The Center Square) – A bill that could improve rail safety in Pennsylvania passed the state House in bipartisan fashion on Wednesday.
State Rep. Rob Matzie, D-Beaver, author of House Bill 1191, noted on the House floor that it’s been three years since a Norfolk Southern freight train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, which released toxic chemicals, causing widespread environmental and health concerns in the region and parts of neighboring southwest Pennsylvania.
“It made them sick, drove them from their homes,” Matzie said. “Many are still affected to this day.”
“It shined a harsh light on the inherent dangers of transporting hazardous materials and current rail safety practices,” he added.
The Pennsylvania House passed similar legislation in the aftermath of the accident, but it ultimately did not advance in the state Senate. Meanwhile, a comparable federal proposal, the Railway Safety Act of 2023, also failed to pass Congress.
“The stakes are too high, the risks too great,” Matzie said on Wednesday. “We very clearly cannot afford to wait any longer, something must change.”
“There is undoubtedly an inherent danger in the transport of these materials,” he added. “Nothing has changed.”
Matzie’s proposal aims to improve rail safety by prohibiting trains from blocking crossings, which could delay emergency responders. Supporters of the legislation believe this can ensure faster response times.
“Something must change,” Matzie said. “How many derailments are enough? How many more lives should be ruined? How much property should be damaged? How many East Palestines should we expect? When is enough enough?”
Since 2023, the U.S. has averaged roughly three train derailments per day, according to Matzie, totaling over 1,200 annually.
The length of freight or work trains would be limited to 8,500 feet, or approximately 1.6 miles, in this proposal.
Matzie noted the bill also would require safe staffing levels for trains or light engines, including a minimum of a two-person crew on a train or light engine and authorizes a union representative to monitor safety practices and operations of a railroad. This, he argues, would allow a representative to take photographs and conduct investigations without being accused of trespassing.
Another provision of the bill would ensure proper functioning of wayside detector systems, which warn when trains are overheating because of problems that can cause derailments.
Matzie also said the bill strengthens oversight by requiring studies, a reporting system and additional precautions for trains transporting hazardous materials or waste. Civil penalties would be imposed for violating the regulations.
The bill passed by a 120-79 vote on Wednesday with the support of every Democrat and 18 Republicans.
State Rep. Dallas Kephart, R-Clearfield, described Matzie as a “fair” and “reasonable” legislator, but voted in opposition to the bill. He said the proposal would require trains to stop and unhook before continuing as they are coming into the state,
“That simply isn’t practical,” Kephart said.
Noting that his district regularly uses rail, Kephart also said he believes the bill would negatively impact those in his district employed by the rail company and by energy producers in the state by making transport more expensive.
“This bill will make it more expensive to not only transport coal, but oil and stone and so forth,” he said.
Kephart also cited quotes from former President Joe Biden’s solicitor general, Elizabeth Prelogar, and a court ruling that claims a similar bill raised “serious federal preemption issues,” and could change property rights.
Matzie pushed back.
“Despite what former President Biden’s Solicitor General said, what others have said in the past about it, preemption issues, we have an opportunity to say, no, no,” he said. “Title 49 allows us to participate.”
“Think about the people you represent,” he added. “Think about public safety.”
Last month, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission recommended that the state strengthen truck speed limits, maintain compliance records for railroad companies, and create emergency routes for loads with hazardous materials that divert away from communities.
Despite these reform efforts, Matzie made clear that this bill is “not an attack on freight rail.”
“There has been no greater proponent of freight rail than Rob Matzie,” he said. “Rail transport remains the safest method of transport for hazardous materials and waste, but it needs to be even safer. The status quo simply will not do.”
