I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6066 
To require the Federal Railroad Administration and Amtrak to implement 
and carry out certain National Transportation Safety Board rec-
ommendations, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 3, 2020 
Mr. HECK (for himself, Mr. KILMER, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, and Mr. 
AMODEI) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
A BILL 
To require the Federal Railroad Administration and Amtrak 
to implement and carry out certain National Transpor-
tation Safety Board recommendations, and for other pur-
poses. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Passenger Train Safe-
ty Act’’. 
SEC. 2. SAFETY IMPLEMENTATION REQUIREMENTS. 
(a) FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION REQUIRE-
MENTS.—Not later than 18 months after the date of en-
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actment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Rail-
road Administration shall carry out the following: 
(1) Complete a study on how signage can be 
used to improve safety in the rail industry that in-
cludes— 
(A) a review of how signs used for other 
modes of transportation may be effectively used 
in the rail industry; 
(B) a review of how signs used in the rail-
road industry differ; and 
(C) an analysis of whether a uniform sys-
tem for speed signs across the entire railroad 
industry would benefit the railroad industry and 
improve safety. 
(2) Reevaluate existing seat securement mecha-
nisms and their susceptibility to inadvertent rota-
tion, to identify a means to prevent the failure of 
these devices to maintain seat securement. 
(3) Conduct research to evaluate the causes of 
passenger injuries in passenger railcar derailments 
and evaluate potential methods for mitigating such 
injuries. 
(4) For research specified by the National 
Transportation Safety Board in safety recommenda-
tion R–16–35 that identifies safety improvements, 
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use the findings to develop occupant protection 
standards for passenger railcars that will mitigate 
passenger injuries likely to occur during derailments 
and overturns. 
(b) REQUIREMENTS FOR AMTRAK.—Not later than 
18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, Amtrak 
shall— 
(1) ensure operating crewmembers demonstrate 
proficiency on the physical characteristics of a terri-
tory by using all resources available to them, includ-
ing— 
(A) in-cab instruments, signage, signals, 
and landmarks; 
(B) under daylight and nighttime condi-
tions; and 
(C) using observation rides, throttle time, 
and written examinations; 
(2) revise classroom and road training pro-
grams to ensure that operating crews fully under-
stand 
all 
locomotive 
operating 
characteristics, 
alarms, and the appropriate response to abnormal 
conditions; 
(3) require that all engineers undergo simulator 
training before operating new or unfamiliar equip-
ment (at a minimum, experience and respond prop-
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erly to all alarms), and when possible, undergo simu-
lator training before operating in revenue service in 
a new territory and experience normal and abnormal 
conditions on that territory; 
(4) implement a formal, systematic approach to 
developing training and qualification programs to 
identify the most effective strategies for preparing 
crewmembers to safely operate new equipment on 
new territories; 
(5) complete a comprehensive assessment of the 
territories to ensure that necessary wayside signs 
and plaques are identified, highly noticeable, and 
strategically located to provide operating crews the 
information needed to safely operate their trains; 
(6) conduct training that specifies and rein-
forces how each crewmember, including those who 
have not received their certifications or qualifica-
tions, may be used as a resource to assist in estab-
lishing and maintaining safe train operations; 
(7) update the safety review process to ensure 
that all operating documents are up to date and ac-
curate before initiating new or revised revenue oper-
ations; 
(8) incorporate all prerevenue service planning, 
construction, and route verification work into the 
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scope of your corporate-wide system safety plan, in-
cluding your rules and policies, risk assessment anal-
yses, safety assurances, and safety promotions; 
(9) conduct risk assessments on all new or up-
graded services that occur on Amtrak-owned terri-
tory, host railroads, or in States that own infra-
structure over which you operate; and 
(10) develop policies for the safe use of child 
safety seats to prevent uncontrolled or unexpected 
movements in passenger trains and provide cus-
tomers with guidance for securing these child safety 
seats. 
SEC. 3. INWARD- AND OUTWARD-FACING RECORDERS. 
Section 20168 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (c) by inserting ‘‘or an 
inward- or outward-facing audio recording device for 
compliance with the requirements of subsection (l)’’ 
before the period; 
(2) by striking subsection (e) and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(e) AUDIO RECORDERS.—Not later than 1 year 
after the date of the Passenger Train Safety Act, the Sec-
retary shall by regulation require each railroad carrier 
that provides regularly scheduled intercity rail passenger 
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or commuter rail passenger transportation to the public 
to install inward- and outward-facing audio recording de-
vices in or on all controlling locomotive cabs and cab car 
operating compartments on such passenger trains.’’; and 
(3) in subsection (f)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘subsection (a)’’ and in-
serting ‘‘this section’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘image’’ and inserting 
‘‘image or audio’’; 
(4) in subsection (g) by striking ‘‘subsection 
(a)’’ and inserting ‘‘this section’’; 
(5) in subsection (h)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘audio or’’; 
(B) by striking ‘‘or transcript of oral com-
munications’’; and 
(C) by striking the second sentence; 
(6) in subsection (j) by striking ‘‘image’’ and 
inserting ‘‘image or audio’’ each place it appears; 
and 
(7) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(k) LIMITATION ON USE OF RECORDED INFORMA-
TION.— The Secretary may not use any information col-
lected pursuant to this section in a civil penalty or certifi-
cate action. 
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‘‘(l) AUDIO RECORDING REQUIREMENTS.—An audio 
recording device required under this section shall— 
‘‘(1) operate continuously any time the control-
ling locomotive cabs and cab car operating compart-
ments is in motion; 
‘‘(2) have crash and fire protections for any 
audio recordings that are stored only within a con-
trolling locomotive cab or cab car operating compart-
ment; and 
‘‘(3) encrypt all audio recorded by such device. 
‘‘(m) REVIEW OF AUDIO RECORDINGS.— 
‘‘(1) PRESERVATION
OF
CERTAIN
RECORD-
INGS.—For any audio recorded pursuant to this sec-
tion of an accident or incident that is required to be 
reported to the National Transportation Safety 
Board, the rail carrier holding such recording shall 
preserve such recording according to the require-
ments of subsection (g). 
‘‘(2) 
EXCLUSIVE
REVIEW.—The 
National 
Transportation Safety Board shall have the exclusive 
authority to— 
‘‘(A) decrypt, or provide a decryption key 
for, an audio recording described in this sec-
tion; and 
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‘‘(B) except as provided for in subsection 
(n), review an audio recording described in this 
section prior to a public disclosure of such re-
cording. 
‘‘(3) PUBLIC DISCLOSURE OF AUDIO.—Prior to 
any public disclosure of an audio recorded under this 
section (as otherwise provided for in law), the Na-
tional Transportation Safety Board shall— 
‘‘(A) remove all personally identifiable in-
formation in such recording; and 
‘‘(B) ensure that the audio recording does 
not contain any audio recorded earlier than 15 
minutes before the accident or incident required 
to be reported to the Board. 
‘‘(n) LIMITED USE OF AUDIO RECORDINGS BY RAIL 
CARRIERS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Upon request of a rail car-
rier, the National Transportation Safety Board may 
provide a decryption key to such carrier for any 
audio recording recorded by such carrier under this 
section, or provide a decrypted version of a recording 
submitted to the Board under subsection (m), if the 
Secretary certifies that the rail carrier and all collec-
tive bargaining units representing employees of the 
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carrier enter into an agreement that contains the 
limitations specified in paragraph (2). 
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE
USE.—An agreement under 
paragraph (1) shall require that— 
‘‘(A) the recording transmitted is used for 
training purposes only; and 
‘‘(B) the recording is not used for em-
ployee discipline or the enforcement of oper-
ating rules.’’. 
SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON PROVISION OF CERTAIN NEW 
ROUTES. 
Section 20157 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(m) PROHIBITION ON PROVISION OF CERTAIN NEW 
ROUTES.—An entity providing regularly scheduled inter-
city or commuter rail passenger transportation may not 
begin service on any new route that is subject to the re-
quirements of this section unless a positive train control 
system is fully implemented and operational on such 
route.’’. 
SEC. 5. SPEED LIMIT ACTION PLANS. 
(a) Section 11406 of the FAST Act (Public Law 
114–94) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘survey its en-
tire system’’ and inserting ‘‘survey its entire system 
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and any other infrastructure over which such rail-
road carrier operates’’; 
(2) by redesignating subsections (d), (e), and 
(f) as subsections (e), (f), and (g), respectively; 
(3) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(d) PERIODIC REVIEWS AND UPDATES.—Each rail-
road carrier described under subsection (a) shall— 
‘‘(1) annually review the speed limit action 
plans to ensure the effectiveness of actions taken to 
enable warning and enforcement of the maximum 
authorized speed for passenger trains at each loca-
tion identified under subsection (b)(1); and 
‘‘(2) not later than 90 days prior to imple-
menting any operational or territorial operating 
changes, such as initiating new service or routes, 
submit to the Secretary a revised action plan that 
addresses such operational or territorial operating 
changes.’’; and 
(4) in subsection (c) by inserting ‘‘or subsection 
(d)(2)’’ after ‘‘subsection (b)’’. 
SEC. 6. REPORT. 
Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Federal Railroad Administration and Am-
trak shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and 
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Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 
the Senate a report on the progress of the implementation 
of the safety recommendations described in section 3, in-
cluding a description of all completed elements of the im-
plementation. 
Æ 
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