WASHINGTON — The Federal Railway Administration is awarding two grants totaling $350,000 to help short line and regional railroads reduce the risks associated with shipping crude oil, propane and other hazardous materials.
Sens. Patty Murray of Washington State and Susan Collins of Maine proposed the Short Line Rail Safety Institute, which is being launched with the funding. They told Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx in a letter that there's no silver bullet when it comes to safety but that the institute could be part of the solution.
Their efforts followed an April hearing that included testimony about an oil train derailment that claimed 47 lives in Lac Megantic, Quebec.
There are currently 550 short-line railroad companies that operate over 50,000 miles of track, or nearly one third of the national railroad network.