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CN ordered to limit train sizes

Transport Canada gets tough after fourth derailment
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Transport Canada responded on Wednesday to calls from local, provincial and federal officials to further tighten restrictions of CN Railways operations on the line between North Vancouver and Whistler after the company reported its fourth derailment in as many months on Dec. 5.

The most recent derailment on that stretch of track took place in the Cheakamus Canyon north of Squamish. It occurred in almost the same area as the Aug. 5 derailment that leaked almost 40,000 litres of a caustic chemical into the Cheakamus River.

In the most recent case seven empty cars were reported as derailed from a train comprised of 125 cars, in plain view of highway work crews on the other side of the river.

CN again denies that the length of trains was a factor in any of the derailments, and says it was obeying a Notice of Order handed down by Transport Canada in November after the third derailment on the line occurred. That order limited trains to just 80 cars unless a distributed power system was in use, with additional remote engines in the middle of the train.

The train that derailed on Monday had four engines up front and two in the middle, and therefore was exempt from the Notice and Order.

However, as of Wednesday, that order was expanded to include all trains.

"We have nothing specific on the cause of that derailment at this time, but we are investigating it aggressively," said CN spokesman Graham Dallas. "Our comment on the order is that… we have no comment yet, and are reviewing the order internally."

All four of the derailments remain under investigation, although the track itself has been ruled out as a cause in every case.

Squamish Mayor Ian Sutherland has been calling on Transport Canada and the Transportation Safety Board to impose a size limit on all trains using that section of track since the first derailment, regardless of where the engines are placed.

"There’s definitely a concern at all levels of government about what’s happening with the derailments," he said. "We’ve asked the federal minister to amend its order to place an 80-car limit on trains, regardless of where the engines and cars are.

"We don’t know all the facts yet, but the one common factor in all of the derailments is the length of the trains."

While the investigations may show that train length was not a factor in any of the derailments, as CN has maintained, Sutherland believes it’s safer to reduce train length until the investigations are complete. If train length is ruled out as a factor, then the order can be amended to allow for longer trains.

There’s no word on when the results of the investigations will be announced, but one representative of the Transportation Safety Board talking to the CBC on Wednesday said it could take up to a year.

"CN has downplayed this last one because nothing really happened as a result, but that’s just luck, not good management. It could have been cars filled with more toxic chemicals. It’s just dumb luck that nothing’s happened," said Sutherland.

John Weston, the federal Conservative candidate for the West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky riding, has been following the issue closely since the first derailment in August. He started a petition in the Squamish area calling on the federal government to make a full public inquiry.

He places the blame in the lap of the federal Liberals, who he believes have refused to take concrete action to address the issue.

"Local residents have been working for nearly two months on a call for a public inquiry into rail safety," said Weston. "Meanwhile, the Liberals have failed to take any effective steps towards tackling the problem of the increasing series of derailments. How many more trains have to go off the track and how much more environmental damage must take place before something is done about this?"

The derailments have not caused any traffic disruptions; passenger rail service ended on the line in 2002. However, the Great Canadian Railtour Company is planning to launch the Whistler Mountaineer, a three-hour train tour from North Vancouver to Whistler, in May of 2006.

According to spokesman Graham Gilley, they have worked with CN in the past and have no concerns about their ability to run tours on the line from North Vancouver to Whistler.

Their own trains are just nine cars in length and are not at risk of derailments. In terms of them being delayed, Gilley says it goes with the territory.

"Any time is train time, and delays do occur," he said. "We like to say it’s all in the recovery. A delay or what might be perceived as an obstacle does not have to be negative. We look at ways to make anything into a positive guest experience.

"We are watching this situation closely, but we’re confident CN will take the steps to address this and we count them as a good partner."

Just hours after the derailment in the Cheakamus Canyon, the last four cars of a 39-car train heading north over the Fraser River derailed. The last car, carrying new autos for delivery to dealerships, tumbled into the river.

Unlike the Cheakamus Canyon derailment, this incident did not take place on a former B.C. Rail line, but on a line that CN has owned for decades.

According to the Transportation Safety Board, CN has now had 11 derailments along the former B.C. Rail line, compared to just two the previous year. CN purchased B.C. Rail in November of 2003 for $1 billion.

However, according to CN Railway’s own statistics, which measure total incidents and major incidents in terms of cost, the company has an overall better safety record than B.C. Rail.