[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 49, Volume 4]

[Revised as of October 1, 2005]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 49CFR224.103]



[Page 324-325]

 

                        TITLE 49--TRANSPORTATION

 

       CHAPTER II--FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF 

                             TRANSPORTATION

 

PART 224_REFLECTORIZATION OF RAIL FREIGHT ROLLING STOCK--Table of Contents

 

 Subpart B_Application, Inspection, and Maintenance of Retroreflective 

                                Material

 

Sec. 224.103  Characteristics of retrore- flective sheeting.



    (a) Construction. Retroreflective sheeting applied pursuant to this 

part shall consist of a smooth, flat, transparent exterior film with 

microprismatic retroreflective elements embedded in or suspended beneath 

the film so as to form a non-exposed retroreflective optical system.

    (b) Color. Retroreflective sheeting applied pursuant to this part 

shall be yellow or white as specified by the chromaticity coordinates of 

ASTM International's Standard D 4956-01a, ``Standard Specification for 

Retroreflective Sheeting for Traffic Control.'' The Director of the 

Federal Register approves the incorporation by reference of this 

standard in this section in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR 

part 51. You may obtain a copy of the incorporated standard from ASTM 

International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, P.O. Box C700, West Conshohocken, 

PA 19428-2959. You may inspect a copy of the incorporated standard at 

the Federal Railroad Administration, Docket Clerk, 1120 Vermont Ave., 

NW., Suite 7000, or at the National Archives and Records Administration 

(NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA, 

call 202-741-6030, or go to http://www.archives.gov/federal--register/

code--of--federal-- regulations/ibr--locations.html.

    (c) Performance. Retroreflective sheeting applied pursuant to this 

part shall meet the requirements of ASTM D 4956-01a, for Type V 

Sheeting, except



[[Page 325]]



for the photometric requirements, and shall, as initially applied, meet 

the minimum photometric performance requirements specified in Table 1 of 

this subpart.



   Table 1 of Subpart B--Minimum Photometric Performance (Coefficient of Retroreflection (RA) in Candela/Lux/

                               Meter\2\) Requirement for Retroreflective Sheeting

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                                                                         Observation angle

                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------

                 Entrance angle                             0.2 Degree                      0.5 Degree

                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------

                                                      Yellow           White          Yellow           White

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-4[deg].........................................             400             600             100             160

30[deg].........................................             220             350              45              75

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



    (d) Certification. The characters ``FRA-224'', constituting the 

manufacturer's certification that the retroreflective sheeting conforms 

to the requirements of paragraphs (a) through (c) of this section, shall 

appear at least once on the exposed surface of each piece of sheeting in 

the final application. The characters shall be a minimum of three 

millimeters high, and shall be permanently stamped, etched, molded, or 

printed within the product and each certification shall be spaced no 

more than four inches apart.

    (e) Alternative standards. Upon petition by a freight rolling stock 

owner or railroad under Sec. 224.15, the Associate Administrator may 

approve an alternative technology as providing equivalent safety. Any 

such petition shall provide data and analysis sufficient to establish 

that the technology will result in conspicuity and durability at least 

equal to sheeting described in paragraphs (a) through (c) of this 

section applied in accordance with this part and will present a 

recognizable visual target that is suitably consistent with freight 

rolling stock equipped with retroreflective sheeting that meets the 

technical requirements of this part to provide the intended warning to 

motorists.