U.S. House introduces antiterrorist bill for rail transportation

U.S. House introduces antiterrorist bill for rail transportation    New legislation designed to expand and improve antiterrorist security programs for passenger railroad and freight rail systems was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives Thursday, along with a request for $1 billion in new money to finance the proposed security measures.
   The H.R. 4604 bill, called “The Protecting Railroads against Enemy Efforts through Modernization, Planning and Technology Act” (PREEMPT), was introduced by Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, chairman of the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, Rep. Jack Quinn, R-N.Y., chairman of the Subcommittee on Railroads and Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., vice chairman of the Subcommittee on Railroads.
   The legislation will provide resources to protect against the possibility of terrorist attack of the rail system and improve the ability to recover from such an attack. “It will direct the preparation of comprehensive security plans, including contingency plans, for preventing and, if necessary, recovering from any terrorist incident,” the house committee said.
   The legislation calls for in excess of $1 billion in new money, including more than $600 million to improve the safety of critical rail tunnels used by Amtrak and commuter railroads.
   “The Rail Subcommittee members and staff have been working on this important issue for years, but — given the sensitive nature of the subject matter — most of these discussions have been conducted in private,” Quinn said.
   He added that freight railroads have spent millions of their own money to tighten security and protect the American rail system.    Similarly, Amtrak and major commuter rail carriers have implemented new safety and security measures.
   “Most of this has been accomplished without any direct financial assistance from the federal government,” Quinn noted. “This effort is commendable, but we have to do more.”
   Porter said that even before the Madrid attacks, “we knew that our rail lines were terrorist targets.”