Congressman Andrews Unveils Railway Safety Proposals One Year After Paulsboro Train Derailment

Press Release

HADDON HEIGHTS, N.J. -- On Monday, Congressman Rob Andrews, Paulsboro Mayor Jeff Hamilton and Assemblyman John Burzichelli gathered at the site of last year's train derailment in Paulsboro, NJ approximately one year after the accident to unveil new federal legislation that sets out to ensure incidents like this never happen again.

On November 20th of last year, a freight train derailed in Paulsboro, NJ. The derailment resulted in several tanker cars crashing into a stream, spilling vinyl chloride into the atmosphere and causing over 1,500 people to evacuate their homes. Thanks to the heroic efforts of the local first responders, State Office of Emergency Management, U.S. Coast Guard, and countless others, the risk of injury was minimized and the toxic spill was contained.

In the aftermath of this accident, Rep. Andrews met with community leaders, first responders and the National Transportation Safety Board to hear about the lessons that were learned from this accident. As a result, the Congressman introduced two pieces of legislation aimed to avoid some of the problems Paulsboro faced a year ago. The first, titled the Railway Inspection and Transparency Act, sets out to improve rail safety by requiring independent inspections by certified engineers on all railway bridges, signals and switches on a regular basis. In addition to the railroad industries requirement to implement a new state of the art navigational system by 2015, the Congressman's measures will increase safety through through sensible and cost effective safety regulations. The second piece of legislation, called the Emergency Response and Transparency Act, is designed to establish a clear chain of command when times of crisis occur like they did in Paulsboro last year. Rep. Andrews' bill establishes a Federal Incident Commander to ensure county, state and local responders are consulted. By clarifying the lead role following a major emergency incident, the public will be more informed about the safety and severity of the situation.

"The one industry in our country that is self-regulated is the freight rail industry. This needs to stop and we can work together to ensure that common sense safety precautions are required of the railroad industry," said Congressman Andrews. "While we hope these measures will prevent future derailments, when accidents do occur you need a clear chain of command because when everyone's in charge no one's in charge. This legislation will clear the confusion so our first responders can do their job more efficiently."

Rep. Andrews will continue to work with local officials, first responders, and the National Transportation Safety Board to ensure that the lessons learned in the aftermath of last year's derailment can provide meaningful reforms in railway safety and community protection.

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