By
MARK PRADO |
mprado@marinij.com | Marin Independent Journal
PUBLISHED: August 12, 2017 at 8:08 pm | UPDATED: July 19, 2018 at 11:40 am
A federal review of a high-tech safety system is forcing the continued delay in commuter service, Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit officials say.
That safety system was installed for the first time on part of a Colorado rail line last year, but has not been completely bug-free. It has forced the Colorado rail agency to seek and receive waivers from the Federal Railroad Administration to continue running that line.
SMART TRAIN > MORE COVERAGE
Those circumstances may be a reason why federal officials are being methodical before signing off on SMART, rail officials have said.
“The FRA, in particular, needs to sign off on Positive Train Control,” said San Rafael Mayor Gary Phillips, a SMART board member. “That system is performing satisfactorily for SMART. We saw it work during the preview service.”
SMART has spent $50 million to implement the Positive Train Control system on the 43-mile line from downtown San Rafael to the Santa Rosa Airport. The system essentially controls movements on the rails electronically to slow or stop trains before certain types of accidents could occur.
SMART is poised to be the first start-up rail system in the country to be completely outfitted with the safety system designed to prevent potentially deadly accidents.
In April 2016, the Denver-based Regional Transportation District began using Positive Train Control on a new 23-mile spur from downtown to the city’s airport. The line has been operating on waivers from federal officials while they attempt to resolve a nagging timing issue with safety arms that is caused by integration challenges between crossing software and Positive Train Control. The waiver includes the requirement that flaggers be stationed along the line as a safety precaution.
SMART officials say their Positive Train Control is working and that they are talking to federal officials on a daily basis as they seek final approval.
“This deals with public safety and they are being cautious,” said Farhad Mansourian, SMART’s general manager, of Positive Train Control. “PTC is new. We are not an agency that has been running for 40 years. We are a new agency with brand new service.”
Tiffany Lindemann, a spokeswoman with the Federal Railroad Administration, said SMART’s Positive Train Control is getting a hard look.
“FRA is still working closely with SMART on the PTC review,” she said via email. “Although SMART is in the final stages of the review, the length of time the review can take varies depending on the complexity of the PTC system.”
In SMART’s case, Positive Train Control works via a fiber optic network used to “talk” to the train system to prevent a train from moving while sitting in a turnout, while another train passes; maintain safe speeds in curves to prevent derailments; and to slow speeds in work zones where workers are present.
The system stops the train if an engineer fails to adhere to the software-programmed instructions. The system is also used by dispatchers to lower speeds when a grade crossing has been damaged. [...]
