Letter to Sarah Feinberg, Administrator of the Federal Railroad Admistration - Train Derailment

Letter

Dear Administrator Feinberg,

As you know on Saturday, March 14 at 2:15 AM, two debris cars from a CSX train derailed south of Beacon, New York. As you begin your investigation of this event, I urge you to expedite the Federal Railroad Administration activities, since CSX freight trains, Amtrak and Metro-North passenger trains all use the heavily traveled Hudson Line.

Although there were no injuries or spills this time, hundreds of trains travel on the Hudson Line every day. A more serious accident could spell disaster for the fragile the Hudson River ecosystem, and a weekday incident could impact tens of thousands of commuters. The Hudson line transports approximately 16 million riders annually and last year, the Empire Service from New York City to Albany had a record 1.1 million riders. We've seen several recent accidents on rail lines in New York and Connecticut -- these incidents on this highly trafficked route cause significant disruptions to my neighbors throughout the Hudson Valley.

I request that you act with the utmost urgency to determine the cause of this derailment and outline any future actions to prevent another, potentially catastrophic, accident. Please keep me informed on any developments on this investigation.

Sincerely,

Sean Patrick Maloney

Member of Congress

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