Notice of Petition for Extension of Waiver of Compliance

AGENCY:
Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of Transportation (DOT).
SUMMARY:
This document provides the public notice that Norfolk Southern Railway Company (NS) petitioned FRA for an extension of relief from certain regulations concerning periodic testing requirements on vital microprocessor-based systems.
DATES:
FRA must receive comments on the petition by August 24, 2026. FRA will consider comments received after that date to the extent practicable.
ADDRESSES:
Comments:
Comments related to this docket may be submitted by going to
https://www.regulations.gov
and following the online instructions for submitting comments.
Instructions:
All submissions must include the agency name and docket number. All comments received will be posted without change to
https://www.regulations.gov;
this includes any personal information. Please see the Privacy Act heading in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
section of this document for Privacy Act information related to any submitted comments or materials.
Docket:
For access to the docket to read background documents or comments received, go to
https://www.regulations.gov
and follow the online instructions for accessing the docket.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Under part 211 of title 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), this document provides the public notice that by letter dated May 8, 2026, NS petitioned FRA for an extension of a waiver of compliance from certain provisions of the Federal railroad safety regulations contained at 49 CFR part 236 (Rules, Standards, and Instructions Governing the Installation, Inspection, Maintenance, and Repair of Signal and Train Control Systems, Devices, and Appliances). The relevant Docket Number is FRA-2010-0011.
Specifically, NS seeks an extension of relief from the 2-year periodic testing requirements in §§ 236.377,
Approach locking;
236.378,
Time locking;
236.379,
Route locking;
236.380,
Indication locking;
and 236.381,
Traffic locking,
related to vital microprocessor-based systems. The existing relief extends the testing requirements in these sections from “at least once every 2 years” to every 4 years, after initial testing is completed. In its petition, NS stated that the waiver “supports efficient testing practices while maintaining the integrity and safety of vital signal system operations.”
A copy of the petition, as well as any written communications concerning the petition, is available for review online at
www.regulations.gov.
Interested parties are invited to participate in these proceedings by submitting written views, data, or comments. FRA does not anticipate scheduling a public hearing in connection with these proceedings since the facts do not appear to warrant a hearing. If any interested party desires an opportunity for oral comment and a public hearing, they should notify FRA, in writing, before the end of the comment period and specify the basis for their request.
Communications received by August 24, 2026 will be considered by FRA before final action is taken. Comments received after that date will be considered if practicable.
Privacy Act
Anyone can search the electronic form of any written communications and comments received into any of FRA's dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or signing the document, if submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). Under 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the public to inform its processes. DOT posts these comments, without edit, including any personal information the commenter provides, to
www.regulations.gov,
as described in the system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at
https://www.transportation.gov/privacy.
See also
https://www.regulations.gov/privacy-notice
for the privacy notice of
regulations.gov.
Issued in Washington, DC.
John Karl Alexy,
Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety, Chief Safety Officer.