Washington, D.C. —Today, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Rick Larsen (D-WA) echoed the safety concerns outlined in the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)’s Safety Advisory on Train Makeup and Operation Safety Concerns.
“Increasingly longer trains—a trend the railroad industry has pursued for years—combined with inadequate rail car placement has contributed to derailments that put communities at risk,” Ranking Member Larsen said. “I echo the FRA’s concerns laid out in its latest safety advisory and urge freight railroads to improve safety practices and processes to mitigate these unnecessary failures.”
Background: In June 2022, the Committee held a hearing on the state of freight rail safety, where members raised the issue of train makeup. At the time, railroad companies claimed that trains do not leave their yards without the proper makeup, however, FRA’s safety advisory demonstrates that was and is not true.
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