By Judy McKinnon
Canada issued an emergency directive late Thursday aimed at
slowing crude-carrying trains traveling through urban areas and
requiring increased inspections and risk assessments along key
routes used for transporting dangerous goods.
The directive is the latest in a series of steps by the Canadian
government to boost rail safety in the wake of a number of
derailments of crude-carrying trains as crude-by-rail shipments
rise.
Trains will be required to slow to a maximum of 40 miles an hour
through highly urbanized areas, Transportation Minister Lisa Raitt
in a statement. She also ordered more inspections and risk
assessments along major routes used for the transport of goods such
as crude oil and ethanol.
Canada's two biggest railroad operators-- Canadian National
Railway Co. and Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd.--have already
restricted train speeds to a maximum of 35 miles an hour in urban
locations, Transport Canada noted. In the U.S., rail operator BNSF
Railway Co. in late March said it had begun slowing crude-carrying
trains to 35 miles an hour in cities with more than 100,000
residents.
The Canadian directive comes as U.S. regulators urge railroads
to make dramatic operating changes after a BNSF train carrying
crude in Illinois derailed last month, causing large explosions
after several cars ruptured and caught fire. The Federal Railroad
Administration issued a safety advisory in that incident pointing
to a broken wheel.
Earlier this year, two Canadian National-operated crude-carrying
trains derailed in northern Ontario and investigators said their
preliminary findings showed the state of the track may have played
a role.
Canada has taken a number of steps to boost rail safety in the
aftermath of a deadly derailment of a crude-carrying train in
Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, in 2013 that killed 47 people. Those include
a levy to be paid by crude-by-rail shippers and tougher standards
for tank cars that carry dangerous goods.
Transport Canada's emergency directive, which it said will be in
effect until Aug. 17, didn't elaborate on specific requirements for
increased inspections and risk assessments.
Write to Judy McKinnon at judy.mckinnon@wsj.com
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