(The following editorial appeared on the Montgomery Advertiser website on August 22.)
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Meridian & Bigbee Railroad’s recent safety record, which includes seven derailments in the first five months of this year and another this past weekend near Selma, more than merits the extra scrutiny that a federal rail official says is being focused on the company.
The Federal Railroad Administration is looking into MNBR’s safety operations after the railroad company recorded more accidents in the first five months of this year than for all of the period from 2002-2005. The company had 12 accidents, including seven derailments, by the end of May.
The accidents include a derailment near Myrtlewood on May 2 that received national media attention because the train was transporting parts of the solid rocket booster for NASA’s space shuttle.
Warren Flatau, a spokesman for the FRA, told the Montgomery Advertiser that the agency was looking into the MNBR even before the accident on Sunday.
“We are going to take a look at the safety of that railroad to determine if there is anything they can do to improve their safety performance,” said Flatau.
The company attributed the latest accident in which 17 cars were derailed to a broken rail. The accident in May was attributed to a collapsed bridge. Flatau said the latest accident just raises more questions about the adequacy of the company’s infrastructure.
This is a serious issue for Central Alabama, because the company’s trains often carry potentially hazardous materials.
While company officials maintain that the railroad is safe and that the increase in accidents is a result of an increase in rail traffic, federal safety statistics indicate a pattern of problems.
The 21 accidents reported by MNBR last year represent 90 accidents per million train miles. This year’s 12 accidents represent 117 per million train miles. Both of those figures, according to a Montgomery Advertiser news story, are much higher than for all railroads nationwide — 14.7 accidents per million train miles — or for smaller railroad companies such as MNBR — 35.9 accidents per million train miles.
We applaud federal regulatory officials for taking a closer look at MNBR’s safety operation. If that investigation shows that the company needs to invest more in improving its rail bed and other safety features, we urge the FRA to ensure the improvements are made.