Hello all-I have a question regarding the FRA's jurisdiction depending on gauge of track within certain conditions....Reading through the CFR, I noted that the FRA apparently does not excercise it's jurisdiction over railroads having gauges of less than 24". For Steam Locomotives, however, FRA apparently controls their operations for several conditions, including that of crossing a public highway.I am therefore wondering, in the case of a Less-Than-24'' Gauge Steam-Operating Railroad (say 22"), that crosses a public highway- Would the FRA then control the railroad, or would it come under the State?Any assistance on this topic would be most appreciated.Thank you!Dave H.

According to cfr part 230 the FRA in theory would not get involved with a 22" gauge line as code states that one condition of jurisdiction is that of having 24" or larger gauge. However, the FRA could excercise it's jurisdiction over virtually any steam operation if the local inspector cares to do so. This can also work the other way, an inspector can choose to not fully regulate an operation that by all rights should come fully under his/her jurisdiction. There are several operations that have their locomotives and passenger carrying rolling stock inspected by the FRA but engineers are not required to have an FRA license. There is much gray area.

By any chance does this involve one of the few 22" gauge Cagney locomotives? I think we'd all like to know more.

The story behind the Cagneys choosing 22" for their "Class E" model was supposedly to get around a rule that existed stating that all steam locomotives 2' gauge and larger required a two-man crew...one more person for whatever amusement park to have to pay. I'd be interested to know what the exact rule was (and when it existed) if this is true, as quite a few full-scale industrial and switching operations ran with one-man crews for years.

It could have been a state or local "rule". One urban rumor was that Brooklyn (N.Y.) Eastern District Terminal RR ran steam in the early 1960s because of a "Full Crew" law that required firemen for Diesel locos!