§299.11. Electronic recordkeeping. — Inbound Citations

(1) The electronic system is compliant with the requirements of § 299.11;

(f) If any trainset equipped with an event recorder, or any other trainset mounted recording device or devices designed to record information concerning the functioning of a trainset, is involved in an accident/incident that is required to be reported to FRA under part 225 of this chapter, the railroad shall, to the extent possible, and to the extent consistent with the safety of life and property, preserve the data recorded by each such device for analysis by FRA in accordance with § 299.11. This preservation requirement permits the railroad to extract and analyze such data, provided the original downloaded data file, or an unanalyzed exact copy of it, shall be retained in secure custody and shall not be utilized for analysis or any other purpose except by direction of FRA or the National Transportation Safety Board. This preservation requirement shall expire one (1) year after the date of the accident/incident unless FRA or the Board notifies the railroad in writing that the data are desired for analysis.

(e) The inspection, testing, and maintenance conducted by the railroad in accordance with § 299.445 shall be recorded in hardcopy or stored electronically. Electronic recordkeeping or automated tracking systems, subject to the provisions contained in § 299.11, may be utilized to store and maintain any testing or training record required by this subpart. Results of product testing conducted by a vendor in support of a safety analysis shall be provided to and recorded by the railroad.

(1) The testing records shall contain all of the following:

(i) The name of the railroad;

(ii) The location and date that the test was conducted;

(iii) The equipment tested;

(iv) The results of tests;

(v) The repairs or replacement of equipment;

(vi) Any preventative adjustments made; and

(2) Each record shall be—

(i) Signed by the employee conducting the test, or electronically coded, or identified by the automated test equipment number;

(ii) Filed in the office of a supervisory official having jurisdiction, unless otherwise noted; and

(3) The results of the testing conducted in accordance with this section shall be retained as follows:

(i) The results of tests that pertain to installation or modification of a product shall be retained for the life-cycle of the product tested and may be kept in any office designated by the railroad;

(ii) The results of periodic tests required for the maintenance or repair of the product tested shall be retained until the next record is filed and in no case less than one year; and

(iii) The results of all other tests and training shall be retained until the next record is filed and in no case less than one year.

(i) At a minimum, the railroad shall keep the records described in paragraph (j) of each required inspection under this section in accordance with § 299.11. Each record shall be maintained for at least one year from the date of the inspection.

(b) The railroad shall keep one copy of its current code of operating rules, timetables, timetable special instruction, at its system headquarters, and shall make them available to FRA for inspection and copying during normal business hours. If the railroad elects to maintain an electronic record, the railroad must satisfy the conditions listed in § 299.11.

(2) The railroad shall maintain a record documenting qualification of each railroad testing officer. The record shall be retained by the railroad and shall be made available to representatives of the FRA for inspection and copying during normal business hours. If the railroad elects to maintain an electronic record, the railroad must satisfy the conditions listed in § 299.11.

(c) The railroad is authorized to retain by electronic recordkeeping its program for periodic instruction of its employees on operating rules, provided that the requirements stated in § 299.11 are satisfied.