S 2478 IS – Short Line Railroad Safety Act of 2014

As I noted last month Sen. Collins (R,ME) introduced S 2478, the  Short Line Railroad Safety Act of 2014. This bill is designed to enhance the ability of the nation’s short line railroads to safely handle hazardous cargoes such as crude oil. The bill would amend 49 USC 20108 ‘Research, development, testing, and training’.

The bill would add paragraph (d) to 49 USC 20108. It would establish the Short Line and Regional Railroad Safety Training Initiative. This would be a grant program for Class II and Class III railroads administered by the Department of Transportation to “be used for research, development, evaluation, and training efforts that are designed to enhance rail safety practices and safety culture” {§20108(d)(2)}.

The bill would authorize $2 million in 2016 for the grants under this program.

This bill will have little problem passing a floor vote, the difficulty will be pushing it to the floor for a vote.