ATTICA, N.Y. (WKBW) — On Friday, U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer was in Western New York to announce the introduction Railway Safety Act of 2023 — which he said has bipartisan support.
This comes 63 days after the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, and about four years since a train derailed on the railroad in Attica.
"We are a hub for freight rail activity across the country. Two of the major freight lines go across the G.L.O.W. region,” said Schumer.
According to Schumer, the bill would:
Enhance Safety For All Trains Carrying Hazardous Materials By:
- Requiring emergency response plans and ordering that rail carriers must provide advance notification and information to each State emergency response officials on what they are transporting. The notification must include a written gas discharge plan for the hazardous materials being transported.
- Building on existing phase-outs and retrofits for DOT-111 cars—which Senator Schumer has long-advocated for—by requiring safer standards and specifications for any train carrying Class 3 flammable liquids regardless of the composition of the train—not just High Hazardous Flammable Trains.
- Reducing the risk of wheel bearing failures by requiring trains carrying hazardous materials to be scanned by hotbox detectors every 10 miles and strengthen inspection requirements.
- Adding new requirements to prevent blocked crossings by trains carrying hazardous materials due to railroad delays and address other issues that can prevent or mitigate derailments, including rules for train size and weight.
Require Highly Trained, At Least Two-Person Crews To Work Aboard Every Train
- For years, railroads have tried to reduce costs by seeking to reduce locomotive operators to one-person crews. In New York alone railroad workforce has decreased by over 600 laborers between 2010 and 2019. This bill creates a permanent requirement for railroads to operate with at least two-person crews, ensuring that sufficient, well-trained railroad staff are available for safe operation and response in the aftermath of any derailment.
Make Rail Carriers Pay For Their Wrongdoing
- Increasing the maximum fine that USDOT can issue for safety violations from $225,000 to 1% of a railroads annual operating income.
Support First Responders Who Keep Communities Safe From Derailments:
- Establishing a $1 million annual fee on railroads to pay for training local emergency responders who are the first on the scene to any accident.
- This new fund will go toward expanding Assistance for Local Emergency Response Training (ALERT) grants, from focusing on activities related to transporting crude oil, ethanol, and other flammable liquids, to also including any flammable material. The competitively awarded ALERT program provides trainings for volunteer or remote emergency responders consistent with National Fire Protection Association standard.
In Wyoming County, the first responders say they have a plan in place if a disaster happens.
"If we have an incident involving a rail car we would first identify what those products are. Is there any concern for the immediate population that we need to shelter in place or evacuate, and what resources do we have. So our county has numerous resources to handle spills, we have other local resources in neighboring counties or state assets we would bring in to mitigate that situation," said Brian Meyers, Director of Fire and Emergency Services for Wyoming Co.
7 News Reporter Jaurdyn Johnson reached out to Norfolk Southern for a comment, but they have not answered.
The Railway Safety Act will go in front of the Senate after Easter weekend.
