The U.S. passenger rail system is a vital component of the nation's transportation infrastructure, carrying more than 11 million passengers each weekday. The Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) & the Dept. of Transportation share responsibility for ensuring the safety & security of rail systems. This report addressed: (1) DHS actions to assess the risks to the U.S. passenger rail system in the context of prevailing risk management principles; (2) fed. actions taken to enhance the security of the U.S. passenger rail system; & (3) security practices that domestic & selected foreign passenger rail operators have implemented. Also, test'y. of Cathleen Berrick, Dir. Homeland Sec. & Justice Issues, GAO. Charts & tables.

Human errors, as well as deliberate sabotage, pose a considerable danger to passengers riding on the modern railways and have created disastrous consequences. To protect civilians against both intentional and unintentional threats, rail transportation has become increasingly automated. Railway Safety, Reliability, and Security: Technologies and Systems Engineering provides engineering students and professionals with a collection of state-of-the-art methodological and technological notions to support the development and certification of ‘real-time safety-critical’ railway control systems, as well as the protection of rail transportation infrastructures.

This comprehensive monograph addresses crucial issues in the protection of railway systems, with the objective of enhancing the understanding of railway infrastructure security. Based on analyses by academics, technology providers and railway operators, it explains how to assess terrorist and criminal threats, design countermeasures, and implement effective security strategies. In so doing, it draws upon a range of experiences from different countries in Europe and beyond. The book is the first to be devoted entirely to this subject. It will serve as a timely reminder of the attractiveness of the railway infrastructure system as a target for criminals and terrorists and, more importantly, as a valuable resource for stakeholders and professionals in the railway security field aiming to develop effective security based on a mix of methodological, technological and organizational tools. Besides researchers and decision makers in the field, the book will appeal to students interested in critical infrastructure protection.