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30. Latest tank car, rail inspections in New York turn up 62 defects

Last edited Mon Jul 27, 2015, 12:28 PM - Edit history (1)

Latest tank car, rail inspections in New York turn up 62 defects

Rail News: Safety
7/24/2015

Another round of targeted tank car and rail inspections in New York found 62 defects, including one "critical" safety defect that required immediate corrective action, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Wednesday. ... The inspections are part of the governor’s efforts to address the safety of crude-by-rail shipments. State and federal teams examined 524 tank cars and about 152 miles of track and 38 switches during the inspections.

Last week, inspection teams from the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) and Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) inspected tank cars at Canadian Pacific's Kenwood Yard in Albany, CSX Transportation's Selkirk Yard in Albany County and Frontier Yard in Buffalo, and the Buffalo & Pittsburgh Railroad's D&E Yard in Buffalo. They also inspected various CP and CSX mainlines.

The inspections focused on track, track hardware and tank car mechanical safety equipment, including wheels and brakes. The teams also performed hazardous materials inspections to ensure that equipment met regulations, including valves, valve closures, and placards that describe the cargo being shipped, and checked tank-car inspection and pressure test dates.

A critical defect was identified on a CSX mainline between Milton and Selkirk — a missing bolt on a continuously-welded rail joint — which was repaired immediately, state officials said in a press release. Inspectors also found one non-critical defect, a loose switch rod bolt. Critical defects identify important maintenance issues that must be addressed immediately, while non-critical rail defects must be repaired within 30 days.

More Defects Found and Corrected to Increase Public Safety

July 22, 2015
Albany

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Operating Practice Inspections

Crescent and Mechanicville – At Canadian Pacific sidings in Saratoga County operating practice inspectors checked for proper train securement. In Crescent, an empty northbound crude oil train was found to be properly secured. In Mechanicville, a loaded southbound ethanol train was found to be secure.

This is important. Many things had to fall into place for the incident at Lac-Mégantic to have occurred. Among the causes was failure to secure the train. The air pressure in the brakes bled down, and the train rolled down from its position at the top of a hill into Lac-Mégantic at the foot of a grade. When the train reached town, it was going too fast to make it around the sharp curve in the center of town. It derailed, and the crude oil started to burn.