Senate confirms Sarah Feinberg to lead railroad agency

Washington – Sarah Feinberg is the new full-time leader of the Federal Railroad Administration after the Senate confirmed her nomination on Oct. 28.

Feinberg has led the agency in an interim role since January, and President Barack Obama nominated her for FRA administrator in May. During her tenure as acting administrator, Feinberg oversaw several high-profile incident responses and briefed Senate lawmakers about railroads’ delayed implementation of Positive Train Control technologies.

Innovation will be a point of emphasis for Feinberg at FRA. At a Sept. 17 nomination hearing before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, Feinberg cited FRA’s recent partnership with Mountain View, CA-based Google to create audio and visual alerts near grade crossings on Google maps in an effort to reduce collisions.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) praised the Senate’s confirmation of Feinberg.

“I truly believe that her experience as a leader and problem solver, along with her willingness to tackle difficult issues and engage stakeholders about realistic solutions, will be an asset to the FRA and the entire Department of Transportation,” Manchin said in a press release.