When's That Train Coming? It's a Secret

In May the U.S. Department of Transportation ordered railroad operators to start giving state emergency responders basic information about trains hauling crude oil through cities and towns, including when they’re coming, where they’re going, and how much oil they’re hauling. The order came a week after a CSX train carrying crude from North Dakota derailed and exploded in downtown Lynchburg, Va., spilling 30,000 gallons of oil into the James River. City officials said they had no idea oil trains were passing through town and weren’t prepared to respond to a spill of that magnitude.

The federal requirement covers oil trains from the Bakken region of North Dakota, where most of the U.S. oil that travels by rail originates, and applies only to trains carrying 1 million gallons or more of crude. Many oil trains are 100 cars or longer and carry three times that. Trains haul about 42 million gallons of oil a day across the U.S. and Canada. If disaster teams have some details on these shipments, they can be better prepared when a train derails or explodes, something that’s been occurring with alarming frequency.