Rail safety is a shared responsibility

Canada grew up along the railroad. Those who work in the railway industry are immensely proud of that legacy, and their contribution to the economic development of hundreds of towns and cities, large and small, across this country. As Canada has grown and its population increased, the rail industry shares a common challenge with those communities—to significantly improve rail safety. Each year, approximately 250 Canadians are involved in railway crossing or trespassing incidents that can result in fatalities, or serious injuries. Virtually every one of those incidents is preventable. So how do we prevent them? Through awareness campaigns. Through enforcement. And with that perspective that CN has launched a discussion under the theme, “Change Your Train of Thought.” It basically means that rail safety in Canada needs to become an accepted shared responsibility, and that we can’t for a moment be complacent, or even hold for a second the notion that accidents just happen. They don’t. It's Rail Safety Week. And to mark the occasion, there will be a series of programs and programs across Canada and the U.S. that will emphasize the need for safe, responsible behaviour near railroad tracks. Trespassing on railway property is illegal, and a serious public safety issue. That was recognized in a comprehensive report, Enhancing Rail Safety in Canada: Working Together for Safer Communities, prepared by an expert review panel and presented to federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau in 2018. One of the report’s 16 recommendations called for a national strategy to reduce the number of fatalities and injuries that result from trespassing on railway property. Proximity issues have long been, and remain, the biggest cause of death and serious injuries in rail transportation. There are about 2,200 deaths and injuries in North America annually. In Canada, accidents at grade crossings and trespassing on railway properties account for over 90 per cent of all fatalities. There are approximately 23,000 grade crossings across the country—14,000 public and 9,000 private—according to the panel’s report. It states: “The current approach to managing grade crossing safety in Canada requires the cooperation of over 3,000 municipal, provincial, territorial and federal authorities and Indigenous Groups, and thousands of private land owners (with many different types of roads, including residential, agricultural, industrial, commercial, and recreational paths and trails) involved, in addition to approximately 32 railway companies.” In recommending that Transport Canada develop a comprehensive national initiative to improve grade crossing safety, the report noted that other countries are closing grade crossings, and, when feasible, replacing them with grade separations. That’s an expensive effort. It can cost $20-million to build a simple grade separation in a rural area, and more than $60-million in an urban setting. It’s going to take time, money, and co-operation, all of which can only be achieved through partnership, and having everyone take on their role. The fact that Canada has grown up around the railroad has produced prosperity, but also challenges. Too often, residential, commercial, and industrial development takes place too close to rail lines, creating safety concerns. As the report found, consideration for rail safety isn’t consistently factored into land-use planning decisions across Canada. It needs to be. The Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the Railway Association of Canada have long worked to find a balance. In 2013, the FCM/RAC partnership led to the development of proximity guidelines, key policies for land-use planning near rail infrastructure. RAC estimates that 60 Canadian municipalities have adopted all or some of the guidelines, and it recommends that the transport minister direct provincial transportation ministers to fully adopt them, including a mandatory setback for any new development of at least 30 metres from any rail operation. That would make for safer communities. At CN, there’s an understanding that safety is everyone’s responsibility. Whenever possible, CN seeks to engineer the risk out, deploying important safety-enhancing technologies across its network. The railway industry and Canada’s communities, large and small, are partners in our economy. They’ve been neighbours for a very long time. They share a great deal, and rail safety needs to be part of it. Randy Goulden is a city councillor in Yorkton, Sask., and co-chair of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities /Railway Association of Canada’s Proximity Initiative, and co-chair of the FCM National Rail Safety Working Group. Sean Finn is executive vice-president, corporate services and chief legal officer at CN, and co-chair of the FCM/RAC Proximity Initiative. The Hill Times

Rail safety is a shared responsibility

In 2018, an expert panel recommended that Transport Canada develop a comprehensive national initiative to improve grade crossing safety. It's an expensive effort that can cost $20-million to build a simple grade separation in a rural area, and more than $60-million in an urban setting.

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Rail safety is a shared responsibility

In 2018, an expert panel recommended that Transport Canada develop a comprehensive national initiative to improve grade crossing safety. It's an expensive effort that can cost $20-million to build a simple grade separation in a rural area, and more than $60-million in an urban setting.

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