Train Derailment Topic Of Hearing At Ohio Statehouse

(ONN) – People are asking what can be done to prevent another train derailment in Ohio after the one in early February in East Palestine.

That question was at the center of a Homeland Security hearing at the Ohio Statehouse.

Tightening safety regulations, and enforcement of those safety regulations has to come at the federal level.

That was the message from a leader of one of the state’s largest rail labor unions.

John Esterly is the chairman of the Ohio State Legislative Board with the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, the union that represents many railroad employees.

Esterly is pushing for tighter safety regulations in a transportation budget request.

He wants to see two-person crews maintained on freight trains and clearer guidance on wayside defect detectors, which detect issues with rail cars.