of Transportation shall develop a long-term strategy for 
improving railroad safety. The strategy shall include an 
annual plan and schedule for achieving, at a minimum, 
the following goals: 
(1) Reducing the number and rates of acci-
dents, injuries, and fatalities involving railroads. 
(2) Improving the consistency and effectiveness 
of enforcement and compliance programs. 
(3) Identifying and targeting enforcement at, 
and safety improvements to, high-risk highway-rail 
grade crossings. 
(4) Improving research efforts to enhance and 
promote railroad safety and performance. 
(b) RESOURCE NEEDS.—The strategy and annual 
plans shall include estimates of the funds and staff re-
sources needed to accomplish each activity. Such estimates 
shall also include the staff skills and training needed for 
timely and effective accomplishment of each goal. 
(c) SUBMISSION WITH
THE PRESIDENT’S BUDG-
ET.—The Secretary of Transportation shall submit to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Com-
merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate the 
strategy and annual plan at the same time as the Presi-
dent’s budget submission.
(d) ACHIEVEMENT OF GOALS.— 
(1) PROGRESS
ASSESSMENT.—No less fre-
quently than semiannually, the Secretary of Trans-
portation and the Administrator of the Federal Rail-
road Safety Administration shall assess the progress 
of the Administration toward achieving the strategic 
goals described in subsection (a). The Secretary and 
the Administrator shall convey their assessment to 
the employees of the Federal Railroad Safety Ad-
ministration and shall identify any deficiencies that 
should be remediated before the next progress as-
sessment. 
(2) REPORT
TO
CONGRESS.—The Secretary 
shall transmit a report annually to the Committee 
on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 
of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate on the 
performance of the Federal Railroad Safety Admin-
istration relative to the goals of the railroad safety 
strategy and annual plans under subsection (a). 
SEC. 103. REPORTS. 
(a) REPORTS BY THE INSPECTOR GENERAL.—Not 
later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the Inspector General of the Department of Transpor-
tation shall submit to the Secretary of Transportation and
the Administrator of the Federal Railroad Safety Admin-
istration a report containing the following: 
(1) A list of each statutory mandate regarding 
railroad safety that has not been implemented. 
(2) A list of each open safety recommendation 
made by the National Transportation Safety Board 
or the Inspector General regarding railroad safety. 
(b) REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY.— 
(1) STATUTORY MANDATES.—Not later than 90 
days after the date of enactment of this Act, and 
every 180 days thereafter until each of the mandates 
referred to in subsection (a)(1) has been imple-
mented, the Secretary of Transportation shall trans-
mit to the Committee on Transportation and Infra-
structure of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor-
tation of the Senate a report on the specific actions 
taken to implement such mandates. 
(2) NTSB AND
INSPECTOR
GENERAL
REC-
OMMENDATIONS.—Not later than January 1st of 
each year, the Secretary of Transportation shall 
transmit to the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans-
portation of the Senate a report containing each rec-
ommendation referred to in subsection (a)(2), a copy 
of the Department of Transportation response to 
each such recommendation, and a progress report on 
implementing each such recommendation. 
SEC. 104. RULEMAKING PROCESS. 
(a) AMENDMENT.—Subchapter I of chapter 201 of 
title 49, United States Code, is amended by inserting after 
section 20115 the following new section: 
‘‘§ 20116. Rulemaking process 
‘‘No rule or order issued by the Secretary under this 
part shall be effective if it incorporates by reference a 
code, rule, standard, requirement, or practice issued by an 
association or other entity that is not an agency of the 
Federal Government, unless that reference is to a par-
ticular code, rule, standard, requirement, or practice 
adopted before the date on which the rule is issued by 
the Secretary, and unless the date on which the code, rule, 
standard, requirement, or practice was adopted is specifi-
cally cited in the rule.’’. 
(b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 
sections of subchapter I of chapter 201 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended by adding after the item relating 
to section 20115 the following new item: 
‘‘20116. Rulemaking process.’’.
SEC. 105. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
Section 20117(a) of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation to carry 
out this part and to carry out responsibilities under chap-
ter 51 as delegated or authorized by the Secretary— 
‘‘(A) $230,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; 
‘‘(B) $260,000,000 for fiscal year 2009; 
‘‘(C) $295,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; and 
‘‘(D) $335,000,000 for fiscal year 2011. 
‘‘(2) With amounts appropriated pursuant to para-
graph (1), the Secretary shall purchase 6 Gage Restraint 
Measurement System vehicles and 5 track geometry vehi-
cles to enable the deployment of 1 Gage Restraint Meas-
urement System vehicle and 1 track geometry vehicle in 
each region. 
‘‘(3) There are authorized to be appropriated to the 
Secretary $18,000,000 for the period encompassing fiscal 
years 2008 through 2011 to design, develop, and construct 
the Facility for Underground Rail Station and Tunnel at 
the Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo, Colo-
rado. The facility shall be used to test and evaluate the 
vulnerabilities of above-ground and underground rail tun-
nels to prevent accidents and incidents in such tunnels, 
to mitigate and remediate the consequences of any such
accidents or incidents, and to provide a realistic scenario 
for training emergency responders. 
‘‘(4) Such sums as may be necessary from the 
amount appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1) for each 
of the fiscal years 2008 through 2011 shall be made avail-
able to the Secretary for personnel in regional offices and 
in Washington, D.C., whose duties primarily involve rail 
security. 
‘‘(5) There are authorized to be appropriated to the 
Secretary for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2011 
such sums as may be necessary to design and develop a 
pilot electric cargo conveyor system for the transportation 
of containers from ports to depots outside of urban 
areas.’’. 
TITLE II—EMPLOYEE FATIGUE 
SEC. 201. HOURS OF SERVICE REFORM. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 21101(4) of title 49, 
United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘employed by 
a railroad carrier’’. 
(b) LIMITATION ON DUTY HOURS OF SIGNAL EM-
PLOYEES.—Section 21104 of title 49, United States Code, 
is amended— 
(1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol-
lows:
‘‘(a) GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection (c) 
of this section, a railroad carrier and its officers and 
agents may not require or allow a signal employee, and 
a railroad contractor and its officers and agents may not 
require or allow a signal employee, to remain or go on 
duty— 
‘‘(1) unless that employee has had at least 10 
consecutive hours off duty during the prior 24 
hours; 
‘‘(2) for a period in excess of 12 consecutive 
hours; or 
‘‘(3) unless that employee has had at least one 
period of at least 24 consecutive hours off duty in 
the past 7 consecutive days. 
The Secretary may waive paragraph (3) if a collective bar-
gaining agreement provides a different arrangement and 
such arrangement provides an equivalent level of safety.’’; 
(2) in subsection (b)(3) by striking ‘‘, except 
that up to one hour of that time spent returning 
from the final trouble call of a period of continuous 
or broken service is time off duty’’; 
(3) in subsection (c)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘for not more than 3 days 
during a period of 7 consecutive days’’ after 
‘‘24 consecutive hours’’; and
(B) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘A 
signal employee may not be allowed to remain 
or go on duty under the emergency authority 
provided under this subsection to conduct rou-
tine repairs, routine maintenance, or routine in-
spection of signal systems.’’; 
(4) by adding at the end the following new sub-
sections: 
‘‘(d) COMMUNICATION DURING TIME OFF DUTY.— 
During a signal employee’s minimum off-duty period of 
10 consecutive hours, as provided under subsection (a), 
a railroad carrier, and its managers, supervisors, officers, 
and agents, shall not communicate with the signal em-
ployee by telephone, by pager, or in any other manner that 
could disrupt the employee’s rest. Nothing in this sub-
section shall prohibit communication necessary to notify 
an employee of an emergency situation posing potential 
risks to the employee’s safety or health. 
‘‘(e) EXCLUSIVITY.—The hours of service, duty 
hours, and rest periods of signal employees shall be gov-
erned exclusively by this chapter. Signal employees oper-
ating motor vehicles shall not be subject to any hours of 
service rules, duty hours, or rest period rules promulgated 
by any Federal authority, including the Federal Motor
Carrier Safety Administration, other than the Federal 
Railroad Safety Administration.’’. 
(c) LIMITATION ON DUTY HOURS OF TRAIN EM-
PLOYEES.—Section 21103 of title 49, United States Code, 
is amended— 
(1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(a) GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection (c) 
of this section, a railroad carrier and its officers and 
agents may not require or allow a train employee to re-
main or go on duty— 
‘‘(1) unless that employee has had at least 10 
consecutive hours off duty during the prior 24 
hours; 
‘‘(2) for a period in excess of 12 consecutive 
hours; or 
‘‘(3) unless that employee has had at least one 
period of at least 24 consecutive hours off duty in 
the past 7 consecutive days. 
The Secretary may waive paragraph (3) if a collective bar-
gaining agreement provides a different arrangement and 
such arrangement provides an equivalent level of safety.’’; 
(2) by amending subsection (b)(4) to read as 
follows:
‘‘(4)(A)(i) Except as provided in clauses (ii) 
and (iii), time spent in deadhead transportation to 
a duty assignment, time spent waiting for deadhead 
transportation, and time spent in deadhead trans-
portation from a duty assignment to a place of final 
release is time on duty. 
‘‘(ii) Time spent waiting for deadhead transpor-
tation and time spent in deadhead transportation 
from a duty assignment to a place of final release 
is neither time on duty nor time off duty in situa-
tions involving delays in the operations of the rail-
road carrier, when the delays were caused by any of 
the following: 
‘‘(I) A casualty. 
‘‘(II) An accident. 
‘‘(III) A track obstruction. 
‘‘(IV) An act of God. 
‘‘(V) A weather event causing a delay. 
‘‘(VI) A snowstorm. 
‘‘(VII) A landslide. 
‘‘(VIII) A track or bridge washout. 
‘‘(IX) A derailment. 
‘‘(X) A major equipment failure which pre-
vents a train from advancing.
‘‘(XI) Other delay from a cause unknown 
or unforeseeable to a railroad carrier and its of-
ficers and agents in charge of the employee 
when the employee left a designated terminal. 
‘‘(iii) In addition to any time qualifying as nei-
ther on duty nor off duty under clause (ii), at the 
election of the railroad carrier, time spent waiting 
for deadhead transportation and time spent in 
deadhead transportation to the place of final release 
may be treated as neither time on duty nor time off 
duty, subject to the following limitations: 
‘‘(I) Not more than 40 hours a month may 
be elected by the railroad carrier, for an em-
ployee, during the period from the date of en-
actment of the Federal Railroad Safety Im-
provement Act of 2007 to one year after such 
date of enactment. 
‘‘(II) Not more than 30 hours a month 
may be elected by the railroad carrier, for an 
employee, during the period beginning one year 
after the date of enactment of the Federal Rail-
road Safety Improvement Act of 2007 and end-
ing two years after such date of enactment. 
‘‘(III) Not more than 10 hours a month 
may be elected by the railroad carrier, for an
employee, during the period beginning two 
years after the date of enactment of the Fed-
eral Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2007. 
‘‘(B) Each railroad carrier shall report to the 
Secretary of Transportation, in accordance with pro-
cedures contained in 49 CFR 228.19, each instance 
within 30 days after the calendar month in which 
the instance occurs that a member of a train or en-
gine crew or other employee engaged in or connected 
with the movement of any train, including a hostler, 
exceeds 12 consecutive hours, including— 
‘‘(i) time on duty; and 
‘‘(ii) time spent waiting for deadhead 
transportation and the time spent in deadhead 
transportation from a duty assignment to the 
place of final release, that is not time on duty. 
‘‘(C) If— 
‘‘(i) the time spent waiting for deadhead 
transportation, and the time spent in deadhead 
transportation from a duty assignment to the 
place of final release, that is not time on duty; 
plus 
‘‘(ii) the time on duty, 
exceeds 12 consecutive hours, the railroad carrier 
and its officers and agents shall provide the train
employee with additional time off duty equal to the 
number of hours that such sum exceeds 12 hours.’’; 
and 
(3) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(d) COMMUNICATION DURING TIME OFF DUTY.— 
During a train employee’s minimum off-duty period of 10 
consecutive hours, as provided under subsection (a), or 
during an interim period of at least 4 consecutive hours 
available for rest under subsection (b)(7), a railroad car-
rier, and its managers, supervisors, officers, and agents, 
shall not communicate with the train employee by tele-
phone, by pager, or in any other manner that could dis-
rupt the employee’s rest. Nothing in this subsection shall 
prohibit communication necessary to notify an employee 
of an emergency situation posing potential risks to the em-
ployee’s safety or health.’’. 
SEC. 202. EMPLOYEE SLEEPING QUARTERS. 
Section 21106 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) by inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ before 
‘‘A railroad carrier’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section:
‘‘(b) CAMP CARS.—Effective 12 months after the 
date of enactment of this subsection, a railroad carrier and 
its officers and agents may not provide sleeping quarters 
through the use of camp cars, as defined in Appendix C 
to part 228 of title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations, 
for employees and any individuals employed to maintain 
the right of way of a railroad carrier.’’. 
SEC. 203. FATIGUE MANAGEMENT PLANS. 
(a) AMENDMENT.—Chapter 211 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new section: 
‘‘§ 21109. Fatigue management plans 
‘‘(a) PLAN SUBMISSION.— 
‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT.—Each railroad carrier 
shall submit to the Secretary of Transportation, and 
update at least once every 2 years, a fatigue man-
agement plan that is designed to reduce the fatigue 
experienced by railroad employees and to reduce the 
likelihood of accidents and injuries caused by fa-
tigue. The plan shall address the safety effects of fa-
tigue on all employees performing safety sensitive 
functions, including employees not covered by this 
chapter. The plan shall be submitted not later than 
1 year after the date of the enactment of this sec-
tion, or not later than 45 days prior to commencing 
operations, whichever is later. 
‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF PLAN.—The fatigue man-
agement plan shall— 
‘‘(A) identify and prioritize all situations 
that pose a risk for safety that may be affected 
by fatigue; 
‘‘(B) include the railroad carrier’s— 
‘‘(i) rationale for including and not in-
cluding each element described in sub-
section (b)(2) in the plan; 
‘‘(ii) analysis supporting each element 
included in the plan; and 
‘‘(iii) explanations for how each ele-
ment in the plan will reduce the risk asso-
ciated with fatigue; 
‘‘(C) describe how every condition on the 
railroad carrier’s property, and every type of 
employee, that is likely to be affected by fatigue 
is addressed in the plan; and 
‘‘(D) include the name, title, address, and 
telephone number of the primary person to be 
contacted with regard to review of the plan. 
‘‘(3) APPROVAL.—(A) The Secretary shall re-
view each proposed plan and approve or disapprove
such plan based on whether the requirements of this 
section are sufficiently and appropriately addressed 
and the proposals are adequately justified in the 
plan. 
‘‘(B) If the proposed plan is not approved, the 
Secretary shall notify the affected railroad carrier as 
to the specific points in which the proposed plan is 
deficient, and the railroad carrier shall correct all 
deficiencies within 30 days following receipt of writ-
ten notice from the Secretary. If a railroad carrier 
does not submit a plan (or, when directed by the 
Secretary, an amended plan), or if a railroad car-
rier’s amended plan is not approved by the Sec-
retary, the Secretary shall prescribe a fatigue man-
agement plan for the railroad carrier. 
‘‘(4) EMPLOYEE PARTICIPATION.—(A) Each af-
fected railroad carrier shall consult with, and employ 
good faith and use its best efforts to reach agree-
ment by consensus with, all of its directly affected 
employee groups on the contents of the fatigue man-
agement plan, and, except as provided in subpara-
graph (C), shall jointly with such groups submit the 
plan to the Secretary. 
‘‘(B) In the event that labor organizations rep-
resent classes or crafts of directly affected employees
of the railroad carrier, the railroad carrier shall con-
sult with these organizations in drafting the plan. 
The Secretary may provide technical assistance and 
guidance to such parties in the drafting of the plan. 
‘‘(C) If the railroad carrier and its directly af-
fected employees (including any labor organization 
representing a class or craft of directly affected em-
ployees of the railroad carrier) cannot reach con-
sensus on the proposed contents of the plan, then— 
‘‘(i) the railroad carrier shall file the plan 
with the Secretary; and 
‘‘(ii) directly affected employees and labor 
organizations representing a class or craft of di-
rectly affected employees may, at their option, 
file a statement with the Secretary explaining 
their views on the plan on which consensus was 
not reached. 
‘‘(b) ELEMENTS
OF
THE FATIGUE MANAGEMENT 
PLAN.— 
‘‘(1) 
CONSIDERATION
OF
VARYING
CIR-
CUMSTANCES.—Each plan filed with the Secretary 
under the procedures of subsection (a) shall take 
into account the varying circumstances of operations 
by the railroad carrier on different parts of its sys-
tem, and shall prescribe appropriate fatigue counter-
measures to address those varying circumstances. 
‘‘(2) ISSUES AFFECTING ALL EMPLOYEES PER-
FORMING SAFETY SENSITIVE FUNCTIONS.—The rail-
road carrier shall consider the need to include in its 
fatigue management plan elements addressing each 
of the following issues: 
‘‘(A) Education and training on the phys-
iological and human factors that affect fatigue, 
as well as strategies to counter fatigue, based 
on current and evolving scientific and medical 
research and literature. 
‘‘(B) Opportunities for identification, diag-
nosis, and treatment of any medical condition 
that may affect alertness or fatigue, including 
sleep disorders. 
‘‘(C) Effects on employee fatigue of emer-
gency response involving both short-term emer-
gency situations, including derailments, and 
long-term emergency situations, including nat-
ural disasters. 
‘‘(D) Scheduling practices involving train 
lineups and calling times, including work/rest 
cycles for shift workers and on-call employees 
that permit employees to compensate for cumu-
lative sleep loss by guaranteeing a minimum 
number of consecutive days off (exclusive of 
time off due to illness or injury). 
‘‘(E) Minimizing the incidence of fatigue 
that occurs as a result of working at times 
when the natural circadian rhythm increases fa-
tigue. 
‘‘(F) Alertness strategies, such as policies 
on napping, to address acute sleepiness and fa-
tigue while an employee is on duty. 
‘‘(G) Opportunities to obtain restful sleep 
at lodging facilities, including sleeping quarters 
provided by the railroad carrier. 
‘‘(H) In connection with the scheduling of 
a duty call, increasing the number of consecu-
tive hours of rest off duty, during which an em-
ployee receives no communication from the em-
ploying railroad carrier or its managers, super-
visors, officers, or agents. 
‘‘(I) Avoiding abrupt changes in rest cycles 
for employees returning to duty after an ex-
tended absence due to circumstances such as ill-
ness or injury. 
‘‘(J) Additional elements as the Secretary 
considers appropriate.
‘‘(c) COMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT.— 
‘‘(1) COMPLIANCE
REQUIREMENT.—Effective 
upon approval or prescription of a fatigue manage-
ment plan, compliance with that fatigue manage-
ment plan becomes mandatory and enforceable by 
the Secretary. 
‘‘(2) EFFECTIVE
DATE.—A fatigue manage-
ment plan may include effective dates later than the 
date of approval of the plan, and may include dif-
ferent effective dates for different parts of the plan. 
‘‘(3) AUDITS.—To enforce this section, the Sec-
retary may conduct inspections and periodic audits 
of a railroad carrier’s compliance with its fatigue 
management plan. 
‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section the 
term ‘directly affected employees’ means employees, in-
cluding employees of an independent contractor or subcon-
tractor, to whose hours of service the terms of a fatigue 
management plan specifically apply.’’. 
(b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 
sections for chapter 211 of title 49, United States Code, 
is amended by adding at the end the following new item: 
‘‘21109. Fatigue management plans.’’.
SEC. 204. REGULATORY AUTHORITY. 
(a) AMENDMENT.—Chapter 211 of title 49, United 
States Code, as amended by this Act, is further amended 
by adding at the end the following new section: 
‘‘§ 21110. Regulatory authority 
‘‘The Secretary of Transportation may by regula-
tion— 
‘‘(1) reduce the maximum hours an employee 
may be required or allowed to go or remain on duty 
to a level less than the level established under this 
chapter, based on scientific and medical research; or 
‘‘(2) increase the minimum hours an employee 
may be required or allowed to rest to a level greater 
than the level established under this chapter, based 
on scientific and medical research.’’. 
(b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 
sections for chapter 211 of title 49, United States Code, 
is amended by adding at the end the following new item: 
‘‘21110. Regulatory authority.’’. 
SEC. 205. CONFORMING AMENDMENT. 
Section 21303(c) of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended by striking ‘‘officers and agents’’ and inserting 
‘‘managers, supervisors, officers, and agents’’.
TITLE III—BRIDGE SAFETY 
SEC. 301. RAILROAD BRIDGE SAFETY ASSURANCE. 
Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Federal Railroad Safety Administration 
shall implement regulations requiring owners of track car-
ried on one or more railroad bridges to adopt safety prac-
tices to prevent the deterioration of railroad bridges and 
reduce the risk of human casualties, environmental dam-
age, and disruption to the Nation’s transportation system 
that would result from a catastrophic bridge failure. The 
regulations shall, at a minimum— 
(1) require each track owner to— 
(A) develop and maintain an accurate in-
ventory of its railroad bridges, which shall iden-
tify the location of each bridge, its configura-
tion, type of construction, number of spans, 
span lengths, and all other information nec-
essary to provide for the safe management of 
the bridges; 
(B) ensure that a professional engineer 
competent in the field of railroad bridge engi-
neering, or a qualified person under the super-
vision of the track owner, determines bridge ca-
pacity;
(C) maintain, and update as appropriate, a 
record of the safe capacity of each bridge which 
carries its track and, if available, maintain the 
original design documents of each bridge and a 
documentation of all repairs, modifications, and 
inspections of the bridge; 
(D) develop, maintain, and enforce a writ-
ten procedure that will ensure that its bridges 
are not loaded beyond their capacities; 
(E) conduct regular comprehensive inspec-
tions of each bridge, at least once per year, and 
maintain records of those inspections that in-
clude the date on which the inspection was per-
formed, the precise identification of the bridge 
inspected, the items inspected, an accurate de-
scription of the condition of those items, and a 
narrative of any inspection item that is found 
by the inspector to be a potential problem; 
(F) ensure that the level of detail and the 
inspection procedures are appropriate to the 
configuration of the bridge, conditions found 
during previous inspections, and the nature of 
the railroad traffic moved over the bridge, in-
cluding car weights, train frequency and length, 
levels of passenger and hazardous materials
traffic, and vulnerability of the bridge to dam-
age; 
(G) ensure that an engineer who is com-
petent in the field of railroad bridge engineer-
ing— 
(i) is responsible for the development 
of all inspection procedures; 
(ii) reviews all inspection reports; and 
(iii) determines whether bridges are 
being inspected according to the applicable 
procedures and frequency, and reviews any 
items noted by an inspector as exceptions; 
and 
(H) designate qualified bridge inspectors 
or maintenance personnel to authorize the oper-
ation of trains on bridges following repairs, 
damage, or indications of potential structural 
problems; 
(2) instruct Administration bridge inspectors to 
obtain copies of the most recent bridge management 
programs and procedures of each railroad within the 
inspector’s areas of responsibility, and require that 
inspectors use those programs when conducting 
bridge inspections; and
(3) establish a program to review bridge inspec-
tion and maintenance data from railroads and Ad-
ministration bridge inspectors periodically. 
TITLE IV—GRADE CROSSINGS 
SEC. 401. TOLL-FREE NUMBER TO REPORT GRADE CROSS-
ING PROBLEMS. 
Section 20152 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘§ 20152. Emergency notification of grade crossing 
problems 
‘‘Not later than 18 months after the date of enact-
ment of the Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 
2007, the Secretary of Transportation shall require each 
railroad carrier to— 
‘‘(1) establish and maintain a toll-free telephone 
service, for rights-of-way over which it dispatches 
trains, to directly receive calls reporting— 
‘‘(A) malfunctions of signals, crossing 
gates, and other devices to promote safety at 
the grade crossing of railroad tracks on those 
rights-of-way and public or private roads; and 
‘‘(B) disabled vehicles blocking railroad 
tracks at such grade crossings; 
‘‘(2) upon receiving a report of a malfunction or 
disabled vehicle pursuant to paragraph (1), imme-
diately contact trains operating near the grade 
crossing to warn them of the malfunction or disabled 
vehicle; 
‘‘(3) upon receiving a report of a malfunction or 
disabled vehicle pursuant to paragraph (1), and 
after contacting trains pursuant to paragraph (2), 
contact, as necessary, appropriate public safety offi-
cials having jurisdiction over the grade crossing to 
provide them with the information necessary for 
them to direct traffic, assist in the removal of the 
disabled vehicle, or carry out other activities appro-
priate to responding to the hazardous circumstance; 
and 
‘‘(4) ensure the placement at each grade cross-
ing on rights-of-way that it owns of appropriately lo-
cated signs, on which shall appear, at a minimum— 
‘‘(A) a toll-free telephone number to be 
used for placing calls described in paragraph 
(1) to the railroad carrier dispatching trains on 
that right-of-way; 
‘‘(B) an explanation of the purpose of that 
toll-free number as described in paragraph (1); 
and 
‘‘(C) the grade crossing number assigned 
for that crossing by the National Highway-Rail
Crossing Inventory established by the Depart-
ment of Transportation. 
The Secretary of Transportation shall implement this sec-
tion through appropriate regulations.’’. 
SEC. 402. ROADWAY USER SIGHT DISTANCE AT HIGHWAY- 
RAIL GRADE CROSSINGS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 201 of 
title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following new section: 
‘‘§ 20156. Roadway user sight distance at highway- 
rail grade crossings 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months after 
the date of enactment of the Federal Railroad Safety Im-
provement Act of 2007, the Secretary of Transportation 
shall prescribe regulations that require each railroad car-
rier to remove from its rights-of-way at all public highway- 
rail grade crossings, and at all private highway-rail grade 
crossings open to unrestricted public access (as declared 
in writing by the holder of the crossing right), grass, 
brush, shrubbery, trees, and other vegetation which may 
obstruct the view of a pedestrian or a vehicle operator for 
a reasonable distance in either direction of the train’s ap-
proach, and to maintain its rights-of-way at all such cross-
ings free of such vegetation. In prescribing the regula-
tions, the Secretary shall take into consideration to the 
extent practicable— 
‘‘(1) the type of warning device or warning de-
vices installed at the crossing; 
‘‘(2) factors affecting the timeliness and effec-
tiveness of roadway user decisionmaking, including 
the maximum allowable roadway speed, maximum 
authorized train speed, angle of intersection, and to-
pography; 
‘‘(3) the presence or absence of other sight dis-
tance obstructions off the railroad right-of-way; and 
‘‘(4) any other factors affecting safety at such 
crossings. 
‘‘(b) PROTECTED VEGETATION.—In promulgating 
regulations pursuant to this section, the Secretary may 
make allowance for preservation of trees and other orna-
mental or protective growth where State or local law or 
policy would otherwise protect the vegetation from removal 
and where the roadway authority or private crossing hold-
er is notified of the sight distance obstruction and, within 
a reasonable period specified by the regulation, takes ap-
propriate temporary and permanent action to abate the 
hazard to roadway users (such as by closing the crossing, 
posting supplementary signage, installing active warning
devices, lowering roadway speed, or installing traffic 
calming devices). 
‘‘(c) NO
PREEMPTION.—Notwithstanding section 
20106, subsections (a) and (b) of this section do not pro-
hibit a State from continuing in force, or from enacting, 
a law, regulation, or order requiring the removal of ob-
structive vegetation from a railroad right-of-way for safety 
reasons that is more stringent than the requirements of 
the regulations prescribed pursuant to this section. 
‘‘(d) MODEL
LEGISLATION.—Not later than 18 
months after the date of enactment of the Federal Rail-
road Safety Improvement Act of 2007, the Secretary, after 
consultation with the Federal Railroad Safety Administra-
tion, the Federal Highway Administration, and States, 
shall develop and make available to States model legisla-
tion providing for improving safety by addressing sight ob-
structions at highway-rail grade crossings that are 
equipped solely with passive warnings, such as permanent 
structures, temporary structures, and standing railroad 
equipment, as recommended by the Inspector General of 
the Department of Transportation in Report No. MH– 
2007–044.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec-
tions for such subchapter II of chapter 201 is amended
by inserting after the item relating to section 20155 the 
following new item: 
‘‘20156. Roadway user sight distance at highway-rail grade crossings.’’. 
SEC. 403. GRADE CROSSING SIGNAL VIOLATIONS. 
(a) AMENDMENTS.—Section 20151 of title 49, 
United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by amending the section heading to read as 
follows: 
‘‘§ 20151. Railroad trespassing, vandalism, and signal 
violation prevention strategy’’; 
(2) in subsection (a)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘and vandalism affecting 
railroad safety’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘, 
vandalism affecting railroad safety, and viola-
tions of grade crossing signals’’; 
(B) by inserting ‘‘, concerning trespassing 
and vandalism,’’ after ‘‘such evaluation and re-
view’’; and 
(C) by inserting ‘‘The second such evalua-
tion and review, concerning violations of grade 
crossing signals, shall be completed before April 
1, 2008.’’ after ‘‘November 2, 1994.’’; 
(3) in the subsection heading of subsection (b), 
by inserting ‘‘FOR TRESPASSING AND VANDALISM 
PREVENTION’’ after ‘‘OUTREACH PROGRAM’’; 
(4) in subsection (c)—
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and 
(2) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively; 
(B) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘MODEL LEG-
ISLATION.—’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph: 
‘‘(2) Within 18 months after the date of enactment 
of the Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2007, 
the Secretary, after consultation with State and local gov-
ernments, railroad carriers, and rail labor organizations, 
shall develop and make available to State and local govern-
ments model State legislation providing for civil or crimi-
nal penalties, or both, for violations of grade crossing sig-
nals.’’; and 
(5) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 
term ‘violation of grade crossing signals’ includes any ac-
tion by a motorist, unless directed by an authorized safety 
officer— 
‘‘(1) to drive around a grade crossing gate in 
a position intended to block passage over railroad 
tracks; 
‘‘(2) to drive through a flashing grade crossing 
signal;
‘‘(3) to drive through a grade crossing with pas-
sive warning signs without ensuring that the grade 
crossing could be safely crossed before any train ar-
rived; and 
‘‘(4) in the vicinity of a grade crossing, that 
creates a hazard of an accident involving injury or 
property damage at the grade crossing.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The item relating 
to section 20151 in the table of sections for subchapter 
II of chapter 201 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘20151. Railroad trespassing, vandalism, and signal violation prevention strat-
egy.’’. 
SEC. 404. NATIONAL CROSSING INVENTORY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 201 of 
title 49, United States Code, as amended by this Act, is 
further amended by adding at the end the following new 
section: 
‘‘§ 20157. National crossing inventory 
‘‘(a) INITIAL REPORTING OF INFORMATION ABOUT 
PREVIOUSLY UNREPORTED CROSSINGS.—Not later than 
1 year after the date of enactment of the Federal Railroad 
Safety Improvement Act of 2007 or 6 months after a new 
crossing becomes operational, whichever occurs later, each 
railroad carrier shall—