  
  
G/TBT/N/USA/1509  
31 July 2019  
(19-5012) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original:  English  
 
  
NOTIFICATION  
The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6  
 
1. Notifying Member:  UNITED STATES OF AME RICA  
If applicable, name of local government involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):   
2. Agency responsible:  Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) [1536]  
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers , email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above:   
Please submit comments to: USA WTO TBT Enquiry Point  
Email: usatbtep@nist.gov  
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [   ], 5.7.1 [   ], other :  
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff 
heading. ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicab le): Image and 
audio recording devices; Transport by rail (ICS 03.220.30), Accident and disaster control 
(ICS 13.200), Other protective equipment (ICS 13.340.99), Audio, video and audiovisual 
engineering (ICS 33.160)  
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Locomotive 
Image and Audio Recording Devices for Passenger Trains (36 page(s), in English)  
6. Description of content:  FRA is proposing to require the installation of inward - and 
outward -facing locomotive image recording devices on all lead locomotives in passenger 
trains, and that these devices record while a lead locomotive is in motion and retain the 
data in a crashwor thy memory module. FRA also proposes to treat locomotive -mounted 
recording devices on passenger locomotives as "safety devices" under existing Federal 
railroad safety regulations to prohibit tampering with or disabling them. Further, this 
NPRM would govern  the use of passenger locomotive recordings to conduct operational 
tests to determine passenger railroad operating employees' compliance with applicable 
railroad rules and Federal regulations. FRA requests comment on the need for and effects 
of potential, additional safety requirements.  
7. Objective and rationale, including the nature of urgent problems where 
applicable:  Protection of human health or safety  
8. Relevant documents:   
• 84 Federal Register (FR) 35712, 24 July 2019; Title 49  Code of Federal 
Regulations (CFR) Parts 217, 218, 229, 240 and 
242:https:/ /www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR -2019-07-24/html/2019 -
14407.htm  
https:// www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR -2019-07-24/pdf/2019 -14407.pdf  G/TBT/N/USA/1509  
 
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  9. Proposed date of adoption:  To be determined  
Proposed date of entry into force:  To be determined  
10. Final date for comments:  23 September 2019  
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [ ] or address, telephone and fax 
numbers and email and website addresses, if available , of other body:   
https://members.wto.org/crnattachments/2019/TBT/USA/ 19_4253_00_e.pdf  
 