SECTIONS 7653-7663 - California Statutes

PUBLIC UTILITIES CODE

SECTION 7653-7663

7653. Every railroad corporation shall furnish, on the inside of
its passenger cars, sufficient room and accommodations for all
passengers to whom tickets are sold for any one trip, and for all
persons presenting tickets entitling them to travel thereon. When
fare is taken for transporting passengers on any baggage, wood,
gravel, or freight car, the same care shall be taken and the same
responsibility is assumed by the corporation as for passengers on
passenger cars.

7654. Every railroad corporation shall print and conspicuously post
on the inside of its passenger cars its rules and regulations
regarding fare and conduct of its passengers. In case any passenger
is injured on or from the platform of a car, or on any baggage, wood,
gravel, or freight car, in violation of such printed regulations, or
in violation of positive verbal instructions or injunctions given to
the passenger in person by any officer of the train, the corporation
is not responsible for damages for the injuries, unless the
corporation has failed to comply with the provisions of Section 7653.

7655. A check shall be affixed to every package or parcel of
baggage when taken for transportation by any agent or employee of a
railroad corporation and a duplicate thereof given to the passenger
or person delivering the baggage. If the check is refused on demand,
the railroad corporation shall pay to the passenger the sum of twenty
dollars ($20), to be recovered in an action for damages.

7656. If any passenger refuses to pay his fare, or to exhibit or
surrender his ticket, when reasonably requested to do so, the
conductor and employees of the corporation may, on stopping the
train, put him and his baggage out of the cars, using no unnecessary
force, at any usual stopping place, or near any dwelling house.

7657. Every conductor, baggage master, engineer, brakeman, or other
employee of any railroad corporation, employed on a passenger train
or at stations for passengers, shall wear upon his hat or cap, or in
some conspicuous place on the breast of his coat, a badge, indicating
his office or station, and the initial letters of the name of the
corporation by which he is employed. No collector or conductor,
without such badge, is authorized to demand or to receive from any
passenger any fare, toll, or ticket, or exercise any of the powers of
his office or station. No other officer or employee, without such
badge, has any authority to meddle or interfere with any passenger or
property.

7658. No city or county or city and county ordinance which
establishes a limit on the speed of trains shall be valid unless that
ordinance has been approved by the commission.

7659. Notwithstanding any city or county or city and county
ordinance to the contrary, no railroad conductor or engineer, who,
while operating a train, obstructs a railroad crossing, shall be
subject to any criminal penalty, where he has no control over the
situation causing the obstruction, or where the train cannot be moved
without endangering the safety of the passengers or freight.

7660. The commission, in authorizing any restrictions on the speed
of rail services, shall do so only upon receipt of evidence and a
finding (a) that the restriction is required due to track condition,
alignment, curvature of tracks, superelevation, or inadequate
right-of-way protection, or any combination thereof, as the case may
be, and (b) that higher speeds will have an adverse impact upon the
health and safety of the public until the specified conditions are
changed.

7661. (a) The commission shall require every railroad corporation
operating in this state to develop, within 90 days of the effective
date of the act adding this section, in consultation with, and with
the approval of, the California Emergency Management Agency, a
protocol for rapid communications with the agency, the Department of
the California Highway Patrol, and designated county public safety
agencies in an endangered area if there is a runaway train or any
other uncontrolled train movement that threatens public health and
safety.
(b) A railroad corporation shall promptly notify the California
Emergency Management Agency, the Department of the California Highway
Patrol, and designated county public safety agencies, through a
communication to the Warning Center of the California Emergency
Management Agency, if there is a runaway train or any other
uncontrolled train movement that threatens public health and safety,
in accordance with the railroad corporation's communications protocol
developed pursuant to subdivision (a).
(c) The notification required pursuant to subdivision (b) shall
include the following information, whether or not an accident or
spill occurs:
(1) The information required by subdivision (c) of Section 7673.
(2) In the event of a runaway train, a train list.
(3) In the event of an uncontrolled train movement or uncontrolled
movement of railcars, a track list or other inventory document if
available.
(d) The consumer protection and safety division shall investigate
any incident that results in a notification required pursuant to
subdivision (b), and shall report its findings concerning the cause
or causes to the commission. The commission shall include the
division's report in its report to the Legislature pursuant to
Section 7711.

7662. (a) (1) A railroad corporation shall place appropriate
signage to notify an engineer of an approaching grade crossing,
consistent with federal law.
(2) Whistle post signs shall be deemed to satisfy this
requirement.
(b) (1) Whenever a railroad issues written or verbal instructions
to employees that may restrict or stop train movements because of
track conditions, structures, persons, or equipment working,
appropriate flags that are readily visible and easily recognizable to
the crews on both passenger and freight trains shall be displayed as
quickly as practicable. Yellow flags shall be used for temporary
speed restrictions, consistent with paragraphs (2) and (3).
Yellow-red flags shall be used, consistent with paragraphs (4) and
(5), when a train may be required to stop.
(2) Yellow flags shall be used to warn trains to restrict movement
because of track conditions or structures. Except as provided in
paragraph (3), a yellow flag shall be displayed two miles before the
restricted area in order to ensure that train movement is restricted
at the proper location.
(3) When the restricted area is close to a terminal, junction, or
another area, the yellow flag may be displayed less than two miles
before the restricted area. This information shall be included in the
written instructions to employees issued pursuant to paragraph (1).
(4) Yellow-red flags shall be used to warn trains to be prepared
to stop because of persons or equipment working. A yellow-red flag
shall be displayed two miles before the restricted area in order to
ensure that the train is prepared to stop at the proper location.
(5) When the restricted area is close to a terminal, junction, or
other area, the yellow-red flag may be displayed less than two miles
before the restricted area. This information shall be included in the
written instructions to employees issued pursuant to paragraph (1).
(6) Flags shall be displayed only on the track affected and shall
be displayed to the right side of the track as viewed from the
approaching train. The flags shall be displayed to protect all
possible access to the restricted area.
(c) A railroad corporation shall provide milepost markers to train
crews at accurate one-mile intervals. The markers shall be readily
visible to the locomotive engineer within the locomotive cab, and
shall be kept in good repair and replaced when necessary.
(d) A railroad corporation shall place whistle signs to the right
of the main track in the direction of approach, exactly one-quarter
mile from the entrance to any grade crossing as a point of reference
for locomotive engineers who blow the whistle and ring the bell for
these grade crossings as a warning to the public. The signs, which
shall consist of an "X" or "W" or other identifiable mark or symbol
on a square plate mounted on a post, shall be readily visible to a
locomotive engineer within the locomotive cab, shall be kept in good
repair, and shall be replaced when necessary.
(e) A railroad corporation shall place permanent speed signs to
the right of the track in the direction of approach, two miles in
advance of the point where the speed is either increased or decreased
for both passenger and freight trains. The signs shall be readily
visible to a locomotive engineer within the locomotive cab, shall be
kept in good repair, and shall be replaced when necessary.
(f) A railroad corporation shall notify the commission and the
collective bargaining representative of any affected employee of any
new utilization of remote control locomotives in the state, on or
after January 1, 2007.
(g) A railroad corporation shall provide immediate notification to
the California Emergency Management Agency of accidents, incidents,
and other events, concurrent with those provided to the Federal
Railroad Administration's National Response Center, as required by
Part 225.9 of Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

7663. Whenever the Department of the California Highway Patrol or a
designated local public safety agency responds to a railroad
accident, the accident shall be reported to the California Emergency
Management Agency.