Rail Transport

In light of the five serious train derailments in early 2015, the Cities Initiative has worked to act quickly on the issue of Oil Transport by Rail.

Given that much of the transit of oil in the region occurs in and around municipalities and near the lakes and river, this has been a priority issue for a number of our members for some time (see our 2014 Resolution). The Cities Initiative is closely monitoring the new rules that have been introduced by Canadian and US authorities to address the significant risk posed by the rail transportation of oil. Even though the May 1, 2015 new rules and ongoing legislation have addressed most of our concerns, some outstanding issues must be resolved to ensure that municipalities, their citizens and our freshwater resources are secured against threats from derailments, accidents and spills.  We will continue monitor this issue closely and to further establish the organization’s position and determine its actions to reduce the risks from these threats.