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The country’s freight and passenger railways are operating with automatic braking system technology, according to the Federal Railroad Administration.

U.S. railroads have completed installation of an automated crash-prevention system that covers 57,536 miles of freight and passenger tracks ahead of an end-of-year deadline that was previously extended, the Federal Railroad Administration announced Dec. 29.

Positive train control technology is either in advanced field testing or operational on 98% of the required route miles mandated by Congress, according to an assessment.

A sense of optimism about the ability to fully implement automatic braking systems prior to a Dec. 31 deadline is shared by the country’s rail operators, according to a new report by the Government Accountability Office.

Implementation of automatic braking technology for freight railroads is nearly complete, an industry group indicated recently.

Rail operators’ implementation of automatic braking technology continues to show progress, federal regulators announced this week.

The implementation of automatic braking systems on the country’s railroads was operational on nearly 90% of route miles required by law, Federal Railroad Administrator Ron Batory told a Senate panel July 31. The status of the implementation marked a 4% increase since the year’s first quarter.

Executives from BNSF Railway Co. and Amtrak assured federal lawmakers of their firms’ adherence to congressionally mandated requirements regarding automatic braking technology.

Large freight railroads functioned with the use of automatic braking technology for 83.2% of miles required by law, the Association of American Railroads announced Jan. 24. That proves the Class I railroads met 2018 requirements, and they are expected to finalize the implementation of positive train control technology by the final deadline of Dec. 31, 2020.

WASHINGTON — Nine railroads have demonstrated little progress with installing an automatic braking system, jeopardizing their chances to qualify for a Dec. 31 deadline extension to implement the system, the country’s top railroad regulator told a Senate panel Oct. 3.