SB972 • 2026

Modifies provisions relating to railroad crossings

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Trent, Curtis; House handler: N/A
Last action: 2026-01-20
Official status: Hearing Cancelled S Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee
Effective date: 2026-08-28

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Modifies provisions relating to railroad crossings

The following summaries of this bill are available: Print All Summaries Introduced Print SB 972 - This act provides that any at grade railroad crossing constructed on or after August 28, 2026, shall include advanced detection and monitoring systems, as defined in the act, that are capable of detecting and classifying objects along the crossing and its approaches; of analyzing object behavior in real time to identify safety risks; of generating real-time alerts to warn train crews, operations personnel, and other relevant parties of potential hazards; and of providing integration capability with existing and future rail operation protocols, including positive train control (PTC) systems.

What This Bill Does

The following summaries of this bill are available: Print All Summaries Introduced Print SB 972 - This act provides that any at grade railroad crossing constructed on or after August 28, 2026, shall include advanced detection and monitoring systems, as defined in the act, that are capable of detecting and classifying objects along the crossing and its approaches; of analyzing object behavior in real time to identify safety risks; of generating real-time alerts to warn train crews, operations personnel, and other relevant parties of potential hazards; and of providing integration capability with existing and future rail operation protocols, including positive train control (PTC) systems.
The State Highways and Transportation Commission shall develop standards and specifications for such advanced detection and monitoring systems, as well as identify priority crossings for immediate upgrades based on hazard assessments and traffic volumes.
The act requires the Department of Transportation to develop a program for the provision of grant funds and public-private partnerships for the installation of advanced detection and monitoring systems, with preference given to the priority crossings identified by the Commission.
TAYLOR MIDDLETON

Limits and Unknowns

This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

2026-01-20 Missouri House of Representatives and Missouri Senate
Hearing Cancelled S Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee
2026-01-08 S129
Second Read and Referred S Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee
2026-01-07 S48
S First Read
2025-12-01 Missouri House of Representatives and Missouri Senate
Prefiled

Official Summary Text

The following summaries of this bill are available:

Print All Summaries

Introduced

Print

SB 972 - This act provides that any at grade railroad crossing constructed on or after August 28, 2026, shall include advanced detection and monitoring systems, as defined in the act, that are capable of detecting and classifying objects along the crossing and its approaches; of analyzing object behavior in real time to identify safety risks; of generating real-time alerts to warn train crews, operations personnel, and other relevant parties of potential hazards; and of providing integration capability with existing and future rail operation protocols, including positive train control (PTC) systems.

The State Highways and Transportation Commission shall develop standards and specifications for such advanced detection and monitoring systems, as well as identify priority crossings for immediate upgrades based on hazard assessments and traffic volumes.

The act requires the Department of Transportation to develop a program for the provision of grant funds and public-private partnerships for the installation of advanced detection and monitoring systems, with preference given to the priority crossings identified by the Commission.
TAYLOR MIDDLETON

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

SECOND REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 972
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR TRENT.
5506S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To amend chapter 389, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to railroad crossings.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 389, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto 1
one new section, to be known as section 389.611, to read as 2
follows:3
389.611. 1. As used in this section, the following 1
terms shall mean: 2
(1) "Advanced detection and monitoring system", any 3
system capable of detecting and classifying objects such as 4
pedestrians, vehicles, and wildlife at railroad crossings, 5
using technologies such as light detection and ranging 6
sensors, high-resolution cameras, and artificial 7
intelligence; 8
(2) "Department", the Missouri department of 9
transportation; 10
(3) "Hazard assessment", the process of analyzing 11
detected objects to determine whether a safety risk exists 12
based on predefined criteria; 13
(4) "Real-time alerts", automated notifications 14
generated to warn train crews, operations centers, or other 15
stakeholders of safety hazards. 16
2. Notwithstanding any provision of section 389.610 to 17
the contrary, any at grade railroad crossing constructed on 18
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or after August 28, 2026, shall include advanced detection 19
and monitoring systems capable of: 20
(1) Detecting and classifying objects along the 21
crossing and its approaches; 22
(2) Analyzing object behavior in real time to identify 23
safety risks; 24
(3) Generating real-time alerts to warn train crews, 25
operations personnel, and other relevant parties of 26
potential hazards; and 27
(4) Providing integration capability with existing and 28
future rail operation protocols, including positive train 29
control (PTC) systems. 30
3. The state highways and transportation commission, 31
in consultation with rail operators and safety experts, 32
shall: 33
(1) Develop standards and specifications for the 34
deployment of advanced detection and monitoring systems at 35
railroad crossings; 36
(2) Identify priority crossings for immediate upgrades 37
based on hazard assessments and traffic volume; and 38
(3) Provide technical assistance to rail operators in 39
implementing advanced detection and monitoring systems. 40
4. The department shall develop a program for the 41
provision of grant funds and public-private partnerships for 42
the installation of advanced detection and monitoring 43
systems, with preference given to the priority crossings as 44
determined pursuant to subsection 3 of this section. The 45
department may promulgate rules to implement such program. 46
Any rule or portion of a rule, as that term is defined in 47
section 536.010, that is created under the authority 48
delegated in this section shall become effective only if it 49
complies with and is subject to all of the provisions of 50
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chapter 536 and, if applicable, section 536.028. This 51
section and chapter 536 are nonseverable and if any of the 52
powers vested with the general assembly pursuant to chapter 53
536 to review, to delay the effective date, or to disapprove 54
and annul a rule are subsequently held unconstitutional, 55
then the grant of rulemaking authority and any rule proposed 56
or adopted after August 28, 2026, shall be invalid and void. 57
5. Rail operators shall annually submit a report to 58
the department detailing the performance of advanced 59
detection and monitoring systems installed at railroad 60
crossings in this state, including data on hazard detection, 61
real-time alerts issued, and incidents prevented. The 62
department shall biennially submit a report to the general 63
assembly evaluating the effectiveness of such systems and 64
providing recommendations for any changes to state law 65
relating to such systems. 66
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