Advertise
Resources
Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
(Reuters) — Canada will require railways to secure unattended trains with a minimum number of handbrakes and other physical defenses to prevent runaways, Canada’s transport ministry said on Wednesday in its latest response to last year’s deadly crash in Quebec.
Transport Canada will also tighten enforcement of railway labeling of hazardous materials like volatile crude, and add staff to perform an “audit blitz,” Transport Minister Lisa Raitt said.
The changes are the latest in a slew of regulatory moves in North America since a train carrying crude oil crashed in Lac-Megantic, Quebec, last year, killing 47 people and highlighting the dangers from a surge in oil transport by rail.
The Canadian Transportation Safety Board issued its final report on the crash in August, finding shortfalls in railway safety culture and federal oversight.
Canada has already moved to toughen tank car safety rules, and require railways to do risk assessments, produce emergency response plans, and improve security of parked trains.
As part of Wednesday’s new rules, Transport Canada said it is researching crude oil properties to ensure they are properly classified and will launch a “targeted inspection campaign” on railways to ensure their labeling matches.
“Transport Canada will be recruiting engineering and scientific experts to support its oversight,” it said, and will boost the frequency of audits of railway safety procedures and systems.
Transport regulators will also require certain railways, including short lines, to submit employee training plans for review to identify gaps.
(Reuters) — A top U.S. railcar maker, The Greenbrier Companies Inc., said on Wednesday a two-year timeline to retire older railcars that carry dangerous flammable liquids, including North Dakota Bakken crude, is “aggressive” but can be done.