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Union Pacific Railroad and the Dow Chemical Co. are teaming up to improve chemical transportation safety and security. Today, the railroad and shipper announced a cooperative agreement under which the organizations will work together to achieve eight goals within the next 10 years.

UP and Dow agreed to:
• provide enhanced outreach and education programs, and training initiatives along highly hazardous chemical transportation routes by 2012 in coordination with national, regional and state Transportation Community Awareness and Emergency Response (TRANSCAER®) organizations;
• improve safety, security and emergency response through continuous surveillance of highly hazardous shipments by installing Global Positioning System units and sensor technologies on all appropriate tank cars by 2010;
• develop and implement a new tank car for highly hazardous chemicals by 2017;
• reduce the number of highly hazardous chemical shipments 50 percent by 2015;
• reach zero non-accidental releases of hazardous materials by 2010;
• deploy communication-based train control and anti-collision systems on mainline track, pending Federal Railroad Administration approvals and the success of two pilot projects that begin this year;
• reduce the dwell time of highly hazardous chemical-carrying cars in high-threat urban areas 50 percent by 2015; and
• achieve a 50 percent improvement in haz-mat rail operations safety by 2015.

“Both companies serve as strategic links in the chemical supply chain that is critical to homeland security, public health, safety and welfare and to our nation’s economy," said UP Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Young in a prepared statement.