3 years after East Palestine derailment, reform is still in limbo
Tuesday marked three years since the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, and reform is still in limbo at the legislative level.
Since that hazardous train derailment on Feb. 3, 2023, some federal lawmakers have fought to improve safety on the nation's railroads. And despite bipartisan support, proposed bills have never made it to the chamber floors. They hope that finally change.
"When you look at the direction where safety is going on class one railroads, it should be alarming. It would be alarming in any other industry," said Greg Regan, president of the Transportation Trades Department of the AFL-CIO.
He said it's time the workers, first responders, and communities where these trains travel through get the protections they deserve.
"The derailment rate on mainland tracks have increased 25% over the last decade. Hazardous material released into our environments, into our communities, has jumped by 23%," Regan said.
They're protections he wants to see through legislative action, through the bill introduced a year ago, led by local Democratic Congressman Chris Deluzio and Republican Congressman Mike Rulli of Ohio.
"The three years of inaction from the Congress remains unacceptable," Deluzio said.
In the Railway Safety Act, lawmakers are calling for measures, including increased fines on rail carriers for safety violations, a requirement of two workers on every train, and for defect detectors along tracks, updated inspection regulations, and greater communication with emergency response coordinators and first responders by providing them with advanced information about hazards aboard trains.
Mike Baldwin is the president of the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen.
"We honor East Palestine, not just with remembrance, but with resolve," Baldwin said.
It's resolve that lawmakers and those in the industry said is desperately needed to prevent another community from facing the ongoing health and environmental issues still lingering in East Palestine and neighboring Beaver County, Pennsylvania.
"I do not want to be back here next year, or at the five-year anniversary, or the 10-year anniversary, or, heaven forbid, when there's another tragedy, one that shocks another community, or even worse, one where lives are lost because of that tragedy," Regan said.
Both President Trump and former President Joe Biden have supported this bill. Vice President JD Vance previously co-led the legislation in the Senate. The leaders of the bill in the House hope he can help push it through this time in his higher role.
