A Progressive Approach to Protecting America's Railways

A Progressive Approach to Protecting America's Railways

April 21, 2005

There are 170,000 miles of railway in the United States and each year 83 million tons of hazardous material is shipped on these railways. Yet even after the attacks of 9/11 and the string of train bombings in Madrid, the United States still lacks a comprehensive strategy to decrease the ongoing risk of terrorist attack. The Bush administration has not required the rail industry to safeguard shipments of hazardous materials. The president's 2005 budget allocates only $100 million for rail security, equal to what the U.S. spends on eight hours in Iraq. Here are some progressive ideas for protecting our railways:

• The federal government should identify all major cities where dangerous materials and freights come in close contact with people and neighborhoods and move to re-route these trains. Every day, freight trains run tons of dangerous materials like chlorine directly through major metropolitan areas. The potential for catastrophic accidents or terrorist attacks is huge. The government should immediately identify the most important areas and begin re-routing these trains away from major urban centers.
  
  
• The federal government should work with local governments to improve both physical security and emergency response capabilities along major rail corridors. More than three years after 9/11, America still lacks a coordinated federal and state effort to protect our railways. The Department of Homeland Security has failed to make railway protection a top priority and localities lack the funds and resources to deal with potentially lethal terrorist attacks.
  
  
• The federal government should try to reduce the overall volume of toxic, explosive and lethal substances on the nation's railways. The amount of dangerous materials traveling on the nation's railways is far too high and must be reduced. The government should work to increase local or regional production of these materials to reduce the distance required for their transport and take advantage of the availability of safer alternatives and technology. 

Click here to read more in American Progress’s “Critical Infrastructure Security Series.”

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