NYS DOT RAIL SAFETY INSPECTION State Rail Safety Program was created in 1910

RAIL INSPECTION In 1923, Dr. Elmer Sperry, started to develop and build a rail inspection car with the capability of detecting transverse fissures in railroad rails.

RAIL SAFETY ACT OF 1970 Since the Rail Safety Act of 1970, NYSDOT has partnered with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to enforce Federal Law  Inspection Disciplines: 

*Track

*Motive Power & Equipment *Hazardous Materials * Signal & Train Control * Operational Practices

Historically, the NYSDOT Rail Inspection program has consisted of 6 inspectors: 3 Track inspectors

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3 Rail Equipment Inspectors

Lac-Mégantic

We went about our business inspecting rail cars and train tracks…very few even knew that New York had a rail inspection program..

Until July 6th, 2013….

•On

the evening of July 5, 2013, a Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway (MMA) train arrived at Nantes, Quebec, carrying over two million gallons of petroleum crude oil in 72 DOT111 tank cars. Originating in New Town, North Dakota, these were bound for Saint John, New Brunswick.

CRUDE OIL FROM NEW TOWN TO SAINT JOHN, NB

THE TRAIN The freight train (MMA 2) was 4,701 ft long and weighed 10,287 tons.  It was composed of five locomotives, one remote-control "VB" car, one loaded box car used as a buffer car followed by 72 nonpressure DOT-111 tank cars loaded with petroleum crude oil (Class 3, UN 1267).  Each tank car was filled with 30,000 gallons of crude oil. 

TRAIN PARKED ON THE MAIN LINE •

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After arriving in Nantes, the engineer parked the train on a descending grade on the main track. A replacement engineer was scheduled to continue the trip east in the morning. After parking the train, the engineer departed the location and went to a local hotel for rest. This was the railroads normal operating procedure for this route.

NOT ENOUGH HAND BRAKES APPLIED The engineer applied hand brakes on all five locomotives, plus two other cars, and shut down all but the lead locomotive.  US and Canadian rules require hand brakes alone be capable of holding a train, and this must be verified by a test.  That night, the locomotive air brakes were left on during the hand brake test. 

IMPROPER BRAKE TEST 

The air brakes were left on during the hand brake test, meaning the train was being held by a combination of hand brakes and air brakes. This gave a false impression that the hand brakes alone would hold the train.

TRAIN BRAKES

ENGINE FIRE At 11:30 p.m. a 911 call was made reporting a fire on one of the locomotives. Firefighters from the town of Nantes arrived, along with a track foreman from the railroad  In keeping with railway instructions, emergency responders shut off the engine, which subsequently caused the air holding the locomotive air brakes to leak off. 

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Just before 1 a.m., the brakes on the train failed and the train began to roll downhill toward the small town of Lac-Mégantic, just over seven miles away.

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As it moved down the grade, the train picked up speed, reaching a top speed of 65 mph. It derailed near the center of the town at about 1:15 a.m.

DESCENDING GRADE

DERAILMENT AND EXPLOSION

AFTERMATH AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE  Almost all of the 63 derailed tank cars were damaged, and many had large breaches.  About one and one half million gallons of petroleum crude oil was quickly released.  The fire began almost immediately.  The ensuing blaze and explosions left 47 people dead.  Another 2000 people were forced from their homes, and much of the downtown core was destroyed.

AFTERMATH The pileup of tank cars, combined with the large volume of burning petroleum crude oil, made the firefighters' job extremely difficult.  Despite the challenges of a large emergency, the response was well coordinated, and the fire departments effectively protected the site and ensured public safety after the derailment. 

LAC MEGANTIC QUEBEC JULY 6, 2013

HAND BRAKES REQUIRED 

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada concluded that, without the extra force provided by the air brakes, a minimum of 17 and possibly as many as 26 hand brakes would have been needed to secure the train, depending on the amount of force with which they had been applied.

WHAT IS CRUDE OIL DOING ON THE RAILS? Prior to Lac-Mégantic, we knew very little of the commodities on each train.  Interstate Commerce  Common Carrier Obligation  Authorized Packaging for Hazardous Material  DOT 111 Tank car is an authorized Package for Class 3 Flammable Material 

NORTH DAKOTA OIL BOOM The Parshall Oil Field in North Dakota was discovered in 2006.  Rapidly expanding oil extraction from the Bakken formation that continues today.  North Dakota has the lowest unemployment rate in the United States  The boom has given the state of North Dakota, a state with a 2013 population of about 725,000, a billion-dollar budget surplus. 

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North Dakota, which ranked 38th in per capita gross domestic product (GDP) in 2001, rose steadily with the Bakken boom, and now has per capita GDP 29% above the national average.

NORTH DAKOTA OIL BOOM There are three reasons for the oil boom, not just in North Dakota but nationwide:  The recent discoveries of shale gas reserves in the United States  Initiatives to seek independence from unstable energy sources, such as Venezuela and nations in the Middle East  The successful use of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, which have made energy deposits recoverable 

OIL RIGS IN THE UNITED STATES

WHAT TO DO WITH ALL THAT OIL? Oil companies have to get the oil from the Midwest to be refined. Canada, US East/West coast, Gulf coast)  Remote locations  Pipelines are not always available  North Dakota oil companies are shipping huge amounts of oil by tanker rail car as they can direct the oil to the market that gives the best price. 

BAKKEN CRUDE OIL

Rail Transportation is one of the safest forms of transporting bulk hazardous material.  Rail cars can be used to avoid a congested oil pipeline to get the oil to a different pipeline and get the oil to market faster at different less busy oil refineries.  Oil is generally shipped via Unit Train.  Unit Trains usually consist of 50-100 or more tank cars shipped from one origin to a single destination as a “unit” 

BNSF RAILROAD PICKS UP THE PACE! On November 3, 2009, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Holding Company purchased the final 70% of BNSF Railroad that it did not already own.

Why would Warren Buffett buy a railroad? BNSF’s tracks sit on top of North Dakota’s Bakken formation, where energy producers are using fracking and other extraction methods to pull crude from the ground in unprecedented volumes. Because pipeline capacity is limited in the area, oil companies have turned to BNSF to ship their product to refineries.

TRUCK TO RAIL NORTH DAKOTA

BOE RAIL LOADING FACILITY DICKINSON, ND

CIRCLE TRACK LOADING FACILITY-ALBERTA CA

TAR SANDS OIL FROM ALBERTA

TAR SANDS OIL DILUTED BITUMEN Tar sands Oil is much heavier than Bakken Oil. Rail Tank Cars carrying this heavier substance typically have heat coils surrounding the tanks so the product can be unloaded.

ONE COMMIDITY TO A SINGLE DESTINATION

“VIRTUAL PIPELINE”

WHAT IS THE DESTINATION?

US OIL LOADING AND OFF-LOADING

OIL TRAINS PER WEEK-WSJ Yellow 1-10

Orange 11-25

RED >25

MORE ACCIDENTS After the Lac Megantic disaster, state and federal regulators began taking a hard look at the crude by rail business.  On January 28, 2014 Governor Cuomo issued Executive Order 125. A thorough examination of crude oil by rail takes place.  Since the tragedy in Canada, there has been a significant number of rail accidents resulting in the release of crude oil and subsequent fires and explosion. 

NOVEMBER 7, 2013 ALICEVILLE, ALABAMA

26 OF 90 CARS DERAILED AND CAUGHT FIRE LARGE RELEASE OF BAKKEN OIL

DECEMBER 30 2013 CASSELTON, ND

21 OUT OF 106 CARS DERAILED SUBSEQUENT FIRE AND EXPLOSION

CASSELTON-LARGE PLUME OF SMOKE

SUSPECTED CAUSE: BROKEN RAIL

JANUARY 7 2014 PLASTER ROCK NB

5 /122 CARS DERAILED SUSPECTED CASUE BROKEN WHEEL

JANUARY 20,2014 PHILADELPHIA PA

7 OUT OF 101 CAR DERAILMENT ON A BRIDGE NO RELEASE OF MATERIAL WEATHER RELATED EQUIPMENT FAILURE

FEBRUARY 13, 2014 VANDERGRIFT, PA

19 OF THE 120 CARS DERAILED NO FIRE OR EXPLOSION THERE WAS A RELEASE OF CRUDE OIL TRACK CAUSED

APRIL 30, 2014 LYNCHBURG, VA

13 OUT OF 105 CARS DERAILED EXPLOSION AND SUBSEQUENT FIRE ENSUED SUSPECTED CAUSE: TRACK FAILURE

JAMES RIVER LYNCHBURG VA

FEBRUARY 14, 2015 GOGAMA, ON

29 OF 100 CARS DERAILED EXPLODED AND CAUGHT FIRE ACCORDING TO TSB WHEEL AND RAIL COMPONENTS SUSPECTED

FEBRUARY 14, 2015 CROWSNEST RIVER VALLEY ALBERTA CANADA

12 CARS DERAILED NO RELEASE OF OIL

FEB 16, 2015 MT. CARBON WV

27 OF 109 CARS DERAILED. EXPLSIONS AND FIRE ENSUED. SUSECTED CAUSE: BROKEN RAIL

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Mt. Carbon West Virginia

Mt Carbon West Virginia

MARCH 5, 2015 GALENA, IL

21 OF 100 TANK CARS DERAILED EXPLOSION AND FIRE CAUSE SUSPECTED BROKEN WHEEL

MARCH 5, 2015 HORNEPAYNE, ONTARIO

16 EMPTY OIL TANK CARS DERAILED ON CANADIAN NATIONAL’S MAINLINE INVESTIGATION ONGOING

MARCH 7, 2015 GOGAMA, ONTARIO

39 OF 94 CARS DERAILED EXPOSION AND FIRE SUSPTECTED CAUSE BROKEN RAIL

GOGOMA ONTARIO

GOGOMA ONTARIO

COULD SOMETHING LIKE THIS HAPPEN IN NEW YORK?

New York state is intersected by railroads from the North to the South, from the West to the East.  Tracks pass through or close to most major cities within the state.  There are over 4000 miles of track in our state  Approximately 850 miles over which crude oil traffic passes. 

OIL TRAINS IN NEW YORK Oil is carried by Canadian Pacific Railroad via Montreal to the Port of Albany  CP delivers oil trains to Global Energy for trans shipment via tankers and barges.  Global Oil currently handles about 1- 1½ trains of oil per day (100 car consist)  Global is permitted to transfer1.8 billion gallons of oil per year 

PORT OF ALBANY

CRUDE OIL TANKER PRIMORSK

Crude oil is transferred from holding tanks to oil tankers and barges headed down the Hudson.

OIL TO BARGE-PORT OF ALBANY

VIRTUAL PIPELINE 

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The majority of crude oil passes through New York along CSX’s main line. Typically 2-3 trains each day pass along CSX tracks from Buffalo through Selkirk and down along the West shore of the Hudson River to New Jersey and then on to Philadelphia. Six Million Gallons per day- 21 Billion Gallons per year Virtual Pipeline CSX also ships oil to the Port of Albany which is handled by Buckeye Chemical for trans shipment to water vessels. (Irving Oil Customer)

WHY ALL THE CONCERN? IT’S JUST CRUDE OIL!

BLACK GOLD!

A Danger on the Rails  By Jon Bowermaster | Apr. 21, 2015 | 5:05  This short documentary warns about the dangers posed by trains that transport explosive oil across North America.  River Keeper 

BAKKEN CRUDE OIL What’s so different about Bakken oil?  Crude oil from North Dakota's Bakken Shale is a type of “light sweet crude” that is easy to refine into commercial products.  As you’ve seen in the previous slides, it is also very easy to ignite.  It may have a Low Initial Boiling Point and Low flash point 

Crude oil from North Dakota's Bakken Shale formation contains several times the combustible gases as oil from elsewhere  On January 2, 2014 the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration issued a safety alert.  The type of crude oil being transported from the Bakken region may be more flammable than traditional heavy crude oil. 

BAKKEN OIL IN A TANK CAR

REID VAPOR PRESSURE Entrapped natural gas liquids such as pentane, butane, ethane and propane may cause this particular type of crude oil to be more volatile.

Recent state regulation in North Dakota requires crude oil to be processed prior to loading-limits to the vapor pressure permitted.

TAKING THE GAS OUT OF CRUDE OIL Degassing Bakken crude for rail is costly.  Small processing towers known as stabilizers that shave off NGLs from crude need to be built. Pipelines to carry the NGLs to a viable market are also required.  Right now, little of that infrastructure exists in the Bakken, which produces about 950,000 barrels of crude per day with some 67 percent of that moving by rail. 

THE UNKNOWN Just last week, Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Ernest Moniz said it will probably take two years to complete research into what makes some crude oil more volatile than other varieties.  Moniz said information provided to Sandia National Laboratory suggest that the data that was reviewed did not imply that any one property of the oil would determine what would happen in terms of combustibility in an accident. 

DOT 111 TANK CAR This all purpose tank car is an authorized package for transporting Class 3 Flammable Materials in Packing Group I II and III. It is authorized by the USDOT, PHMSA.  If the shippers use this tank car they are incompliance with federal regulations  The dilemma: Both federal and state regulators and the Association of American Railroads believe that the tank car is not an appropriate package for Bakken crude oil. 

SAFETY CONCERNS-DOT111 TANK CAR

ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN RAILROADS “Voluntary” operating procedures for shipments containing crude oil including:  Lower speeds for crude oil trains  Increased number of track inspections  installation of additional safety technologies — wayside wheel bearing detectors that alert railroads to problems with rail cars — along crude routes;  Enhanced braking either EOT device or distributed power trains=Quicker Braking 

CPC 1232 STANDARD The DOT 111 tank car was “redesigned” in the final quarter of 2011 to include several safety improvements: “CPC 1232” Standard  Improved Head shields  Roll over protection for the top fittings  Normalized steel  Thicker head and tank metal  Pressure relief valves (recloseable type) 

FRA EMERGENCY ORDERS/ADVISORIES 

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8/17/13-Emergency order focusing on securement of unattended trains. 11/20/13-Safety Advisory focusing on proper classification and package group for flammable material. 5/07/14 Emergency order to railroads carrying 1,000,000 or more gallons of Bakken Crude oil to notify State Emergency Response Commission (SERC) information regarding frequencies, routes, and quantities transported.

FRA ADVISORIES 5/07/14- Safety Advisory- To offerers and transporters should avoid using older “legacy” DOT 111 tank cars.  4/17/15-Safety Advisory-To Railroad companies regarding inspector qualifications and wheel impact load detector thresholds for trains carrying large amounts of flammable material. 

FRA ADVISORY 4/17/15-Safety Advisory issued to railroads regarding information required to be provided after an accident involving large amounts of flammable liquid.  4/17/2015-Emergency order requiring 40 MPH speed limit through “High Threat Urban Areas” applicable to trains carrying large amounts of flammable material. “HHFT” 

FEDERAL ACTIONS In July 2014, the USDOT announced a proposed rulemaking in regards to the transportation of large quantities of flammable material by rail.  It proposes the phase out of the use of older DOT 111 tank cars for the shipment of packing group I flammable liquids, including most Bakken crude oil, unless the tank cars are retrofitted to comply with new tank car design standards. 

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The rulemaking proposes enhanced tank car standards (DOT 117 Tank car), a classification and testing program for mined gases and liquids and new operational requirements for high-hazard flammable trains (HHFT) that include braking controls and speed restrictions.  We are still waiting for the final rule. It is expected sometime this month. 

FEDERAL ACTIONS There has been numerous safety advisories and recommendations issued but the opinion of most is that federal regulatory action is far overdue.  Interstate Commerce-Federal Pre-emption. 

NEW YORK HAS BEEN PROACTIVE Governor’s Executive Order 125  The NYS Departments of Environmental Conservation, Transportation, Health, Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, conducted an extensive assessment of the State’s prevention and response rules and inspection programs involving the transportation of petroleum products by rail and water 

NYS ONGOING EFFORTS FOR RESPONSE Preparing First Responders  Updating and enhancing response plans  Urging action by the federal government  Urging the oil and rail industries to increase the safety of product transportation  Increasing the oil spill cap fund from $25 million to $40 million  Increased staff for the Department of Environmental Conservation and Fire Protection and Control for oil spill planning, training and response 

ONGOING EFFORTS NEW RAIL INSPECTORS Rail Safety Inspectors- Through participation agreements with the FRA, New York and 29 other states have rail inspection programs.  Most State Railroad Laws are pre-empted by federal law and regulation.  FRA Pays for Class Room Training and Certification costs for the state inspectors  State and federal inspectors utilize the same inspection protocols and guidelines 

ONGOING EFFORTS FOR PREVENTION ADDED FIVE NEW RAIL INSPECTORS AT NYSDOT Three Track Inspectors  Three Motive Power and Equipment Inspectors  Two Hazardous Material Inspectors  One Operational Practices Inspector  One supervisor certified Motive Power Equipment Inspector  One supervisor certified Track Inspector. NYS Now has one of the largest state rail inspection staffs. (Funded by the Railroads) 

FOCUSED INSPECTION BLITZ’S Since this targeted inspection campaign began In February 2014, NYSDOT and the FRA have inspected 9,359 rail cars (including 7,351 crude oil tank cars) and 3,021 miles of track, uncovered 1,132 defects, and issued 20 hazardous materials violations.

INCREASED VIGILANCE TANK CAR INSPECTIONS 

We typically inspect crude oil tank cars in the rail yards in Buffalo and in Albany. Trains typically stop at these locations for required inspections and crew changes.

INCREASED VIGILANCE HAZMAT INSPECTIONS Inspectors typically inspect valves, closures, fittings and make sure that the hazardous material documentation is in order.

Inspectors also check hazardous material packaging, placards, and markings.

INCREASED VIGILANCE OPERATIONAL PRACTICE Operational Practices inspectors: Checks for proper securement of unattended trains. Observes rail crews including riding in locomotive cabs (Speed, following signals etc.) Observing railroad employees in rail yards to ensure rules and regulations are followed. Hours of service and Crew certification.

INCREASED VIGILANCE TRACK INSPECTORS Track inspectors perform visual inspections of the railroad track, structures and roadbed either on foot or in a hi-rail vehicle. We check the railroad to make sure they are doing proper inspections. Check Inspection Records Automated Geometry Car Look for loose, missing bolts, fasteners wide gage and geometry defects. Inspect tie condition including all fasteners and tie plates.

FINAL RULE OUT LAST FRIDAY MAY 1, 2015 Enhanced Braking- Electronically Controlled Pneumatic (ECP) Braking  New Tank Car Standards Reduced Operating Speeds More accurate classification standards  Rail routing Risk assessment  Rail Routing Notification-Railroads must provide contact to SERC 

FINAL RULE

PROGRESS

QUESTIONS?

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