Severe weather, natural hazards, and other disruptive events can threaten the safety and reliability of rail systems and the people and goods that depend on them. New research from the Mineta Transportation Institute (MTI) and its university partners offers railroad operators, public agencies, emergency managers, and other transportation professionals new tools and approaches to identify risks and improve rail system resilience.

Funded by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the Rail Resilience to Severe Weather (RR2SW) program brought together researchers from MTI at San José State University, Clemson University, Colorado State University-Pueblo, Michigan State University, Northeastern University, Oregon State University, and the University of Hawaiʻi for five complementary research projects.

The RR2SW research offers practical approaches to strengthen rail safety and resilience, including:

  • Tools for understanding wildfire risk: the Community Resilience Extreme Events Portal (CREEP), which combines wildfire danger, critical asset, and vulnerability data to assess risk along California’s Class I rail networks; and wildfire preparedness training for urban rail operators.
  • Technology for real-time hazard detection: lidar, cameras, and deep learning to detect people, vehicles, fallen rocks, and other potential threats to rail safety, including under adverse weather conditions.
  • Strategies for more resilient freight planning: an analysis of 43 freight plans and a nationwide survey identifying barriers including limited funding, fragmented governance, and public-private coordination.
  • Resources for emergency preparedness: practical guidance for identifying and assessing hazards, developing emergency plans, and training personnel.
  • Tools for mapping vulnerabilities across the U.S. rail network: hazard, weather, and rail accident data and resilience metrics to identify at-risk rail segments and support planning and investment.

“Resilience is ultimately about keeping people and goods moving safely,” said MTI Deputy Executive Director Hilary Nixon. “This research gives rail agencies practical tools to prepare for challenges before they become crises.”

These projects emphasize moving academic research into real-world practice by offering resources, tools, and approaches to support agencies and professionals to better identify risks, prepare for emergencies, prioritize mitigation, and make more informed decisions about how to keep people and goods moving safely and reliably.