§ 20148 — Railroad Car Visibility

(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.