PTC is advanced automatic braking technology meant to prevent collisions with other vehicles and objects. For PTC systems to control for human error, they have to be able to know the location, direction, and speed of trains, warn engineers of possible problems, and stop a train if the engineer doesn’t react.
In 2008, Congress passed the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008, which required all trains to have a PTC system by the end of 2015. The deadline was extended to the end of 2018, though railroads could request an alternative schedule from the Federal Rail Administration, with an absolute final deadline of December 31, 2020.
Railroad companies are self-reporting their progress to the FRA. Amtrak reports that 86% of all route miles in its system have operating PTC. According to the FRA, as of the end of 2019, 94.3 percent of route miles where the host railroad is governed by PTC has operating PTC, though only 2.1% were in the advanced testing stage.
This type of system is expensive but important. Not only is it required by law, but it is essential in reducing the number of fatal car-train collisions. If you were injured or a loved one died in a train accident, we’ll investigate whether there was functioning PTC at the location. If not, we’ll investigate whether the railroad company or another party was responsible for implementing that technology there and failed to do so.