Thousands of highway projects - either those renewing existing roadways or building new ones - intersect with railroad crossings. By using the tools included in Railroad-DOT Mitigation Strategies (R16), public agencies and railroads can identify and work through possible sources of conflict and develop agreements to advance these projects. This product includes a collection of railroad-DOT model agreements, sample contracts, training materials, and standardized best practices.

The Community of Interest (COI) brings together representatives from DOTs at the federal and state level and their railroad counterparts to improve coordination and communication via peer exchanges, webinars, and meetings.​

The Innovation Library includes a collection of model agreements and sample contracts. This collection of documents has been provided by DOT and RR practitioners work in the industry. The documents are listed both by topic and by implementing agency.

• Best Practices Developed through Implementing Railroad-DOT Mitigation Strategies​
  
• Best Practices for Flagging Coordination​
  
• Leveraging Section 130 Funding through Railroad-DOT Mitigation Strategies Case Study​
• The Power of Master Agreements as Part of Railroad-DOT Mitigation Strategies
• Working with Railroads as Part of Alternative Contracting--Recipes for Success
• Improving Grade Crossing Safety Using Predictive Analytics and New Technologies​
• Additional Information on FHWA's Section 130 Railroad-Highway Crossings Program

• Standardized Model Agreements
• Training Modules
• TRB Guidance Documents

• 2019 Pacific Northwest Highway Rail Conference, April 23, 2019
  • NCUTCD/MUTCD Updates
  • Washington Operation Lifesaver
  • How Consultants Can Help Railroad Projects
  • Sign: Stop.Trains Can't
• Best Practices Related to Flagging Agreements, March 21, 2019
• Webinar Slides
• Improving Grade Crossing Safety Using Predictive Analytics and New Technology, November 7, 2018
• Webinar Slides
• Webinar Recording
• Railroad Signaling 101, October 18, 2018
• Webinar Slides
• Webinar Recording
• Expanding Use of Drones in the Railroad Environment, August 8, 2018
• Webinar Slides
• Webinar Transcript
• Q&A document, highlighting all webinar questions and appropriate answers to those questions from participants
• Section 130 Funding, Part II, Answers to Frequently Asked Questions, May 18, 2018
  • Webinar Recording
  • Webinar Slides
• DOT-Freight Master Agreements: Best Practices, February 15, 2018
  • Webinar Recording
  • Webinar Slides
  • Highlights:
    • Crossing Signals Master Agreements: North Carolina's Experience (Richard Mullinax, North Carolina DOT)
    • Project Review and Contract Flagging (Robert Travis, Texas DOT)
    • BNSF Railway Company Public Projects Presentation: Agency Master Agreements (Taylor Smith, BNSF)
• State and Railroad User Manuals and Training: Best Practices, September 7, 2017
  • Webinar Recording
  • Webinar Slides
  • Highlights:
    • Utah DOT's Railroad Coordination Manual of Instruction (Alana Spendlove, Utah DOT and Patty Jones, DB Consulting)
    • CSX's Process for Public Project Participation (Troy Creasy, CSX)
• FRA/FHWA Joint Webinar: Highway-Railway Grade Crossing Action Plans and Project Prioritization Noteworthy Practices, June 20, 2017 (MP4)
• Noteworthy Practices Guide (Ron Ries, FRA)
• State Action Plans (Dee Chappell, FRA)
• Q&A (Kelly Morton, FHWA)
• Getting the Most from Your Section 130 Program, May 16, 2017
  • Webinar Slides
  • Highlights:
    • Q&A with FHWA on Section 130 (Kelly Morton, FHWA Office of Safety)
    • How Michigan DOT Takes Advantage of the Section 130 Program (Kris Foondle, Michigan DOT Office of Rail)
    • The Section 130 Program from the Railroad Perspective (Stephen Klinger, Norfolk Southern Grade Crossing Program)
  • Rail-Highway Crossings (Section 130) Program References
• COI Kick-Off Webinar, September 27, 2016
  • Webinar Recording
  • Webinar Slides
  • Highlights:
    • Overview of SHRP2 and Railroad-DOT Mitigation Strategies (R16) (Pam Hutton, AASHTO and Joe Taylor, FHWA)
    • Making this your Community of Interest (Kate Kurgan, AASHTO and Sherry Appel, Appelworks)
    • DOT Perspectives (Allen Rust, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Dan Leonard, PennDOT, and Mike Loehr for the South Dakota DOT)
    • Railroad Perspectives (Sarod Dhuru, BNSF Railway, Amanda DeCesare and Troy Creasy, CSX)
• R16 Round 7 Implementation Assistance Program Webinar, March 15, 2016 (Adobe Connect)
  • Webinar Recording

• Peer Exchange, September 13 – 14, 2018, Miami, FL
• Full peer exchange meeting summary report
• Section 130
• Short Line Railroad Interfaces and Collaboration(American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association)
• Short Line Railroad Interfaces and Collaboration(Genesee and Wyoming)
• Short Line Railroad Interfaces and Collaboration(Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad)
• Best Practices for Electronic File Sharing
• Master Agreements(BNSF)
• Master Agreements(Colorado DOT)
• Peer Exchange, Oct. 3-4, 2017, Chicago, Illinois
• Peer Exchange Intro Presentation
• Public Engagement as Component of Railroad/DOT Mitigation Strategy (Derrick James, Amtrak)
• Small Railroads, Big Agendas (Jo Strang, ASLRRA)
• Utah Transit Authority--Railroad Agreement Experience (Steve Meyer, UTA)
• Indemnification Issues--WisDOT (Lisa Stern, WisDOT)
• Colorado DOT Master Agreements (CDOT)
• Section 130 Program, Federal Perspective (Kelly Morton, FHWA Office of Safety)
• Section 130, Colorado DOT Perspective (Scott Hoftiezer, CDOT)
• CREATE Program--Keeping the "GO" in Chicago (Samuel Tuck and Elliot Ramos, Illinois DOT, and Jeff Sriver, Chicago DOT)
• CSX Presentation (Troy Creasy, CSX)
• Design-Build and Other Innovating Contracting Methods (Daniel Leonard, PennDOT)
• How the R16 Community of Interest Can Benefit You (Troy Creasy, CSX)
• Peer Exchange Meeting Report

• Railroad-DOT Mitigation Strategies Close-Out Report
• A Better Way for Railroads and DOTs to Work Together, R16 Brochure
• Railroad-DOT Mitigation Strategies Fact Sheet
• Strategies to Improve Railroad-DOT Cooperation and Accelerate Project Delivery
• Strategies for Improving the Project Agreement Process Between Highway Agencies and Railroads: TRB research document that outlines recommended practices and offers eight different model documents to expedite negotiations.

• ​"SHRP2 Meeting Examines Interaction between CAVs and Railroad Crossings"--AASHTO Journal, 3/8/19
  
• "Speed Up Project Delivery"--Short Line Connector, Winter 2019
  
• "Railroad, Transportation Agencies Utilize New Toolbox to Improve Collaboration"--Passenger Transport, June 2018
  
• "New SHRP2 Resource Available for Railroad-DOT Mitigation Strategies Product​"--AASHTO Journal, 4/7/17
  
• "Improving DOT and Railroad Coordination"--Innovator Magazine, July/August 2016

• 16 states implemented Railroad-DOT Mitigation Strategies as part of the Implementation Assistance Program (IAP). South Dakota, Arkansas, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Texas, Idaho, and California received funding through Round 2 of the IAP program. Delaware, Kentucky, New York, District of Columbia, Florida, North Carolina, and Utah received funding through Round 5 of the IAP program. Oregon and Virginia received funding through Round 7 of the IAP program.
  Click here​ for contact information.

• Julie Johnston, FHWA, Julie.Johnston@dot.gov
• Rob Mooney, FHWA, Robert.Mooney@dot.gov​

• FHWA Railroad-DOT Mitigation Strategies Website