The United States and Canada have unveiled the highly anticipated new safety rules for trains specializing in the shipment of oil, largely in response to a series of oil-train spills and explosions, reports Reuters.
The outlet reports that these regulations are considered “more aggressive than the toughest proposals yet put forward” and will require sweeping, wide-scale reforms across the crude-by-rail industry.
One of the most contentious rules will mandate the elimination of older tank cars known as DOT-111, which are prone to derailment. The industry says this could cost billions of dollars and may only produce a marginal upgrade in safety.
In addition, tank cars known as CPC-1232 that were manufactured after October 2011 will need to be retired by 2020, a timeframe that is “three years faster than rules proposed in Canada earlier this year that were already considered stringent.”
"This stronger, safer, more robust tank car will protect communities on both sides of our shared border," Canada’s Minister of Transport Lisa Raitt told Reuters.
In addition, the safety rules limit trains to 50 miles per hour, or approximately 80 kilometers per hour.
Finally, the regulations will require all tank cars to operate with “thicker hulls, head shields to protect the end of each car, electronic pneumatic brakes and pressure-relief valves,” all of which advocates claim are necessary to advance public safety.
The electronically controlled pneumatic (ECP) brakes would shift braking from one axle at a time to all axles simultaneously, and is projected to be one of the more expensive directives put forth by the bilateral regulations.
While the changes will cost an estimated $2.5 billion over the next two decades, according to Reuters, while the potential benefits range from $912 million to $2.9 billion.
