AAR commends Congress on positive train control extension

Association of American Railroads (AAR) president and CEO, Edward R. Hamberger applauded the bipartisan votes by lawmakers in the House and Senate to extend the deadline for Positive Train Control (PTC). "Members of the House and Senate are to be commended for taking the responsible action to extend the PTC deadline. This provides the certainty American industries and businesses need to serve the millions of Americans who rely on rail every day," said Hamberger. "The extension means freight and passenger
October 29, 2015 Read time: 1 min
Association of American Railroads (AAR) president and CEO, Edward R. Hamberger applauded the bipartisan votes by lawmakers in the House and Senate to extend the deadline for Positive Train Control (PTC).

"Members of the House and Senate are to be commended for taking the responsible action to extend the PTC deadline. This provides the certainty American industries and businesses need to serve the millions of Americans who rely on rail every day," said Hamberger. "The extension means freight and passenger railroads can continue moving forward with the ongoing development, installation, real-world testing and validation of this complex technology."

Freight railroads have spent close to US$6 billion on PTC development, testing and installation and much progress has been made. The industry expects to spend up to US$4 billion more before this complex technology is fully operational across the United States.

Related Content

  • Ability to keep in touch on US buses woos travellers
    February 1, 2012
    David Crawford finds evidence of a new trend in American intercity travel: that better access to data sources on the move is tempting passengers away from air travel and onto surface modes. In the US the ease of use of Portable Electronic Devices (PEDs) is successfully wooing long-distance travellers away from airlines and onto surface public transport, according to just-published research. Using data from field observations of 7,028 passengers travelling by bus, air and train in 14 US states and the Distri
    Read More
  • US Congress debates autonomous vehicles
    November 20, 2013
    Emerging technologies have the potential to significantly reduce vehicle crashes and associated fatalities, according to Kirk Steudle, director of the Michigan Department of Transportation, testifying at the US House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Subcommittee on Highways and Transit. Speaking on behalf of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Steudle said, "Nothing is more exciting than the potential safety benefits of this emerging technology," said Steud
    Read More
  • Using electricity to power road freight
    October 22, 2014
    Next year sees the start of the first real-life electrified road system for transporting freight. Worldwide freight transportation is predicted to double by 2050 but despite expansion of global rail infrastructure only one third of this additional freight transport can be handled by trains. This means that the largest proportion of freight transport will continue to be by road and as a result, experts expect global CO2 emissions from road freight traffic to more than double by 2050.
    Read More
  • Considering accessibility costs little and pays dividends for all travellers
    August 8, 2017
    Catering for those with disabilities can be cost-effective and improve services for all travellers, as David Crawford discovers. Clearer understanding of the economic value of accessible transport is essential if we are to speed up the current slow deployment levels, according to the Paris-based International Transport Forum (ITF), which staged a 2016 round table on the ‘Benefits and Costs of Inclusion in Transport’. It wants to see greater availability of data on levels of actual and unmet demand for acces
    Read More

Highlighted Content