The Federal Railroad Administration Should Approve Automated Track Inspection

With the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history now over, agencies face an enormous backlog of decisions and actions that need prompt attention. At the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), one of the most consequential items on that list is long overdue: acting on freight railroads’ requests to expand the use of Automated Track Inspection (ATI). The delay has held back a proven safety technology, and the FRA should move quickly to get ATI back on track.

ATI systems use sensors and machine vision to identify track defects with greater accuracy, frequency, and consistency than traditional visual inspections. They operate continuously and cover every mile of rail, flagging problems long before they become hazards. Field tests across the industry, including those conducted with FRA approval, confirm that railroads using ATI improve defect detection rates and maintain strong safety outcomes.

Despite these results, the FRA has moved slowly. The agency’s waiver process—intended to support innovation—has instead become unpredictable, opaque, and vulnerable to political pressure. Some commuter railroads previously operated under long-running waivers that allowed reduced visual inspections when paired with automated or instrumented track inspection. Those waivers ran for decades without any measurable negative impact on safety. Yet in recent years, the FRA let those waivers expire without explanation, forcing commuter systems back to outdated requirements despite strong safety records and earlier detection of defects under automated inspection regimes.

The inconsistency has no technical justification. It reflects a regulatory environment that hesitates to modernize even when the evidence strongly favors innovation.

Political dynamics explain much of the delay. Labor unions representing track inspectors worry that ATI could eventually reduce certain manual inspection roles. Their concerns merit acknowledgment, and long-term workforce planning remains important across all transportation sectors. But efficiency gains that come from replacing outdated practices strengthen the overall safety regime, not weaken it. Automated systems detect flaws earlier and allow skilled workers to focus on higher-value diagnostic and maintenance tasks instead of lengthy track walks in hazardous conditions. The technology increases safety for employees as well as the public.

Union-friendly officials in the Trump administration appear to have succumbed to these pressures by slowing action on ATI, despite clear evidence that the technology enhances safety and reduces risk. Political caution benefits no one.

Railroads need modern inspection capabilities. Rail workers deserve safer working environments. Communities along rail corridors deserve every available protection against derailments.

If the administration intends to modernize infrastructure and advance evidence-driven safety policy, this decision offers a straightforward test. Continuous, geolocated inspection data improves regulatory oversight and allows the FRA to identify emerging risks faster than any manual system. Expansion of ATI would give regulators a stronger evidence base for future rulemaking and more accurate monitoring across the national network.

Clinging to outdated mandates because technological advances threaten certain union jobs undermines safety progress. The FRA should approve the ATI waiver request and reform the waiver process, so innovation no longer depends on changing political headwinds. Railroads, rail workers, and the public all stand to gain when regulators embrace proven tools rather than delay them.

ATI will deliver safer, smarter inspections if the FRA allows it to do so.