BTS reports rail industry's progress on tank car safety

The U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported earlier this month that 73% of rail tank cars carrying Class 3 flammable liquids met DOT-117 specifications in 2024, up from 67% in 2023.

BTS released the report, which can be read here, covers the progress in upgrading the tank car fleet to the DOT-117 standard, which meets safety requirements for carrying Class 3 flammable liquids.

Almost all crude oil and ethanol in 2024 was transported by new DOT-117 or retrofitted DOT-117R tanks. Only 130 CPC-1232 tank cars with thin layers of thermal insulation (jacketed) carried crude oil in 2024, and only 18 jacketed CPC-1232 tank cars carried ethanol, BTS officials reported.

Other flammable liquids were the largest group of Class 3 flammable liquids transported in non-DOT-117 tank cars in 2024. As of May 1, 2025, jacketed CPC-1232 tank cars are prohibited from carrying ethanol and crude oil, and all DOT-111 and CPC-1232 tank cars were prohibited from carrying other flammable liquids in packing group 1.

Compliance with the May 2025 deadline will be evaluated in the 2026 report. By May 1, 2029, all non-DOT-117 tank cars will be prohibited from carrying flammable liquids in packing group 2 and 3.

The rail industry has made significant progress on improving safety when carrying Class 3 flammable liquids, the report states. In 2016, only 8% of the fleet carrying Class 3 flammable liquids consisted of DOT-117s, compared to 2024's 73%. For crude oil alone, 98.7% of the tank car fleet consisted of DOT-117s in 2024, up from 96% in 2023, BTS reported.

Based on a survey of facilities capable of building and/or retrofitting DOT-117 and DOT-117R tanks, 3,546 new DOT-117 tank cars were projected to be built in 2025 and 890 DOT-117R tank cars were projected to be retrofitted in 2025. These tank cars will replace outdated and non-compliant tanks.