New railroad safety rules get nod from state regulators

(The Center Square) – Safety lessons learned from the East Palestine train derailment may soon make it into Pennsylvania’s rule books more than three years after the accident devastated rural communities bordering central Ohio.

The proposed regulations focus on trackside monitors, called wayside detectors, that pick up mechanical failures in passing trains that could cause accidents. While Ohio monitors the reliability of its systems, which are installed and maintained by railroad companies, the commonwealth has no such rule, nor does the federal government.

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission recommended that the state strengthen track speed limits, maintain compliance records for railroad companies and create emergency routes for loads with hazardous materials that divert away from communities.

Such rules, according to the commission led by Chairwoman Katie Zerfuss, could have prevented 106 fatalities, 88 injuries and 61 derailments reported from railroad accidents over the last three years.