NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — There are new efforts to make our railroads safer, following the derailment disaster in Ohio.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg wants major freight rail companies to join a program that allows employees to report safety concerns on their own.
The program is called the Confidential Close Call Reporting System and it is meant to encourage employees to report safety hazards without facing retaliation. Many commuter rails, including Amtrak, already participate, but none of the major freight rail companies take part, including CSX which runs 1,600 miles of freight lines in Tennessee.
Buttiegieg wrote a letter to seven freight rail companies across the country about joining this program and is giving them a week to get back to him.
The Confidential Close Call Reporting System exists to prevent train derailments and other safety issues, but not a single major freight rail company has signed up. I am again calling on these railroads to take this basic step to improve rail safety and prevent future disasters. pic.twitter.com/Rade0YPHD6
— Secretary Pete Buttigieg (@SecretaryPete) February 27, 2023
In his letter, he wrote, "By refusing to take this commonsense step, you are sending an undesirable message about your level of commitment to the safety of your workers and the American communities where you operate."
Some rail safety requirements were withdrawn under former President Donald Trump. Buttigieg said he wants companies to adopt safer tank cars by 2025 and increase maximum fines.
Despite what happened in East Palestine, Ohio — where 38 cars of a freight train carrying dangerous chemicals derailed — the rail industry claims 99.9% of all hazmat shipments reach their destination without incident and that the hazmat accident rate has decreased by more than 50% since 2012.
Buttigieg added in his letter that the transportation department is working to make this safety reporting program mandatory.
