Wisconsin Administrative Code Office of the Commissioner of Railroads
Here’s a comprehensive overview of the Wisconsin Administrative Code under the Office of the Commissioner of Railroads (OCR):
📖 Chapters Overview
Chapter RR 1 – Procedure & Practice
Scope: Governs petition procedures for establishing, altering, or closing rail–highway crossings, and defines key terms (e.g., “crossing,” “party,” “office”) (law.cornell.edu, ocr.wi.gov).
Process: Requires petitioners to submit engineering/concept plans, cost apportionment, estimated completion date, and file via the Electronic Records Filing system (ERF) (ocr.wi.gov).
Decision-Making: Sets a process including investigation, public hearing, proposed decision, comment period, and issuance of final decision by the Commissioner (ocr.wi.gov).
Notable Rule – RR 1.001 (Definitions):
“Crossing”: point where a highway intersects railroad tracks.
“Office”: refers to OCR.
“Party”: includes any affected person, the railroad, highway authority, and DOT (law.cornell.edu, wisconsindot.gov).
RR 1.025: Details required petition content—plans, dates, costs; also guides ERF usage (ocr.wi.gov).
RR 1.08 & RR 1.15: Cover briefing rules and issuance of final decisions, respectively .
Chapter RR 2 – Railroads
Content: Contains operational and administrative rules affecting railroads in Wisconsin.
Example – RR 2.16 (Exemptions) and RR 2.17 (Motor vehicles-general):
RR 2.17 sets standards for employee transport vehicles (e.g., inspection, cleaning, safety repairs), and includes definitions for vehicles, employees, etc. (law.cornell.edu).
Other Sections: RR 2.01–2.20 cover topics such as direct charges, forms, crossing numbering, plan submissions, clearances, safety equipment, rear compartments, and driver duties (regulations.justia.com).
📌 Roles & Responsibilities of OCR
Primary Mission:
Ensure public safety at railroad crossings.
Approve or deny establishment, alteration, consolidation, or closure of crossings.
Designate appropriate warning devices.
Enforce repair of rough crossings (ocr.wi.gov, en.wikipedia.org).
Statutory Authority: Operates under Wis. Stat. §§ 195.28–29.
🔍 How to Access the Rules
Official Sources:
Wisconsin Legislature’s administrative code site: Chapters RR 1 and RR 2 (ocr.wi.gov, docs.legis.wisconsin.gov).
Cornell LII: Summarized versions including definitions and procedure details .
Justia: Lists all RR chapters with section detail .
🛠️ Practical Application Example
Local cities petition OCR under RR 1 (e.g., Brookfield petitioning for pedestrian crossing alignment) (ci.brookfield.wi.us).
Railroads ensure employee vehicle compliance under RR 2.17 (law.cornell.edu).
✅ Summary Table
Chapter
Focus
Key Features
RR 1
Procedure & Practice
Petition process, definitions, hearings, decisions
RR 2
Railroad Operations & Admin Standards
Vehicle/employee rules, crossings, clearances
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