Railcar Maintenance Practices

ACTION: Notice for Request for Proposals (RFP) on Railcar Maintenance PracticesSUMMARY: FTA is seeking research proposals to study the effectiveness of railcar maintenance practices followed by public transportation agencies operating rail passenger service. FTA�s research activities are authorized by 49 USC 5312, Research, Development, Demonstration, and Deployment Projects. The goal of this research program is to promote the research and development of new technologies that will improve the safety and efficiency of rail transit system operations in the United States. The objective of this project is to identify rail transit agencies with effective, �best practice� maintenance processes based on agency on-time performance, safety record, and mean-time-between-failures data. The research shall evaluate railcar maintenance plans and processes and document the practices, methods and procedures that lead to highly effective railcar maintenance.DATES: An applicant must electronically submit a proposal to http://www.grants.gov by minight (EDT), Monday, April 18, 2011, for consideration. All potential applicants are advised to begin the http://www.grants.gov registration process immediately, if they have not previously submitted Federal assistance applications through http://www.grants.gov, in order to be able to meet the deadline. FTA expects to award funds to one successful applicant through a cooperative agreement by June 17, 2011.