AAR CREATES SECURITY INFORMATION ANALYSIS CENTER

AAR CREATES SECURITY INFORMATION ANALYSIS CENTER    The Association of American Railroads has developed an information center to gather and analyze security information for the country’s rail industry.
   The Surface Transportation Information Sharing and Analysis Center (ST ISAC) will be operated by EWA Information and Infrastructure Technologies, based in Herndon, Va.
   U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta praised AAR for its commitment to protecting the nation’s railroad against terrorist acts. “The security of America’s intermodal transportation system is vital to the public health, the national defense, and the economy,” Mineta said.
   “The ST ISAC is a natural extension of the railroad industry’s ‘Terrorism Risk Analysis and Security Management Plan,’ which we implemented following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11,” said Edward R. Hamberger, president and chief executive officer of AAR, based in Washington.
   DOT is developing a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week “Transportation Information Operations Center” that will serve as a conduit of information and intermodal link between the Secretary, the transportation industry and other federal agencies. This center will also rely on information from the ST ISAC, the DOT said.