Ohio train derailment

Saturday will mark one year since a Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous materials derailed in East Palestine, Ohio. NS is joining the federal Confidential Close Call Reporting System, the only Class I railroad to do so.

Election-year politics and the NTSB report on the East Palestine derailment are key factors in whether Congress will pass rail safety legislation in 2024, industry observers say.

Will Congress pass any rail safety bills before 2023 ends? One consultant thinks the answer is probably no.

Declaring East Palestine, the town impacted by a Norfolk Southern train derailment, as the site of a public health emergency would allow area residents to have long-term access to Medicare, Ohio’s senators said in a letter to the EPA.

President Joe Biden wants Norfolk Southern and federal agencies to stay involved in recovery efforts in East Palestine, Ohio, where an NS train carrying hazardous materials derailed on Feb. 3.

Atkins Nuclear Secured released its initial findings on how Norfolk Southern can bolster its safety culture.

The Federal Railroad Administration and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration separately released reports Wednesday on how Norfolk Southern can improve rail safety.

NS is seeking to improve network fluidity after the East Palestine train derailment, cut down on Ohio-related costs and match resources with market demand in the second half of 2023.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine wants President Joe Biden to declare East Palestine a disaster area, while Norfolk Southern calls for rail car owners associated with the Feb. 3 derailment to help pay cleanup costs.

“There are qualified mechanical inspectors at all these points, and they were not allowed to inspect this car at any of those locations,” Jason Cox, of the Transportation Communications Union, testified at a National Transportation Safety Board hearing Friday.

The National Transportation Safety Board is holding a field hearing in East Palestine, Ohio, to garner more information on why the Feb. 3 derailment of a Norfolk Southern train happened.

The Federal Railroad Administration is planning to expand its assessment of safety culture to include all of the Class I railroads, the agency’s head said recently.

How industry stakeholders are responding to efforts to legislate rail safety reforms was one of the themes percolating at the recent North American Rail Shippers annual conference.

NS employees received a letter signed by President and CEO Alan Shaw and the presidents of 12 unions pledging collaboration to improve rail safety.

Democratic lawmakers from Pennsylvania and Ohio have introduced a second piece of legislation, the Railway Accountability Act.

The Department of Justice, on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency, has filed a lawsuit against NS to ensure the railroad pays for the cleanup at the site of the Feb. 3 Ohio train derailment.

Norfolk Southern and SMART-TD are tabling discussions about how to handle conductor redeployments as congressional lawmakers want more information about what rail safety initiatives should become law.

A law firm specializing in stockholder rights wants Norfolk Southern investors to join a class-action lawsuit over precision scheduled railroading. The firm says certain PSR practices compromised safety and depressed NS stock prices.

Two congressional representatives from Ohio have introduced a rail safety bill that they say would build off of NTSB’s findings into the cause of the Feb. 3 derailment of a Norfolk Southern train.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said Tuesday the state has filed a lawsuit in federal court against Norfolk Southern in order to ensure the railroad will be financially responsible for derailment costs and economic damages.

A Senate hearing Thursday provided Congressional leaders a chance to grill Norfolk Southern President and CEO Alan Shaw not just on the Feb. 3 train derailment in Ohio but also on the industry’s views on rail safety.

A study found use of hot-box detectors has contributed to a 59% decrease in certain train accidents since 1990.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Railroad Administration will conduct investigations into Norfolk Southern’s safety practices.

Norfolk Southern has released a six-point plan that addresses how the railroad expects to improve its use of hot box detectors.

Ohio members of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way – Employes Division are concerned about the health of workers who responded to the Feb. 3 train derailment, and they disagreed with NS’ attempt to address automated track inspection during early negotiations over sick leave.

The National Transportation Safety Board’s probe of the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern derailment will include a close look at the protective housing covers on the derailed tank cars.

The Federal Railroad Administration and a bipartisan group of five senators aim to show their responsiveness to rail safety concerns via new initiatives and proposed regulations.

The Federal Railroad Administration has issued a safety advisory that calls on railroads to evaluate their procedures for using and maintaining hot box detectors in light of the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern train derailment in Ohio.

The Environmental Protection Agency will direct Norfolk Southern where to transport contaminated waste from the Feb. 3 train derailment amid concerns by communities in other states that it was coming to them.

Rail trade groups’ and rail unions’ responses to NTSB’s preliminary report on the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern train derailment offer different views on what the next steps should be.

Jennifer Homendy, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, urged the parties involved in the derailment to heed the board’s recommendations to improve rail safety.

The National Transportation Safety Board outlined some additional context about the Feb. 3 derailment of a Norfolk Southern train in Ohio, including more information about the location of hot bearing detectors and the controlled venting of tank cars carrying vinyl chloride.

The Environmental Protection Agency has given Norfolk Southern a new order as the Ohio derailment cleanup transitions to longer-term remediation, and the U.S. Department of Transportation has given the railroads a list of what safety actions they should undertake.

East Palestine residents and rail unions face an uncertain future in the aftermath of a Norfolk Southern freight train derailment.