Transport Canada has taken the first steps to ensure that the nation’s major freight rail lines have Enhanced Train Control, a safety technology that tracks distances between trains.
Enhanced Train Control is the Canadian version of what is called Positive Train Control (PTC) in the United States, where the Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2008 requires certain freight and passenger railroads, including Canadian Pacific (NYSE: CP ) and CN’s US operations. (NYSE: CNI) — To install this technology to prevent train-to-train collisions, overspeed derailments, and train movement due to incorrectly positioned switches. U.S. railroad companies have completed PTC implementations by the December 2020 regulatory deadline.
Enhanced Train Control (ETC) is not required in Canada, but the Transport Safety Board of Canada (TSB) and the 2018 Railway Safety Act Review Board are promoting its implementation.
In February, Transport Canada said it was taking the first steps toward the introduction of ETC, and posted a letter of intent in the Canada Gazette outlining how the Commonwealth will move forward with the process. Meanwhile, the TSB last week reiterated its request to Transport Canada to request his ETC, in Manitoba, he said last week about the possible cause of the collision of two of his CN trains that occurred in January 2019. Published a review.
Transport Canada told FreightWaves that “work is progressing well” to develop an ETC system in Canada.
Transport Canada “continues to work with the Standards Council of Canada in developing a national technical specification for interoperability. It is an essential first step in the implementation of an ETC system that allows critical information such as speed to be reliably and safely communicated between railroads.”
Transport Canada also said it would respond to last week’s TSB review within 90 days.
The agency also said it was considering another recommendation from the Transportation Safety Board last week, which would require Canadian railroads to develop formal crew resource management education and qualify training for employees who operate trains. request to be included in
Transport Canada said it is reviewing its railroad employee eligibility criteria rules, including areas where training could be improved.
Transport Canada has issued a final statement in December 2021 on rail safety culture and an agency to address the rail movement of dangerous goods across the country, including changes to track safety regulations on inspection frequency and automated inspection techniques. has provided FreightWaves with a list of the actions it has taken. .
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