Skip to main content

US DOT makes funding available for positive train control implementation

The US Department of Transportation has made US$199 million in competitive grant funding for positive train control (PTC) implementation. The grants, which will be selected by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and awarded and administered by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), will help commuter railroads implement PTC, which prevents accidents and saves lives. FRA will accept applications until 5 pm EDT on 28 Sept. 28ember. Projects eligible for grants must develop information that ass
July 29, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
The 324 US Department of Transportation has made US$199 million in competitive grant funding for positive train control (PTC) implementation.  The grants, which will be selected by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and awarded and administered by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), will help commuter railroads implement PTC, which prevents accidents and saves lives.  

FRA will accept applications until 5 pm EDT on 28 Sept. 28ember.  Projects eligible for grants must develop information that assists in implementing PTC systems, such as costs of installing PTC systems; back office systems; PTC interoperability; technologies that will lower costs, accelerate implementation, enhance interoperability between host and tenant operations, and improve reliability of PTC systems; and support PTC system certification.

Eligible applicants include any entity that is eligible to receive grants from the FTA, such as commuter railroads, operators, and state and local governments.

PTC technology can prevent certain train-to-train collisions, over-speed derailments, incursions into established work zones, and trains routed to the wrong tracks because a switch was left in the wrong position.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • ‘Formation flying’ engineering trains used to upgrade railway
    February 16, 2017
    In a bid to increase efficiencies and reduce delays for passengers, the UK’s Network Rail is trialling ‘formation flying’ engineering trains to repair and renew the 20,000 miles of railway track it is responsible for maintaining. It says this new approach to engineering could potentially save taxpayer-funded Network Rail US$313,000 (£250,000) per week in costs by allowing trains to run at higher speeds once engineering is complete. The pioneering technique was used successfully at Sandy, Bedfordshire, on
  • Singapore to implement unified bus management system
    April 10, 2014
    Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) has awarded a consortium of ST Electronics and Trapeze Switzerland a contract to supply, install and commission an Intelligent Bus Management System with a total value of about US$54 million. Currently, both local transport operators, SBS Transit and SMRT, use separate bus fleet management systems to manage their daily bus operations and provide bus arrival information to commuters. This new system will provide a unified solution for operations control, fleet
  • Activu and Mitsubishi give New Jersey controllers the big picture
    May 27, 2014
    Mitsubishi and Activu team up to help New Jersey emergency centre with real-time situational awareness. Sandy was the largest Atlantic hurricane in recorded history, with winds spanning an area of 1,100 miles and damages estimated at $68 billion. It killed at least 286 people in seven countries, from Jamaica to the Jersey Shore. But tropical storms are not the only challenge for emergency operations up and down the East Coast.
  • UK freight trains to be upgraded with European Train Control Systems
    December 20, 2017
    Network Rail has contracted Siemens Rail Automation to install European Train Control System (ETCS) in-cab signalling on 750 of the UK's heaviest locomotives to improve safety and provide better use of the network with plans to retrofit the entire fleet in 2022. This technology forms part of the country's Digital Railway programme, and the government has invested £450m ($602m) as part of its National Productivity Fund. For the first phase, Siemens will install its Trainguard 200 (T200) ETCS on-board