Cullen Calls for Rail Crackdown
Friday, March 8, 2013 @ 3:57 AM
Terrace, B.C.- Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen is calling on the Federal Minister of Transport to take action on rail traffic.
According to Cullen, the increase in traffic at the Port of Prince Rupert has resulted in increased freight train traffic.
Cullen alleges the trains have been “blocking crucial public railway crossings around the Northwest”. Cullen says the issue is more than a nuisance, “It’s becoming a safety hazard, because we’ve heard reports of people who get fed up after waiting thirty minutes or an hour, and they get out of their cars and walk between rail cars to get across. And it’s an even more serious hazard if there’s an emergency situation, and a freight train is blocking the only road in or out.”
Cullen accuses the Federal Government of “in its responsibility to enforce the existing penalties.”
He points to the Railway Safety Act which says trains cannot block a public crossing for more than 5 minutes. The maximum fine for violating that rule is $100 thousand.
“The Minister has to realize that the safety and mobility of our communities is at stake, and it’s time they start enforcing the rules, and looking at new infrastructure options like new overpasses to increase access and safety” says Cullen.
Comments
No kidding Nathan: increased port activity creates more freight train activity…No surprise the left wing media will repaeat anything spouted by their socialist bretheren.
By the way, the Port has direct employment of almost 2500 people and over 1400 indirect jobs in Prince Rupert. Wages generated are over $170 million and $70 million in taxes and the people there still vote for the NDP. So what if they gotta wait for a train, CN’s paying for lots there…we should be so lucky here.
Is he sure that the crossings are actually public? And is the media really the right way to get this done?
Exactly what I was thinking birdman, without CN Prince Rupert unemployment rate would be what?
So your saying CN has lots of employees so to heck with the regulations??
Your views on ‘waiting for a train’ wouldn’t be ‘so what’ if you were in an ambulance and bleeding out….or you ended up being late for work and got fired….
The 5 minute regulation is there for a reason.
“”Is he sure that the crossings are actually public?””
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I cross public railway crossing four times a day going to work and back….the stopped trains DO block the way for more than 5 minutes sometimes…
and sometimes they are sooooo long, and going sooooo slow that they exceed the 5 minute blockage regulation.
Sounds like CN thinks they’re above regulations, and laws, well they’re not, and we never had anything like this when it was still BC Rail. Maybe it should be BC Rail again. As far as I can see they should be put in their place once and for all. Same with the slippery Liberal Con Government too. Just remember in May who sold BC Rail out from under us. aye?
If the trains are moving they can block the crossing for 10 Minutes. Its only when they are stopped that the five minute rule applies.
Uturn:
I don’t think you can compare BC Rail’s 20 car train’s to CN’s 150 car train’s.
Tonnage to and from the Port of Prince Rupert increased from 4,474,574 Tons in 2002, to 22,289,980 Tons in 2012, so there is a significant increase in traffic.
These same trains come through the City of Prince George, and if we did not have the overpass at the Johh Hart bridge, or the Cameron St., Bridge, we would be raising holy hell. So he has a valid argument.
The solution is to take it up with the Superintendent of the North Line, who probably resides in Prince George, and insist that he abides by the rules. If he doesn’t then they should take it up with the President of CN Rail, and the Government.
These people will do little to solve any problems unless they get some pressure.
The pressure should come from the Cities being affected as much as from a opposition politician.
CN goes against the “Railway Safety Act” and somehow it is the lefties and the Socialist hordes fault?
I do not live in that area so do not know how serious the stoppage is. However, I know from first hand experience in northwestern Washington State that is a problem they already have with coal trains going from Montana to the coal port at Roberts Bank. A 10 minute wait is normal.
The current issue there is that they are proposing a coal port at Cherry Point, WA, next to the oil refinery and Aluminum plant. The issue is increased coal traffic whih woulkd bring more coal dust along the way and even more impact on traffic unles they build grade separations at crossings.
Right now it looks like they may not go ahead because of those types of impact. Washington state has a much more mature respect for such impacts on the population than we have in BC and the impact hearings are far more thorough and open from the point of view of informatiuon dissemination.
The issue is jobs versus environment as it is here.
http://www.coaltrainfacts.org/category/terminals/gpt
Engine, engine N0 9 going down Rupert line if the train goes off the track can I have my money back.
Cheers
While on the subject of CN. What does the enforcing of traffic laws by a portly CN bull have to do with trains?
If the Port at Rupert was not there, Cullen would be whinning about the unemployment rate in his area. People wait for trains every day all across this country, and they have for a very long time. It will be very unlikely CN will change its traffic, to stroke Cullen’s ego and nor should they, they are running a business and that business is running trains over crossings, oh well,, Lets fight some better stuff in government shall we. Just saying
From the 250 report above:
“Railway Safety Act which says trains cannot block a public crossing for more than 5 minutes. The maximum fine for violating that rule is $100 thousand.”
Any more questions, seamutt?
CN Rail has to conform to the rules and regulations governing trains at public crossings. They do not have the right to block the crossing by more than five minutes for a stopped train, and 10 minutes for a moving train.
There is no point in arguing for or against what they are doing. The rules are clearly defined. It is up to the Railway employee’s and management to **smarten up** and do their jobs correctly. If they don’t, then the Government should step in and kick their butts.
Its just that simple. They are blocking the crossings because they can get away with it, and they are to bloody lazy to do the job correctly.
willyj … love your mindset. We need more people like you to tell us what it is all about.
We have a rail overpass at Foothills near the Nechako.
As Palopu has already stated for other locations, imagine how pissed off people would be if they would have to wait 10 minutes for a passing train, especially during rush hour traffic. Trffic would be backed up all the way to North Nechako Rd on the north side and even further.
imagine how pissed off people would be if they would have to wait 10 minutes for a passing train, especially during rush hour traffic
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Rushour traffic in PG, imagine.Give me a break. Most of the drivers in PG dont know what a rush hour is. It takes 10 min from Foothills to Harold Moffats hardeware.
PG drivers are so stupid they cant waite for a pedestrian to cross in a marked crosswalk. Why in hell are they in such a rush?
Cheers
Gus what are you commenting on? I am noting traffic laws like speeding, no where near a track.
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