Engineer Certification

When an Engineer wants to be certified what dose he need to do? Who certifies him the State, FRA, or Railroad? Once certified is he certified to run annoyware or dose he need to be certified for each root? What about trains that cross over into Canada, can the same Engineer run them or do they need a different certification?
Thanks

Certification is given after showing proficiency in rules and operations, the certificate is issued by the railroad under FRA guidelines.
Certification has very little to do with qualification of territory.
As student you get a student certificate stating you can operate under supervission, once marked up you get a engine service certificate (for hostlers) or a unrestricted train service certificate.

DutchRailnut wrote:Certification is given after showing proficiency in rules and operations, the certificate is issued by the railroad under FRA guidelines.
Certification has very little to do with qualification of territory.
As student you get a student certificate stating you can operate under supervission, once marked up you get a engine service certificate (for hostlers) or a unrestricted train service certificate.

Thanks,
Two more questions:
1. Can engineers with an Unrestricted Train Service Certificate go annoyware then assuming there railroad has arrangements with the railroad that owns the track?
2.Is there a time limit to how much time one engineer can run a train for a day?

Thanks again for all of your help

Only the qualifications let you run where qualified, has nothing to do with certificate.
for joint operations some railroads will give you one of their certificates, I believe MNCR requires Amtrak, CSX and P&W engineers to have a certificate for their home road and a MNCR certificate.
An engineer can only work for 12 hours max or if a 4 hour rest is included a total of 16 hours.

DutchRailnut wrote:Only the qualifications let you run where qualified, has nothing to do with certificate.
for joint operations some railroads will give you one of their certificates, I believe MNCR requires Amtrak, CSX and P&W engineers to have a certificate for their home road and a MNCR certificate.
An engineer can only work for 12 hours max or if a 4 hour rest is included a total of 16 hours.

So I'd need another certificate from MNCRR in order to run over their property in addition to book of rules & physical characteristics exam? Wow.

DutchRailnut wrote: An engineer can only work for 12 hours max or if a 4 hour rest is included a total of 16 hours.

To expand on Dutch's Hours Of Service answer...

Actually, T&E's (Train & Engine crews) combined total time on duty must not exceed 12 hours if you do not have 8 hours or more off before starting a new shift.

Examples:

6 hours ON duty, 8 hours OFF duty, and you can work a full legal 12 hours your next shift.

11'45" ON, 9'05" OFF, and you can work a full 12 hours your next shift.

6 ON, 4 OFF, 6 ON = 12 hours ON duty, over an elapsed time of 16 hours.

4 ON, 5'30" OFF, 8 ON = 12 hours ON duty, over an elapsed time of 17 hours 30 minutes.

3'15" ON, 7'59" OFF, 8'45" ON = 12 hours ON duty, over an elapsed time of 19 hours 59 minutes.

Deadheading (being driven somewhere AFTER working on a train) and LImbo (waiting somewhere for a ride and not responsible for a train) times DO NOT COUNT towards the 12 hour ON duty limit.

Examples:

11'45" ON, 3'10" LIMBO, 4'20" DEADHEAD = only 11'45" ON, the 7'30" additional time doesn't count toward the 12 hour limit; elapsed time of 19'15".

3'30" ON, 6'30" OFF, 8'30" ON, 2'15" LIMBO, 4'30" DEADHEAD = 12 hours ON, elapsed time of 25'15".


There are many additional Hours Of Service scenarios that are possible as well as additional off duty requirements, and will get very tedious and boring if I attempted to explain them all here. The above examples are meant to give readers a general idea how the Hours Of Service applies to T&E crews. In addition, other railroad employees are subject to the Hours Of Service Act, and they have their own set of rules regarding time on duty that I am not completely familiar with.

P.S. The examples I used above are ACTUAL situations I've experienced; not a work of fiction.