Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - With over 1,700 train derailments a year recorded all across the U.S., and now, back to back alarming derailments happening in Ohio, one causing a release of toxic fumes and forcing evacuation, how is Washington responding?
U.S. Senators from Ohio are proposing a bipartisan bill, The Railroad Safety Act of 2023, which looks to enhance safety procedures for trains carrying hazardous materials with new rules and regulations as well as reduce the risk of wheel bearing failures by requiring trains carrying hazardous materials to be scanned by hotbox detectors every 10 miles.
"There's a bill that both the House and the Senate has that will promote greater transparency and greater manpower on the trains themselves," said Congressman Brian Higgins (D, NY-26).
"It's critically important that the federal government, commit more resources and get the kind of safety measures that are necessary to keep communities safe, particularly those communities through which trains travel. We see [these derailments] in East Palestine, Ohio, another one recently in Ohio, you see it all over the world, Greece, Canada. We have to ensure that the rail companies like Norfolk Southern, with respect to this issue, are held to account and are transparent and responsive to communities when these derailments occur."
The congressman is specifically talking in reference to the other parts of this bill, which include requiring well-trained, two-person crews aboard every train and forcing rail carriers to face heightened fines for wrongdoing by substantially increasing the maximum fines USDOT can issue for safety violations.
Congressman Higgins compares this effort to airplane safety following the crash of Colgan Air Flight 3407, which killed 49 people when the plane stalled during landing approach due to pilot error and crashed into a house in Clarence, N.Y. in 2009.
"The work of the National Transportation Safety Board determined cause and Congress went to work - it took 10 years, but went to work, and increased flight training for pilots and rest and a number of other things that were all factors in the 3407 crash. And the record in terms of safety in the last 15 years, it's incredible when you think about how few fatalities there have been. We need to also do this with rail," said Higgins.
Congressman Higgins said that he believes the bill encompasses everything needed in hopes to decrease derailments, but amendments may be likely and may be needed to make sure that derailments like the ones in Ohio, never happen again.
"The introduction of these bills, they will go to committees and they can always change in committees, there can be an amendment. I think this is the bare minimum. There may be additional regulations to promote safety in the various communities where these trains pass through," said Higgins.
The congressman hopes that once this bill gets passed, the implementation of these procedures, sensors and other safety practices don't take as long as the the airplane safety measures did.
"Everything has to be done and be done right. We have to continue to put the pressure on the industry. There's going to be pushback, because oftentimes, it results in more money. And that's why they cut back on safety procedures in the first place. That's where the fight is," said the congressman. "I would want quick implementation and when Norfolk Southern gets called in, CSX and the others, we're going to hold them to that and get from them a commitment to implement these changes."
The congressman anticipates discussion of this bill will ensue in Congress and will be voted on in the next couple of weeks.