Why It Matters

A recent Congressional Research Service (CRS) report on freight rail automation examines the collision between automation and regulation in U.S. freight rail. The 2023 East Palestine, Ohio derailment and chemical spill elevated public attention to freight rail safety, creating political momentum for new rules. Some lawmakers want to codify crew minimums and restrict automation; others want to give regulators flexibility to set performance-based safety standards that could accommodate new technologies.

The Big Picture

Technological advances and cost-cutting pressures have contributed to smaller train crews and fewer maintenance-of-way employees in the U.S. freight rail industry. A single train commonly has a crew of two aboard.

Remote control locomotives are already in use, primarily in rail yards, under Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) regulations issued in 2012. A 2006 FRA report found that remote control locomotive operations resulted in more train accidents than conventional operations across all railroads. Safety with remote control locomotive operations was roughly equivalent to conventional operations on major railroads with extensive remote control locomotive use. In 2025, roughly 25 percent of yard accidents involved a remote control locomotive, while remote control locomotives were involved in 13 percent of overall accidents and less than 1 percent of accidents on main lines.

The industry is now testing more advanced technology. In February 2025, the FRA approved a waiver for Parallel Systems to test its autonomous railcar technology on a short Georgia rail segment. Labor unions opposed the waiver. Safety issues at at-grade crossings remain unresolved for autonomous railcar technology. Intramotev, a St. Louis-based company, is developing autonomous or self-propelled railcars and has deployed its technology on railcars in mining service in Michigan.

Political Stakes

For the Administration

The Trump administration faces pressure from railroad industry groups pushing for deregulation and automation to cut costs, and from labor unions seeking protections against workforce displacement from automation.

For Congress

Congress has introduced multiple bills to address these developments. The Remote Control Locomotives Safety Improvement Act of 2026 (H.R. 9409) would ban remote control locomotive use on main lines, prohibit trains from operating outside yards without a human engineer physically in the control cab, and restrict the FRA from waiving the requirement for a human engineer in the control cab. The BUILD America 250 Act (H.R. 8870) would codify a two-person crew minimum and direct the Secretary of Transportation to consider performance-based rail safety rules. The Secure Tracks Act (H.R. 7784 / S. 3987) would codify the minimum frequency of visual and automated track inspections on many rail lines and restrict FRA safety waivers if alternative inspection methods fail to identify all defect conditions recognized as unsafe by the FRA.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 authorized an average of $225 million per year over five years for FRA railroad research and development, providing resources for safety testing as these technologies advance.

The Bottom Line

The freight rail industry stands at a crossroads: automation promises efficiency gains and cost savings, but labor unions and safety advocates are pushing Congress to establish crew minimums and restrict remote operations on main lines. The outcome will determine whether the FRA sets prescriptive safety rules or performance-based standards that allow technological flexibility.

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