Action
Notice of intent to grant Buy America waiver.
Summary
FRA is issuing this notice to advise the public that it intends to grant the Illinois Department of Transportation ("IDOT") a waiver from FRA's Buy America requirement for the use of three component parts that are not produced in the United States for the Incremental Train Control System ("ITCS"). The three component parts included in IDOT's waiver request are: (1) An ethernet cable; (2) an omni directional antenna; and (3) a router/server combination. FRA believes a waiver is appropriate because off-the-shelf domestically produced components meeting the specific technical and design needs of the ITCS are not available, and custom-designed components are not "reasonably available" given the short timeframe associated with Positive Train Control (PTC) implementation and the low dollar value of the two components as installed on just twenty (20) locomotives, and only one router/server combination needed for the entire project. The total cost of the non-domestically produced components is approximately $20,000, out of the $2.5 million cost for the ITCS.