(The following article by Gary Martin was posted on the San Antonio Express-News website on November 16.)
WASHINGTON — Federal regulators will conduct a sweeping review of Union Pacific railroad safety operations in South Texas following a series of incidents over a six-month period that resulted in four deaths and three toxic spills, officials said Tuesday.
The Federal Railroad Administration told San Antonio leaders in a closed-door session that it would add 10 inspectors to the South Texas area to conduct a regional compliance review of UP staffing and its training of personnel.
“The FRA is taking this situation seriously. It has agreed to work closely with San Antonio leaders,” said Kirk Van Tine, deputy secretary at the Transportation Department.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, said the federal agency and UP entered into a Safety Compliance Agreement that gives teeth to regulatory oversight and provides the government a legal perch to take the railroad to court if it fails to enforce existing regulations.
The agreement was unveiled in a meeting arranged by Hutchison and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, with federal regulators, San Antonio Mayor Ed Garza and County Judge Nelson Wolff.
“When you talk about loss of human life, when you talk about the release of hazardous materials in a densely populated area, it raises a host of issues and I think we made some progress this morning,” Cornyn said.
While the lawmakers said they were pleased with the safety agreement, San Antonio leaders continued to raise complaints that the FRA has failed to force UP to comply with existing rules.
They questioned whether a cozy relationship between regulators and the railroad has prevented a thorough review and enforcement of rules after incidents continued to occur on South Texas tracks.
“The FRA needs to sharpen its teeth and bite a little harder,” Wolff said, adding he would have preferred the FRA issue an order forcing UP to comply or face stiff civil penalties.
Rep. Charlie Gonzalez, D-San Antonio, echoed that sentiment, saying, “there is some evidence out there of lax enforcement” on the part of the federal agency in forcing compliance of safety rules.
In fact, Gonzalez said the compliance agreement was being discussed last week by the FRA and UP when a train derailed in San Antonio, killing a 39-year-old office worker and spilling 200 gallons of diesel fuel.
Garza said that while the federal review of UP was a step in the right direction, “these accidents did not have to occur.”
Hutchison, chairwoman of the Senate Transportation subcommittee that oversees the railroads, held the meeting after a series of accidents in San Antonio that began in May. UP wasn’t invited to attend, but it vowed to improve its performance through the review.
“We are cooperating fully with the FRA on this safety compliance agreement,” said Kathryn Blackwell, a UP spokeswoman in Omaha, Neb.
Blackwell said the railroad already has begun to take steps outlined in the agreement, and that “we are going to work hard to make this a success.”
The review will take place under an agreement signed by Charles Malone, UP vice president for its southern region, and Bonnie Murphy, a Federal Railroad administrator for Region 5, which includes Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas and New Mexico.
The agreement calls for re-instruction on safety programs at UP and an internal audit conducted by the federal agency on the railroad’s compliance with safety laws.
Van Tine said the number of federal inspectors in San Antonio would immediately increase from four to 14 to insure UP personnel are following guidelines and regulations.
The Transportation Department also is reviewing the relationship between Betty Monro, the acting FRA administrator, and Mary McAuliffe, UP’s chief lobbyist in Washington — long time friends who vacationed together.
The relationship between Monro and McAuliffe recently was detailed in a New York Times article that documented the federal agency’s close ties with the railroads it oversees.
Monro was scheduled to appear before the San Antonio leaders on Capitol Hill but was replaced by Van Tine, the deputy secretary at the Transportation Department, the parent organization over the FRA.
“The secretary felt it deserved attention from our office,” said Robert Johnson, a Transportation Department assistant secretary and director of public affairs.
Gonzalez wasn’t pleased that Monro did not attend the meeting, saying: “She would have been in the best position to answer questions we had.”
The FRA probe into UP compliance with safety laws began in July, after two major incidents in San Antonio.
A train derailed near Brackenridge High School in May, spilling 5,600 gallons of diesel fuel into the San Antonio River.
A month later, a collision between two trains near Macdona left three people dead and sent 50 others injured when a punctured tank released chlorine gas.
Relatives of two of the victims said they believe a third family member, who was injured by chlorine fumes, recently died as a result.
In those cases, a FRA cited fatigue and the failure of train workers to observe and obey track signals.