Title 49 — TransportationRelease 119-73not60

§20148 Railroad Car Visibility

Title 49 › Subtitle SUBTITLE V— RAIL PROGRAMS › Part A— SAFETY › Chapter 201— GENERAL › Subchapter II— PARTICULAR ASPECTS OF SAFETY › § 20148

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary of Transportation must review DOT rules about how easy it is to see railroad cars. The Secretary must gather data from railroads that already use better visibility features. If the review shows improved visibility would likely make things safer in a cost‑effective way, the Secretary must start rulemaking to require better visibility on new and rebuilt railroad cars. The rulemaking must consider six things: how cars look to people outside trains, paint colors, reflective materials, lettering visibility, effects on crew health and safety, and the cost versus benefit. The Secretary may exempt certain train types or operations if doing so is in the public interest and still safe.

Full Legal Text

Title 49, §20148

Transportation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Secretary of Transportation shall conduct a review of the Department of Transportation’s rules with respect to railroad car visibility. As part of this review, the Secretary shall collect relevant data from operational experience by railroads having enhanced visibility measures in service.

(b)If the review conducted under subsection (a) establishes that enhanced railroad car visibility would likely improve safety in a cost-effective manner, the Secretary shall initiate a rulemaking proceeding to prescribe regulations requiring enhanced visibility standards for newly manufactured and remanufactured railroad cars. In such proceeding the Secretary shall consider, at a minimum—

(1)visibility of railroad cars from the perspective of nonrailroad traffic;

(2)whether certain railroad car paint colors should be prohibited or required;

(3)the use of reflective materials;

(4)the visibility of lettering on railroad cars;

(5)the effect of any enhanced visibility measures on the health and safety of train crew members; and

(6)the cost/benefit ratio of any new regulations.

(c)In prescribing regulations under subsection (b), the Secretary may exclude from any specific visibility requirement any category of trains or railroad operations if the Secretary determines that such an exclusion is in the public interest and is consistent with railroad safety.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

49 U.S.C. § 20148

Title 49 — Transportation

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60