Chapter 1: Introduction

Section 1: Overview of Railroads in Texas

Manual Purpose

Within the state of Texas, there are
over
 10,000 miles of railroad tracks and 80,000
centerline miles of roadway
. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Rail-Highway Operations Manual
covers
 responsibilities and best practices on projects that impact both roadway and railroad rights of way. The Manual defines both TxDOT district and division responsibilities on the various types of projects and coordination efforts required between railroad companies and other entities.
This manual is not a railroad operations manual and does not cover items related to train scheduling, railroad worker safety or commonly asked questions from the public
related
 to railroad operations.

TxDOT Role with Railroads

The TxDOT Rail Division (RRD) interfaces with railroad companies as a primary function. The Rail Division is comprised of an administration and four main sections: Planning and Programming, Safety, Rail Letting and Rail Grade Crossing. This manual will mostly deal with the Rail Letting and Rail Grade Crossing Sections.
The Rail
Planning and Programming Section
 has the authority to implement rail improvements through public-private partnership agreements and provide investments in freight rail relocation projects, rail facility improvements, rail line consolidations or new passenger rail developments.
This section
 also manages lease agreements with operators on state-owned facilities and
manages
 construction contracts for state or federally funded rehabilitation projects on both state-owned and private facilities.
The Railroad Safety Section promotes safety in all areas of railroad operations to reduce deaths, injuries and damage to property resulting from railroad crashes by conducting railroad investigations and inspection in all five Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) disciplines.
The Rail Grade Crossing Section manages the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Section 130 Program (formerly titled FSP Program), the state Replanking Program of on-system at-grade crossings and maintains a database of all public railroad crossings. The Rail Letting section generates railroad related agreements for TxDOT construction and maintenance work that impacts railroad rights of way and assists with other issues related to public railroad crossings.
District personnel coordinate design, construction and maintenance of road projects impacting railroads within their district. They are also responsible for reviewing invoices related to railroad construction work and coordinating district activities with their railroad company counterparts.
The Texas Railroad Information Management System (TRIMS) went live in March 2013 as the database to manage railroad crossing data and rail-highway project information. See Chapter 12 for more information.
See the TxDOT Rail Division website for further information. The Rail Division external website contains general information that is of use to both internal and external users. The Rail Division Crossroads internal website contains more proprietary information such as sample plan sets, internal and external contact information and guidance memos.

Operating Railroads in Texas

Class I railroad companies are defined as having annual carrier operating revenues of $433 million or more (as of 2011).
Currently, there are three Class I railroad companies operating in Texas which account for
about
 84% of freight railroad track (including trackage rights) in the state:
  1. Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR): (
    about
     43% of track in Texas)
  2. BNSF Railway Company (BNSF): (
    about
     35% of track in Texas)
  3. Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited (CPKC): (about
     6% of track in Texas).
The remaining railroad track in the state is operated by
over
 50 different shortline railroad companies. Shortline railroad companies are defined as having annual operating revenues of less than $20 million (1991 dollars). These railroad companies are typically regionally located and partner with Class I railroad companies for switching railroad car shipments with customers.
Railroad rights of way are typically
privately
 owned and operated by railroad companies, and widths of the right of way vary.
The Surface Transportation Board, the federal agency tasked with oversight of interstate commerce and right of way of the interstate railroad system, also may have records of railroad ownership for active and abandoned railroad right of way.

Railroad Crossings

There are four general types of railroad-highway crossings:
  1. Railroad Over (roadway underpass grade separation):
    Railroad structure crosses over roadway and/or sidewalk
    .
  2. Railroad Under (roadway overpass
    grade separation
    ): Railroad crosses under a roadway and/or sidewalk.
  3. Grade Crossing: Roadway crosses railroad tracks at-grade (same level as roadway) with or without adjacent sidewalks.
  4. Pedestrian Pathway Crossings:
    Pathway
     crosses railroad tracks at grade, but more than 25 feet from an adjacent parallel roadway
    grade crossing
    .
Crossings are further defined by:
  • Public versus private railroad crossings.
    • Public crossings are typically located on public roadways where both sides of the crossing are maintained by a public agency and the road is open for public use.
    • Private crossings are typically located at driveways and on private roadways or where one or both approaches are maintained by a private entity.
      This also includes a roadway that is owned by a public road authority, but gated, for example, a municipal water treatment plant
      .
  • Active versus passive warning traffic control devices.
    • Active warning devices contain train-activated components such as mast flashers, cantilevers, bells, and/or gates.
    • Passive warning devices are non-train activated roadway signs for traffic control.

Types of Railroad Tracks and Common Track and Signal Equipment

The following are typical types of railroad tracks and facilities encountered:
  • Mainline tracks: Typically higher speed tracks, these represent the majority of track miles. These tracks are used for long distance shipping. Multiple mainline tracks
    may be
     adjacent to one another.
  • Passing/siding tracks: Located adjacent to a mainline track, these tracks are used to store trains waiting for a train traveling the opposite direction to pass or faster trains to overtake them.
  • Wye track: A curved track which connects two perpendicular tracks.
  • Spur track: A short section of track which typically branches off a mainline track to an industry customer.
  • Permitted track (formerly called a spur track)
    : Railroad spur installed by
    crossing
     permit from TxDOT where the railroad company is responsible for the majority of construction and maintenance of the crossing.
  • Switching track: Used for switching rail cars.
  • Switch or turnout: Used to control movement of train at location of two divergent tracks. Can be mechanical or electrical.
  • Diamond
    (also known as an interlock)
    : The at-grade crossing of two separate railroad tracks. Controlled by an interlock switch.
  • Control point: Location used to manage train movements and are typically on each side of a siding.
  • Rail yard: Locations of multiple adjacent tracks used for storing and switching of cars.
  • Wayside signals: Railroad signals used to control train movements. These can include powered switches, train abnormality detectors and actual train movement signals. This also includes any buried or overhead communication lines.
  • Railroad highway grade crossing signals: Train or railroad personnel activated signals that warn a motorist of an approaching train.