Washington — Although latest applied sciences can enhance train dealing with and gasoline effectivity, “they cannot replace the need for correct car placement and assembly,” the Federal Railroad Administration says in a latest safety advisory.
In a discover printed within the April 11 Federal Register, FRA notes a “rising trend” in latest incidents wherein train construct and make-up have been recognized as a possible trigger or contributing issue. The agency calls on all railroads to train due diligence and be proactive about potential safety dangers associated to working train builds “with varying configurations, load and empty placement, distributed power arrangements, and other factors.”
The agency particulars six train derailments that occurred in 5 states between May 16, 2021, and March 4. It identifies frequent traits and patterns:
Train size: Each of the incidents featured a train with 125 or extra vehicles.
Distributed energy items: DPUs have been utilized in all six derailments, and shouldn’t function a substitute for correct train car placement or make-up.
Trailing tons: The most weight threshold of 4,000 trailing tons, established within the Association of American Railroads’ 1992 Train Makeup Manual, was far exceeded in the entire incidents.
First car derailed: The first car to derail in all six incidents was an empty car.
Train sort: Five of the six derailments concerned combined freight trains, which generally require extra complicated train make-up issues.
Hazmat vehicles: Five of the derailments concerned trains with vehicles containing hazardous supplies.
Derailed hazmat vehicles: In three of the incidents, hazmat vehicles derailed.
Hazmat launch: Three of the derailments resulted in a hazardous supplies launch, threatening public safety and the atmosphere.
Evacuations: Two of the incidents led to the evacuation of native residents.
Key trains: Three of the trains had this classification, used to explain trains with larger potential danger due to their cargo or operational traits.
In addition, correct coaching of working workers on applied sciences and dealing with of complicated trains is critical to make sure secure operation and decrease human error.
