of highway-rail grade crossing separations. (2) Highway-rail grade crossing elimination incidental to eligible grade crossing separation projects. (3) Project planning, development, and environmental work related to a project described in paragraph (1) or (2). (d) Project selection criteria In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary— (1) shall give priority to projects that maximize the safety benefits of Federal funding; and (2) may evaluate applications on the safety profile of the existing crossing, 10-year history of accidents at such crossing, inclusion of the proposed project on a State highway-rail grade crossing action plan, average daily vehicle traffic, total number of trains per day, average daily number of crossing closures, the challenges of grade crossings located near international borders, proximity to established emergency evacuation routes, and proximity of community resources, including schools, hospitals, fire stations, police stations, and emergency medical service facilities. (e) Federal share of total project costs (1) Total project costs The Secretary shall estimate the total costs of a project under this section based on the best available information, including any available engineering studies, studies of economic feasibility, environmental analysis, and information on the expected use of equipment or facilities. (2) Federal share The Federal share for a project carried out under this section shall not exceed 85 percent. (f) Grant conditions An eligible entity may not receive a grant for a project under this section unless such project complies with section 22905. (g) Letters of intent (1) In general The Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, issue a letter of intent to a recipient of a grant under this section that— (A) announces an intention to obligate for a project an amount that is not more than the amount stipulated as the financial participation of the Secretary for the project; and (B) states that the contingent commitment— (i) is not an obligation of the Federal Government; and (ii) is subject to the availability of appropriations for grants under this section and subject to Federal laws in force or enacted after the date of the contingent commitment. (2) Congressional notification (A) In general Not later than 3 days before issuing a letter of intent under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit written notification to— (i) the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives; (ii) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives; (iii) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and (iv) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate. (B) Contents The notification submitted under subparagraph (A) shall include— (i) a copy of the letter of intent; (ii) the criteria used under subsection (d) for selecting the project for a grant; and (iii) a description of how the project meets such criteria. (h) Appropriations required An obligation or contingent commitment may be made under subsection (g) only after amounts are appropriated for such purpose. (i) Definitions In this section: (1) Eligible entity The term eligible entity (A) a State; (B) a public agency or publicly chartered authority; (C) a metropolitan planning organization; (D) a political subdivision of a State; and (E) a Tribal government. (2) Metropolitan planning organization The term metropolitan planning organization (3) State The term State . (b) Clerical amendment The analysis for chapter 229 22911. Highway-rail grade crossing separation grants. . 3. Rail safety public awareness grant Section 22907 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: (m) Rail safety public awareness grants (1) Grant Of the amounts made available to carry out this section, the Secretary shall make grants to nonprofit organizations to carry out public information and education programs to help prevent and reduce rail-related pedestrian, motor vehicle, and other incidents, injuries, and fatalities, and to improve awareness along railroad right-of-way and at highway-rail grade crossings. (2) Selection Programs eligible for a grant under this subsection— (A) shall include, as appropriate— (i) development, placement, and dissemination of public service announcements in appropriate media; (ii) school presentations, driver and pedestrian safety education, materials, and public awareness campaigns; and (iii) disseminating information to the public on how to identify and report to the appropriate authorities— (I) unsafe or malfunctioning highway-rail grade crossings and equipment; and (II) high-risk and unsafe behavior and trespassing around railroad right-of-way; and (B) may include targeted and sustained outreach in communities at greatest risk to develop measures to reduce such risk. (3) Coordination Eligible entities shall coordinate program activities with local communities, law enforcement and emergency responders, and railroad carriers, as appropriate, and ensure consistency with State highway-rail grade crossing action plans required under section 11401(b) of the FAST Act ( 49 U.S.C. 22501 National Strategy to Prevent Trespassing on Railroad Property (4) Prioritization In awarding grants under this subsection, the Administrator shall give priority to applications for programs that— (A) are nationally recognized; (B) are targeted at schools in close proximity to railroad right-of-way; (C) partner with nearby railroad carriers; or (D) focus on communities with a recorded history of repeated pedestrian and motor vehicle accidents, incidents, injuries, and fatalities at highway-rail grade crossings and along railroad right-of-way. (5) Applicability Section 22905 shall not apply to contracts and agreements made under this subsection. . 4. Establishment of 10-minute time limit for blocking public highway-rail grade crossings (a) In general Subchapter II of chapter 201 20172. Time limit for blocking public highway-rail grade crossing (a) Time limit A railroad carrier may not cause a blocked crossing incident that is longer than 10 minutes in duration, unless the blocked crossing incident is caused by— (1) a casualty or serious injury; (2) an accident; (3) a track obstruction; (4) actions necessary to comply with Federal rail safety laws, regulations, or orders issued thereunder unless the action to comply could reasonably occur at a different time or location; (5) actions necessary to adhere to section 24308; (6) a train fully contained within rail yard limits or fully contained in a rail siding; (7) an act of God; or (8) a derailment or a safety appliance equipment failure that prevents the train from advancing. (b) Investigation of frequently blocked crossings For any public highway-rail grade crossing that has had 3 or more blocked crossing incidents that exceed the time limit set forth in subsection (a) and are reported to the blocked crossing database, and such incidents have occurred on at least 3 calendar days within a 30-day period, the Secretary shall— (1) provide an electronic notice of the number of reported blocked crossing incidents to the railroad carrier that owns the public highway-rail grade crossing; (2) investigate the causes of the blocked crossing incidents; and (3) investigate possible measures to reduce the frequency and duration of blocked crossing incidents at such grade crossing. (c) Recordkeeping (1) In general A railroad carrier shall, upon receiving a notice under subsection (b), maintain train location data records for the public highway-rail grade crossing that was the subject of the notice. (2) Contents of records The train location data records required under paragraph (1) shall include— (A) a list of all blocked crossing incidents at the public highway-rail grade crossing that is the subject of the report exceeding 10 minutes; (B) the cause of the blocked crossing incident (to the extent available); (C) train length; and (D) the estimated duration of each blocked crossing incident. (3) Consultation Beginning on the date on which a railroad carrier receives a notice under subsection (b), the Secretary may consult with the carrier for a period of 60 days to address concerns with blocked crossing incidents at the public highway-rail grade crossing that is the subject of the notice. (4) Expiration of data collection The requirement to maintain records under paragraph (1) shall cease with respect to a public highway-rail grade crossing noticed under subsection (b)(2) if there are no reports submitted to the blocked crossing database for blocked crossing incidents reported to occur at such grade crossing during the previous 365 consecutive calendar days. (d) Civil penalties (1) In general The Secretary may issue civil penalties in accordance with section 21301 to railroad carriers for violations of subsection (a) occurring 60 days after the date of submission of a notice under subsection (b). (2) Release of records Upon the request of, and under requirements set by, the Secretary, railroad carriers shall provide the records maintained pursuant to subsection (c)(1) to the Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration. (3) Alternate route exemption Civil penalties may not be issued for violations of subsection (a) that occur at a public highway-rail grade crossing if an alternate route created by a public highway-rail grade separation exists within a half mile by road mileage of such public highway-rail grade crossing. (4) Grade separation project Civil penalties may not be issued for violations of subsection (a) if the violation occurs at a public highway-rail grade crossing for which there is a proposed grade separation project— (A) that has received written agreement from the relevant local authorities; and (B) for which railroad carrier and project funding from all parties has been budgeted. (5) Considerations In determining civil penalties under this section, the Secretary shall consider increased penalties in a case in which a pattern of the blocked crossing incidents continue to cause delays to State or local emergency services. (e) Application to Amtrak and commuter railroads This section shall not apply to Amtrak or commuter authorities, including Amtrak and commuter authorities’ operations run or dispatched by a Class I railroad. (f) Definitions In this section: (1) Blocked crossing database The term blocked crossing database (2) Blocked crossing incident The term blocked crossing incident (3) Public highway-rail grade crossing The term public highway-rail grade crossing . (b) Clerical amendment The analysis for subchapter II of chapter 201 20172. Time limit for blocking public highway-rail grade crossing. . 5. National blocked crossing database (a) In general Subchapter II of chapter 201 20173. National blocked crossing database (a) Database Not later than 45 days after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary of Transportation shall establish a national blocked crossings database for the public to report blocked crossing incidents. (b) Public awareness Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall require each railroad carrier to publish the active link to report blocked crossing incidents on the website of the national blocked crossings database described in subsection (a) on the home page of the publicly available website of the railroad carrier. (c) Blocked crossing incident; public highway-Rail grade crossing In this section, the terms blocked crossing incident public highway-rail grade crossing . (b) Clerical amendment The analysis for subchapter II of chapter 201 20173. National blocked crossing database. . 6. Railroad point of contact for blocked crossing matters Section 20152 of title 49, United States Code, is amended— (1) in subsection (a)— (A) in paragraph (1)— (i) in subparagraph (C) by striking or (ii) by redesignating subparagraph (D) as subparagraph (E); and (iii) by inserting the following after subparagraph (C): (D) blocked crossing incident, as defined in section 20173; or ; (B) in paragraph (4)— (i) by striking paragraph (1)(C) or (D) subparagraph (C), (D), or (E) of paragraph (1) (ii) by striking and (C) in paragraph (5) by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and (D) by adding at the end the following: (6) upon receiving a report of a blocked crossing pursuant to paragraph (1)(D), the railroad carrier shall, within 14 days of receipt of the report— (A) verify that the public highway-rail grade crossing, as defined in section 20173, was blocked for a period of at least 10 minutes; and (B) upon positive verification of the report, enter the report into the national blocked crossings database established in section 20174; and (7) promptly inform the Secretary of any update to the number maintained under paragraph (1). ; and (2) by adding at the end the following: (c) Publication of telephone numbers The Secretary shall make any telephone number established under subsection (a) publicly available on the website of the Department of Transportation. . 7. National highway-rail crossing inventory review (a) In general Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall expend such sums as are necessary to conduct a comprehensive review of the national highway-rail crossing inventory of the Department of Transportation established under section 20160 of title 49, United States Code. (b) Contents In conducting the review required under subsection (a), the Secretary shall— (1) verify the accuracy of the geographical location data contained in the inventory described in subsection (a) using mapping technologies and other methods; and (2) notify the relevant railroad and State agencies of the erroneous data in the inventory and require such entities to correct the erroneous data within 30 days of notification. (c) State reports The Secretary shall require State agencies to ensure that any geographic data contained in the inventory described in subsection (a) remains consistent with any geographic data identified in biennial State reports required under section 130 of title 23, United States Code. (d) Report Not later than 120 days after the completion of the review required under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report summarizing the corrections made to the inventory described in subsection (a) and the Secretary’s plans to ensure continued accuracy of such inventory. 8. Railroad trespassing enforcement grants Section 22907 of title 49, United States Code, is further amended by adding at the end the following: (n) Railroad trespassing enforcement grants (1) In general Of the amounts made available under this section, the Secretary may make grants to public law enforcement agencies engaged in, or seeking to engage in, suicide prevention efforts along railroad right-of-way to pay wages of law enforcement personnel to patrol railroad right-of-way located in communities at risk for rail trespassing incidents and fatalities. (2) Prioritization In awarding grants under this subsection, the Administrator shall give priority to applications from entities that have jurisdiction within the boundaries of the 10 States with the highest incidence of rail trespass related casualties as reported in the previous fiscal year, as reported by the National Rail Accident Incident Reporting System. (3) Limitation The Secretary shall not award more than 3 annual grants under this subsection to the same entity. . 9. Railroad trespassing suicide prevention grants Section 22907 of title 49, United States Code, is further amended by adding at the end the following: (o) Railroad trespassing suicide grants (1) In general Of the amounts made available to carry out this section, the Secretary may make grants to eligible entities to implement a public outreach campaign to reduce the number of railroad suicides. (2) Eligible entity In this subsection, the term eligible entity . 10. Including railroad suicides (a) In general Not less than 180 days after the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall revise any regulations, guidance, or other relevant agency documents to include the number of suicides on a railroad crossing or railroad right-of-way in the total number of rail fatalities the Secretary reports each year. (b) Authority of the Secretary In carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary may require Federal, State, and local agencies, railroads, or other entities to submit such data as necessary. (c) Applicability of rulemaking requirements The requirements of section 553 of title 5, United States Code, shall not apply to the modification required by subsection (a). 11. Report on safety measures required for Quiet Zones Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration shall— (1) submit to Congress a report on any supplementary safety measures and alternative safety measures not contained in part 222 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, that can be used to qualify for a Quiet Zone or Partial Quiet Zone; and (2) include in the report submitted under paragraph (1)— (A) a summary of the supplementary safety measures and alternative safety measures for which a public authority has requested approval from the Administrator to implement; and (B) an explanation for why such requests were not granted.

Summary: Blocked Rail Crossings Safety Improvement Act of 2021 This bill addresses safety and congestion along railroad right-of-way and highway-rail grade crossings. For example, the bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to provide grants to (1) assist state, local, and tribal governments in funding the cost of highway-rail grade crossing separation projects; and (2) help nonprofit organizations carry out public information and education programs to help prevent and reduce rail-related pedestrian, motor vehicle, and other incidents, injuries, and fatalities, and to improve awareness along railroad right-of-way and at highway-rail grade crossings. Additionally, the bill prohibits railroad carriers from obstructing travel at public highway-rail crossings for more than 10 minutes, except under limited circumstances (e.g., safety issues). Further, DOT must (1) establish a national blocked crossings database for the public to report blocked crossing incidents; (2) conduct a comprehensive review of the national highway-rail crossing inventory; and (3) revise its regulations, guidance, or other relevant agency documents to include the number of suicides on a railroad crossing or railroad right-of-way in the total number of rail fatalities it reports each year.