Skip to main content

Legislation approved by the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee on July 15 would give freight railroad companies an additional three years to comply with federal rules mandating the use of anti-crash technology known as “positive train control” (PTC).  A failure by Congress to enact this extension by the end of the year could prevent the shipment of certain toxic chemicals over rails not equipped with PTC – potentially halting the delivery of gaseous chlorine to water treatment plants after December 31.

The issue dates to 2008, when Congress passed a law requiring certain freight rail lines carrying passenger trains or trains holding defined amounts of toxic inhalation chemicals (such as gaseous chlorine) to have PTC operational by December 31, 2015.  PTC is a safety system designed to prevent rail collisions and derailments, and was in the news following the May 12 Amtrak crash in Philadelphia on a section of tract that was not PTC-equipped.

Despite the mandate, recent analyses from the Federal Railroad Administration, the Government Accountability Office, and the rail industry have warned that it will be impossible for all covered tracks in the U.S. to meet the December 31 deadline for PTC installation.  Chemical industry organizations have warned that without congressional action this deadline could leave some rail carriers unable to ship gaseous chlorine and other chemical products to customers beginning next year – therefore disrupting the supply chain for critical water disinfectant chemicals.

In response, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee Chairman John Thune (R-S.D.) included a provision in his panel’s transportation reauthorization bill (S. 1732) to extend the PTC implementation deadline for three years (until December 31, 2018) while requiring rail carriers to submit updated implementation plans to the Transportation Department in the meantime.  During the committee’s consideration of the bill on July 15, Chairman Thune said there is “broad consensus on the need to extend the deadline,” and that a failure to do so could interrupt the “freight shipment of commodities such as those critical to water treatment.”  He went on to say the committee has an obligation to extend the deadline to avoid the “mass chaos” that would result without action.

But not all members of Congress favor a broad extension.  The July 15 markup featured debate of an amendment offered by Connecticut Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal to remove the extension from the legislation.  Sen. Blumenthal said the amendment was necessary to hold railroad companies’ “feet to the fire,” although he acknowledged that many railroads across the country would be unable to meet the 2015 deadline.  Sen. Blumenthal’s amendment ultimately failed by a vote of 9-15.

In late July the three-year PTC extension was folded into H.R. 22, the Senate’s proposed six-year transportation funding bill.  This puts the extension on track to pass the Senate soon and increases the likelihood that water utilities will continue to be able to receive chlorine gas shipments after December 31, regardless of the status of PTC implementation nationwide.