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5/7/2025
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) on Monday filed comments in response to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s request for information on how to modernize and streamline rail regulations.
The principal issue raised in the filing is the Biden administration’s crew staffing rule that mandates a minimum of two crew members per train in perpetuity, which AAR describes as "an unsubstantiated mandate that conflicts with the Trump administration’s policy goals of regulatory reform, technological advancement and data-driven rulemaking," AAR officials said in a press release.
"For too long, outdated, arbitrary regulations have stood in the way of implementing data-backed solutions that can further strengthen railroads’ already remarkable safety record,” said AAR President and CEO Ian Jefferies. “As technology advances, railroads must be empowered to innovate — not be hamstrung by prescriptive rules, including some written more than 50 years ago. As a critical economic enabler, domestic growth and prosperity are contingent upon maintaining freight railroads’ ability to safely, reliably and affordably deliver for American businesses and communities.”
In its comments, AAR called for an overall shift to performance-based standards that drive innovation and allow railroads to adopt modern technologies.
In addition to repealing the two-person train crew rule, the AAR recommends that the USDOT:
• modernize track inspection regulations to facilitate the use of proven technology that offers enhanced safety benefits;• complete regulatory revisions initiated during the first Trump administration to reflect the use of modern, self-diagnostic signal equipment across the rail network; • finalize a previously proposed rule that would reflect advances in air brake technology by extending inspection intervals.
Whether the USDOT repeals the two-person crew rule remains to be seen, however. During his Senate confirmation hearing held in January, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy indicated his support for a two-person crew mandate.
Also, Vice President J.D. Vance – as a senator from Ohio when the Norfolk Southern Railway train derailment occurred in 2023 in East Palestine, Ohio – introduced rail safety legislation that included a two-person crew size rule that was supported by then-former President Trump.