§1166 Railroad Carrier Exercises

Summary

The Secretary must set up a program of security exercises for railroad carriers. The goal is to test and improve how federal, state, local, and tribal governments; railroad companies; emergency responders and police; and any other groups the Secretary chooses can prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from terrorist attacks. The Secretary should combine existing Department and Department of Transportation exercises unless a waiver is given. Exercises must be scaled to each carrier and include the needs of older people and people with disabilities. The highest-risk sites should have live drills. Exercises must be coordinated with officials, realistic and based on current risk information, include frontline railroad workers when appropriate, and follow national plans and systems (for example, the National Incident Management System, the National Response Plan, the National Infrastructure Protection Plan, the National Preparedness Guidance, and the National Preparedness Goal). The Secretary will evaluate exercises with clear measures, find and share best practices with carriers, unions, government officials, responders, and law enforcement, and give carriers recommendations for fixes. Communities must get proper advance notice when appropriate, and the program must help governments and carriers design, run, and evaluate more exercises. The exercise program must be part of the National Exercise Program.