The type of rail car involved in the Lac Megantic explosion in 2013 will no longer be transporting crude oil by this November. Federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau says that’s 16 months ahead of schedule.
The Co-Chair of the National Municipal Rail Safety Group, Pauline Quinlan welcomes that move but more has to be done when the rail cars are parked unattended.
In Lac Megantic, an unattended runaway freight train derailed and exploded, killing 47 people and destroying downtown Lac-Mégantic.
Garneau has paid three visits to Lac Megantic including the church service in the immediate aftermath of the disaster and says it had a great impact on him.
The new tankers will have a thicker steel hull, thermal protection, a full head shield, protective valve covers and a bottom outlet valve for safety.
