Order Pursuant to Section 32.01 of the Railway Safety Act (MO 20-03)

Dear Sir /Madam:

On February 6, 2020, I issued Ministerial Order 20-02 (MO 20-02) under section 32.01 of the Railway Safety Act, restricting the speeds of Key Trains in response to the recent derailments of trains carrying crude oil.

Since the issuance of the MO 20-02, a review of the risk factors that can impact the safety of trains transporting dangerous goods has been diligently carried out. That review identified the following risk factors associated with the movement of such trains: speed, weather conditions, and the nature of the infrastructure on which trains are operated.

As a result of this review, I have decided to rescind MO 20-02 and issue Ministerial Order 20-03, pursuant to section 32.01 of the Act, in the interest of safe railway operations. Please find attached the Ministerial Order 20-03 for your action. All railway companies and local railway companies listed in Appendix A are required to implement the safety measures identified in the attached Ministerial Order.

If you intend to initiate a review of this Order, you must file a request in writing with the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada no later than March 17, 2020.

The Tribunal has prepared a Guide for Applicants, which may be obtained from the Tribunal’s Registrar at the address below. Requests for review must be filed at the following coordinates:

The Registrar
Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada
333 Laurier Avenue West, Room 1201
Ottawa ON K1A 0N5

http://www.tatc.gc.ca

Pursuant to section 32.3 of the Railway Safety Act, an order issued under section 32.01 of the Act shall not be stayed pending a review requested under section 32.1, an appeal under section 32.2, or a reconsideration by the Minister under subsection 32.1(5) or 32.2.(3) of the Act.

Should you have any questions, please contact Ms. Brigitte Diogo, Director General, Rail Safety at 613-998-8697 or brigitte.diogo@tc.gc.ca.

Thank you for your anticipated cooperation.

Yours sincerely,
The Honourable Marc Garneau, P.C., M.P.
Minister of Transport

Attachment

c.c.

Mr. G. Doherty, TCRC-MWED Ms. L. Cyr, TCRC-MWED Mr. L. Couture, IBEW
Mr. K. Neumann, USW Mr. T. Lundblad, USW Mr. C. Crabtree, ATU
Mr. S. Pickthall, IAMAW Mr. D. Ashley, TCRC Ms. L. Robillard, TCRC
Mr. B. Snow, UNIFOR Mr. E. Féquet, TUT

MO 20-03

Whereas section 32.01 of the Railway Safety Act (RSA) provides that if the Minister considers it necessary in the interests of safe railway operations, the Minister may, by order sent to a company, road authority or municipality, require the company, road authority or municipality to stop any activity that might constitute a threat to safe railway operations or to follow the procedures or take the corrective measures specified in the order, including constructing, altering, operating or maintaining a railway work;

Whereas there have been a number of recent derailments of trains transporting dangerous goods which have resulted in the breach of tank cars and the release of dangerous goods, including the St-Lazare derailment in Manitoba in 2019, the Guernsey derailment in Saskatchewan in 2019 and the second Guernsey derailment in Saskatchewan in 2020;

Whereas, in the interest of safe railway operations and to prevent further derailments of trains transporting dangerous goods, an order was issued under section 32.01 of the RSA on February 6, 2020;

Whereas a review of the risk factors that can impact the safety of trains transporting dangerous goods has been diligently carried out since the issuance of the order on February 6, 2020;

Whereas the risk factors associated with the derailments of trains transporting dangerous goods include speed, weather conditions and the nature of the infrastructure on which trains are operated;

Therefore I consider it necessary in the interest of safe railway operations to make the following order as a first step to replace the order made on February 6, 2020. Accordingly, pursuant to section 32.01 of the RSA, the companies listed in Appendix A are hereby ordered to:

  1. Not operate a Key Train at a speed that exceeds 40 mph in non-signaled territory;
  2. Not operate a Key Train at a speed that exceeds 35 mph within Census Metropolitan Areas;
  3. Not operate a Higher Risk Key Train at a speed that exceeds 25 mph in non-signaled territory;
  4. Not operate a Higher Risk Key Train at a speed that exceeds 30 mph within Census Metropolitan Areas. For greater certainty, the operation of a Higher Risk Key Train within Census Metropolitan Areas that are in non-signaled territory remain subject to the limit of 25 mph.

For the purpose of this order,

Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) means population centres defined and published by Statistics Canada as core (i.e., at least 50,000 persons) and secondary core (i.e., at least 10,000 persons) of CMAs.

Higher Risk Key Train means a Key Train:

  1. where all loaded tank cars, other than buffers cars, are loaded with a single commodity that is a dangerous good, as defined in the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act, 1992 and that is carried between one point of origin and one point of destination; or
  2. that includes 80 or more loaded tank cars or loaded intermodal portable tanks containing dangerous goods,as defined in the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act, 1992, or any combination thereof that includes 80 or more loaded tank cars and loaded intermodal portable tanks.

Key Train means an engine with cars:

  1. that includes one or more loaded tank cars of dangerous goods that are included in Class 2.3, Toxic Gases and of dangerous goods that are toxic by inhalation subject to Special Provision 23 of the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations; or
  2. that includes 20 or more loaded tank cars or loaded intermodal portable tanks containing dangerous goods, as defined in the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act, 1992 or any combination thereof that includes 20 or more loaded tank cars and loaded intermodal portable tanks.

Order MO 20-02 issued on February 6, 2020 under section 32.01 of the RSA is repealed.

This order is effective immediately and remains in effect until April 1, 2020.

Pursuant to subsection 32.1(1) of the RSA, a person to whom an order is sent under section 32.01 of the RSA may, on the date specified in the order, file a request for a review with the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada (Tribunal).

If you intend to request a review of this Order, you must file a request in writing with the Tribunal, which must be postmarked no later than March 17, 2020.

Pursuant to section 32.3 of the RSA an order issued under section 32.01 of the RSA shall not be stayed pending a review requested under section 32.1, an appeal under section 32.2 or a reconsideration by the Minister of Transport under subsection 32.1(5) or 32.2.(3) of the RSA.

The Honourable Marc Garneau, P.C., M.P.
Minister of Transport

Appendix A

9961526 Canada Limited
Arnprior Nepean Railway Co. Inc.
Battle River Railway NGC Inc.
Big Sky Railway Corp
BioPower Sustainable Energy Corporation
BNSF Railway Company
Boundary Trail Railway Company, Inc.
Canadian National Railway Company
Canadian Pacific Railway Company
Cando Rail Services Ltd.
Canfor Pulp Ltd. – Northwood Division
Cape Breton & Central Nova Scotia Railway Ltd.
Cargill Limited – Cargill Limitée
Carlton Trail Railway Company
Central Maine and Quebec Railway Canada Inc.
Central Manitoba Railway Inc.
Chemin de fer de Québec-Gatineau Inc.
Chemin de fer Québec North Shore & Labrador
Chemin de fer Oxford Express Inc.
Chemin de fer Sartigan
City of Ottawa carrying on business as Capital Railway
Compagnie du Chemin de fer Roberval-Saguenay
CSX Transportation, Inc.
Eastern Maine Railway Company
Essar Steel Algoma Inc.
GIO Railways Corporation
Goderich-Exeter Railway Company Limited
Great Canadian Railtour Company Ltd.
Great Sandhills Railway Ltd.
Great Western Railway, Ltd.
Hudson Bay Railway Company
Huron Central Railway Inc.
Kamloops Heritage Railway Society
Keewatin Railway Company
Kettle Falls International Railway Company
Knob Lake and Timmins Railway Company Inc.
Koch Fertilizer Canada, ULC
Lake Line Railroad Inc.
Last Mountain Railway
Maska-Wa Transportation Association Inc.
Metrolinx
National Railroad Passenger Corporation (AMTRAK)
Nipissing Central Railway
Norfolk Southern Railway Company
Ontario Northland Transportation Commission
Ontario Southland Railway Inc.
Pacific & Arctic Railway Navigation, British Columbia & Yukon Railway, British
Yukon Railway doing business as White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad (WP&YR
Pinnacle Renewable Energy Inc.
Port Stanley Terminal Rail Inc.
Prairie Rail Solutions Ltd.
Prudential Steel ULC
RaiLink Canada Ltd.
Railserve Inc.
Réseau de transport métropolitan
RIO Tinto Alcan
RTC Rail Solution Ltd.
Société du chemin de fer de la Gaspésie
Southern Ontario Locomotive Restoration Society
Southern Rails Co-operative Ltd
Southern Railway of British Columbia Limited
South Simcoe Railway Heritage Corporation
St. Lawrence & Atlantic Railroad (Québec) Inc.
St. Paul & Pacific Northwest Railroad Company, LLC
Stewart Southern Railway Inc.
The Essex Terminal Railway Company
The Toronto Terminals Railway Company Limited
The Vintage Locomotive Society Inc. O/A Prairie Dog Central Railway
Thunder Rail Ltd.
Torch River Rail Inc.
Trillium Railway Co. Ltd.
Trillium Railway Co. Ltd. (Port Colborne Harbour Railway)
Transport Ferroviaire Tshiuetin Inc.
Union Pacific Railroad Company
VIA Rail Canada Inc.
West Coast Express Limited
West Coast Railway Association
York-Durham Heritage Railway