Feds issue speed limits for crude oil trains

[NS Newsfeed]

Freight trains hauling flammable materials through Pittsburgh and other urban areas are under new federal guidelines to slow down, a safety regulation that has the rail industry reviewing its operations.



A package of regulations and advisories released Friday from the Department of Transportation included an emergency order limiting trains to 40 MPH through densely populated areas when carrying flammable materials such as ethanol. The speed limit is already in effect for hauling crude oil, which U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Fox said poses "a serious threat" to public safety.



"The measures we are announcing today are a result of lessons learned from recent accidents and are steps we are able to take today to improve safety," he said in a statement.



Forty-seven people died in July 2013 when a train carrying crude oil derailed in Québec. The crash and other train derailments focused attention on how to safely carry crude oil from the booming Bakken formation region in North Dakota across the country.



David Pidgeon, Harrisburg-based spokesman for Norfolk Southern, said the company is reviewing potential effects of the guidelines.



"We're moving millions of tons of freight," he said. "These obviously are going to have an impact on the network, so it takes time for us to assess and learn to put the mechanisms in place to make sure we will best comply with that order."



DOT announced safety advisories on notifications to first responders, mechanical inspections and a comment request from the Federal Railroad Administration for data on train accidents involving crude oil.



Norfolk Southern operates a 22-state network. Pittsburgh, Pidgeon said, is a crucial part of its east-to-west line.



"It's one of the busiest corridors in the country," he said. "If you're moving goods from south (New) Jersey or New York, and you need to get them to San Diego, Seattle or Los Angeles, chances are you're going through Pittsburgh."



Melanie Cost, a spokeswoman with CSX, said the company will work to comply with the directives.



"We respectfully request that DOT assure that all additional requirements deliver demonstrable safety benefits and take into account the demands on strained and complex rail networks," she said.



Pidgeon said Norfolk Southern continues to push for updated safety regulations on tank cars carrying crude oil and other materials, a concern the Association of American Railroads echoes. In a statement, the trade group said Friday's directives build on existing practice.



"Overall, these federal provisions reflect the fact that moving crude by rail is a shared responsibility, involving a safety system of prevention, mitigation and response," said the group's president and CEO Edward Hamberger.



U.S. Sen. Bob Casey Jr., D-Scranton, has been a proponent of increased safety measures.



"I'm pleased that Department of Transportation has responded to my call to improve communication with first responders for trains carrying crude oil. Derailments have increased at an alarming rate. I am glad they are creating more coordinated standards of safety to protect residents," he said.

[steveiez]

Pittsburgh is a city that has changed for the worse.  I live 100 ft. from the mainline and see many oil trains pass by. They seem too be going slow already.

We have two bypass routes that miss most of the city; Conemaugh and the OC bridge which turns into the Mon Line.

All this is, is an attempt too slow growth for fossil fuels. Pittsburgh no longer wants anything too do with heavy industry. They want trendy eaters, bike trails and other forms of nothing!