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5/18/2022
Canadian Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra yesterday announced approval of amended regulations aimed at improving railway safety.
Revisions to the "Canadian Rail Operating Rules" and "Locomotive Inspection and Safety Rules" are designed to build on measures in place to secure trains and reduce the risk of uncontrolled movements, such as requiring that handbrakes be applied in specific circumstances.
To help ensure trains are properly secured, revisions to the rules will establish:• performance standards for locomotives equipped with rollaway protection, which is a feature designed to automatically apply brakes when there is an unintended movement of a train;• safety procedures and requirements that must be met before leaving a locomotive, such as confirming that brakes are effectively set and double-checking with another employee that safeguard measures have been implemented; and• testing procedures to ensure that a rollaway protection system is operating properly.
"These updates build on the significant work already being undertaken by the railway industry to implement measures to prevent the occurrence of uncontrolled movements. Every additional layer of protection to reduce the risk of the uncontrolled movement of railway equipment helps keep communities and Canadians who live and work along rail lines safer," Alghabra said in a press release.