US House panel votes to advance rail safety legislation

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON, May 21 (Reuters) - ‌The U.S. House ​Transportation and ​Infrastructure Committee voted 54-11 to approve rail safety language that would boost safety procedures for trains carrying hazardous materials and toughen rules on railcar ‌wheel bearings.

The lawmakers voted to attach the provision to a five-year $580 ⁠billion highway bill that is being debated. The vote came after the White House urged lawmakers to pass long-stalled ‌rail safety legislation after the ‌2023 derailment of a Norfolk Southern-operated train in Ohio that caught fire and released over a million gallons of hazardous materials and pollutants.

Despite support from President Donald Trump ​and many Democrats, the bill's fate is in doubt and faces significant opposition from railroads and some Republicans in Congress.

Representative Troy Nehls, a Texas Republican, said the ⁠bill was necessary because the derailment "exposed serious weaknesses in the freight rail industry safety practices, particularly when it comes ​to transporting hazardous materials."

Representative Sam Graves, the Republican chair of the committee, said the bill would add billions over 10 years to the ​cost of shipping by rail. "It's going to ripple ‌across the entire supply chain," Graves said.

The 2023 derailment was triggered by a catastrophic mechanical failure of an overheated railcar wheel bearing. ⁠Norfolk Southern in 2024 agreed to a Justice Department settlement worth $310 million, including agreeing to install additional devices to detect overheated wheel bearings early enough to prevent derailments.

National Transportation Safety Board chair Jennifer ⁠Homendy said many safety recommendations made after the 2023 derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, remain unaddressed ​over three years later.

"People living in the community of East Palestine and all Americans deserve no less than a comprehensive approach that addresses critical rail safety issues," Homendy said.

The legislation would require enhanced ‌safety procedures for trains carrying hazardous materials, as well as require wayside defect detectors, a minimum of two-person crews and increased fines ‌for wrongdoing.

The Association of American Railroads, which represents major rail companies, said after the vote the ⁠bill includes "extraneous mandates under the veil ‌of safety that will ​only increase costs throughout the freight network and broader supply chain with no proven safety benefit."

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and ‌Nick Zieminski)

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