(The following article by Rod Mickleburgh was posted on the Globe and Mail website on March 3.)
VANCOUVER — A pair of Transport Canada reports into safety practices at CN Rail detail widespread shortcomings and contain a strong message for the country’s largest railway to clean up its act permanently.
The reports, released yesterday, stem from an intense round of inspections conducted by federal rail safety officials soon after two serious CN mishaps in Western Canada within days of each other in August of 2005.
One was a derailment on the former B.C. Rail line north of Vancouver that dumped 40,000 litres of highly corrosive caustic soda into the fast-flowing Cheakamus River, killing thousands of fish.
CN, which took over the freight operation of publicly owned B.C. Rail in 2004, has also been plagued by numerous other rail accidents in the province, both on B.C. Rail tracks and its main cross-country line.
Two months ago, a CN locomotive plunged 75 metres down a steep slope after striking boulders on the track near Lytton.
And last year, two crewmen died when another locomotive went off the tracks in the Fraser Canyon.
The rare, month-long audit found a high rate of safety defects among CN rolling stock, ranging as high as 54 per cent for the 232 locomotives inspected as part of the probe, including 86 brake gear problems.
The audit also discovered frequent examples of non-compliance with labour code regulations, required operating procedures and track safety rules.
While generally satisfied with the railway’s subsequent efforts to improve, Transport Canada emphasized that it was important for CN “to address the underlying, systemic nature of its safety problems.”
And federal authorities vowed to continue monitoring to ensure that safety improvements continue at CN Rail.
In a statement, railway spokesman Jim Feeny said CN has already addressed many of the safety concerns in the reports.
“They include an increase in inspections, more training and new detection systems to the tracks,” Mr. Feeny said.
But provincial NDP transportation critic David Chudnovsky used the reports’ release to demand answers from the B.C. government over the sale of B.C. Rail to CN.
“These are devastating reports . . . and yet, despite the increase in derailments on the B.C. Rail line, the provincial government has refused to join me in calling for a public investigation,” Mr. Chudnovsky said. “They have refused to criticize CN.
“Who was standing up for safety when the privatization of B.C. Rail was being discussed . . . when it’s clear that CN did not know how to run a railroad [over their tracks]?”
While pleased that CN operations have improved, Mr. Chudnovsky said more needs to be done.
“Do British Columbians living along the B.C. Rail corridor feel safer? I don’t think so. Do they want answers? I think so.”
Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon said the accusations by Mr. Chudnovsky are ridiculous.
“It was myself who pulled in CN’s senior management team and read the riot act to them. It was me who raised our concerns with the federal transportation minister,” Mr. Falcon declared.
He said he took action, after a string of CN derailments on the B.C. Rail line, because he began to lose confidence that the railway was making safety its No. 1 priority.
“It was track they were unfamiliar with, and they made mistakes,” Mr. Falcon said.
He added the two reports underline his conviction that problems existed in 2005, but they also point out that improvements have taken place.
“CN derailments declined 50 per cent last year over 2005,” the minister said.