Washington lawmakers are considering a bill to limit the length of trains moving through the state, a restriction proponents say could reduce the risk of incidents like the derailment earlier this month in East Palestine, Ohio, that released hazardous chemicals.
House Bill 1839 cleared the state House Transportation Committee Thursday and is strongly opposed by railroad companies. It would cap the length of a train traveling through Washington with a standard crew at no more than 7,500 feet. If an additional crew member was added to the end of the train to monitor movements, the train could be up to 10,000 feet in length.
"I am a locomotive engineer, and the forces with long trains are astronomical, and they increase the difficulty for an engineer to control the train in a way that's hard to put into words," said Jared Cassity, chief of safety for SMART-Transportation Division, which represents railroad workers. He testified during a Tuesday committee hearing.
Cassity spoke from East Palestine, where he said he was assisting in the investigation of the Feb. 3 derailment of the Norfolk Southern rail cars that resulted in chemical-fed fires, evacuations and widespread community concerns about the safety of air, water and soil.
Union officials say there has been a nationwide trend in recent years toward longer trains. In Western Washington, these trains can include hazardous cargo and extend to more than 11,000 feet in length.
They say these trains most often run without a railroad worker in a rear car to help spot trouble, such as the axle bearing — captured on video — that flared and overheated on a Norfolk Southern rail car 20 minutes before the derailment.
Representatives of two major railroads operating in Washington state, BNSF Railway and Union Pacific, testified against the bill during the Tuesday hearing. They said that there are no safety benefits to reducing the length of trains, and that the shorter lengths required in the bill would drive up the costs of moving freight and increase greenhouse gas emissions.
BNSF's Johan Hellman said that the company "would not run a train if it could not be run safely ... The policy in this bill would increase freight costs and decrease efficiency at a time when Washington, the most trade-dependent state in the nation, is struggling to recover its supply chain."
Hellman said some of the longest trains run by BNSF carry grain to serve farmers, who would be forced to pay more for slower service if the bill passed. He also noted that BNSF has monitors — every 15 to 20 miles along the track — that examine each train car. If a wheel is found to be faulty, or some other problem is found, the train can be stopped and the rail car repaired, Hellman said.
A representative of the ports of Seattle and Tacoma also opposed the bill.
"This bill basically would take our average unit trains coming in and require them to be anywhere from 25 to 50% smaller ... It's going to drive away cargo," said Sean Egan, testifying on behalf of the Northwest Seaport Alliance.
Most safety regulations for railroads are done at the federal level, and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has said that there would be a review of safety rules in the aftermath of the East Palestine derailment, in which chemicals spewed from 11 derailed cars.
Federal law requires railroad safety regulations to be uniform across the country, to the extent possible. A state may adopt a more stringent law if it is necessary to reduce local safety hazards, does not go against federal law and does not unreasonably burden interstate commerce, according to an analysis of House Bill 1839 by the Legislature's Office of Program Research.
Railroad worker union officials say a state limit on trains would not conflict with federal law, and that states have a key role in matters that impact safety.
The measure, if it clears the Legislature and is signed by Gov. Jay Inslee, could face a legal challenge.
State Rep. Andrew Barkis, the ranking Republican member of the House Transportation Committee, said the derailment in East Palestine was "an absolutely tragic thing," but the question of size limitations for trains should be tackled at the federal level.
Rep. Sharon Tomiko Thomas, a Democrat who introduced the legislation, said "this bill is about safety. We've all seen the devastation that can happen .... So, I'm asking for a 'yes' vote."
