Ottawa, January 24, 2014 — The Transportation Safety Board’s recommendations following the Lac-Mégantic disaster are definitely useful but they won’t solve the cause of the problem…
In addition to the BST’s recommendations, the Teamsters Union believes that the increase of field inspectors will force the rail industry to adopt stricter practices and ensure the safety of Canadians and workers.
“Applying stricter standards, putting in place better emergency response plans along train routes and encouraging rail companies to improve safety are all good ideas,” explained Rex Beatty, president of Teamsters Canada Rail Conference. “However, the Federal government absolutely must assign more inspectors.”
Journalists and opinion leaders lay the blame on weak tank cars but that’s not the crux of the problem. Only frequent and thorough inspections will prevent rail disasters.
“The question I’m asking is had there had been more inspectors available to evaluate the quality of the tank cars, could they have been replaced before it was too late?”
The Teamsters Union plans to continue working with all the stakeholders in this matter to put an end to the aberration of self-regulation.
The Teamsters Union represents 115,000 members in Canada in all trades. The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, with which Teamsters Canada is affiliated, has 1.4 million members in North America.
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Information:
Nathalie Mayer, Communications department
Telephone: 450 682-5521
Email: [email protected]
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