To amend title 49, United States Code, to limit railroad carriers from blocking railway-highway crossings, and for other purposes.
Don't BLock Our Communities Act or the D-BLOC Act
This bill prohibits railroad carriers from obstructing travel at public highway-rail crossings for more than 10 minutes, except under limited circumstances (e.g., safety issues).
The Department of Transportation (DOT) must investigate and send notices to carriers of repeated incidents; carriers are subject to civil penalties for violations that occur after having received notice.
Additionally, each Class I railroad carrier must publish on its home page an active link to the blocked highway-rail crossing portal that is maintained by the Federal Railroad Administration. The portal is used to (1) collect information from the public, including first responders, regarding blocked highway-rail grade crossing events; (2) solicit the apparent cause of the blocked crossing and provide examples of common causes of blocked crossings; (3) provide each complainant with the contact information for reporting a blocked crossing to the relevant railroad; and (4) encourage each complainant to report the blocked crossing to the relevant railroad.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials.
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