(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, this part applies to all railroads and contractors to railroads.

(b) This part does not apply to—

(1) A railroad that operates only on track inside an installation that is not part of the general railroad system of transportation;

(2) A rapid transit operation in an urban area that is not connected to the general railroad system of transportation;

(3) A rapid transit operation in an urban area that is connected to the general system and operates under a shared use waiver;

(4) A railroad that operates tourist, scenic, historic, or excursion operations, whether on or off the general railroad system of transportation; or

(5) Foreign railroad operations that meet the following conditions: Employees of the foreign railroad have a primary reporting point outside of the U.S. but are operating trains or conducting switching operations in the U.S.; and the government of that foreign railroad has implemented requirements for hearing conservation for railroad employees; the foreign railroad undertakes to comply with those requirements while operating within the U.S.; and FRA's Associate Administrator for Safety determines that the foreign requirements are consistent with the purpose and scope of this part. A “foreign railroad” refers to a railroad that is incorporated in a place outside the U.S. and is operated out of a foreign country but operates for some distance in the U.S.