Greg Pence Reintroduces RURAL Act to Improve Rail Safety
Washington, D.C. –U.S. Congressman Greg Pence (IN-06) introduced the Railway Upgrades for Rural American Lines (RURAL) Act, bipartisan legislation to improve the safety of rail crossings by providing more flexibility in fund usage from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration's Section 130 grant program. U.S. Congresswoman Julia Brownley (CA-26) is the Democrat co-lead of this legislation.
"Indiana is the crossroads of America and Hoosiers deserve modern, safe rail infrastructure. Blocked railroad-highway crossings pose a serious safety risk to Hoosiers and must be updated," said Congressman Pence."Strengthening support from the federal government and increasing flexibility in the Section 130 grant program will improve our communities in the Sixth District and beyond."
"Improving safety at grade crossings is critically important for many communities across our nation, including Ventura County, where we have seen recent accidents including the Rice Avenue Metrolink derailment. I look forward to working with Congressman Pence to advance this important rail safety legislation," said Congresswoman Julia Brownley.
"I am happy to work with Congressman Greg Pence and appreciate his support of increased safety and upgrades for railroad crossings here in Muncie. I appreciate his attentiveness to this issue and its potential positive impact for our many railroad crossings, should it be adopted into law," said MuncieMayor Dan Ridenour.
"While permanently closing railroad crossings is not always popular in smaller communities, this bill at least provides for more funding and incentive to do so making these crossings and our communities safer. We have greatly appreciated Congressman Pence and his staff for listening to our needs and working to provide greater awareness and understanding from a smaller community's perspective," said RushvilleMayor Mike Pavey.
"The Indiana Department of Transportation supports Congressman Pence's proposal to provide states more flexibility in using Section 130 funds to improve rail crossing safety," Indiana Department of Transportation Commissioner Joe McGuinness said. "Increasing federal support and enhancing flexibility in this program allows for transportation agencies and railroad operators to eliminate a greater number of rail-highway crossings and more quickly update or replace obsolete equipment making for safer communities across the U.S."
Background:
The Section 130 grant program is administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration to provide funds for the "Elimination of Hazards" at public railway-highway crossings. The Section 130 Program has been correlated with a significant decrease in fatalities at railway-highway grade crossings. Since the Program's inception in 1987 through 2014, for which most recent data is available, fatalities at these crossings have decreased by 57 percent. The overall reductions in fatalities come despite an increase in the vehicle miles traveled on roadways and an increase in the passenger and freight traffic on the railways
The Section 130 program funds are eligible for projects at all public crossings including roadways, bike trails and pedestrian paths. The FAST Act (Pub. L. No. 114-94) extended eligibility to include projects at grade crossings to eliminate hazards posed by blocked crossings due to idling trains. Currently, Section 130 funds are apportioned to States by formula and funded at a 90% federal share.
As a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in the 116th Congress, Rep. Pence authored anamendment to include this legislation in H.R. 2, the Moving Forward Act.
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Congressman Greg Pence represents Indiana's 6th District. From Columbus, Indiana, Pence advocates for conservative Hoosier values as a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.