Safety Board wants new rules for train wheels after B.C. derailment

VANCOUVER – The Transportation Safety Board is recommending new railway safety guidelines for train wheels after a 36-car derailment near Fort Fraser in central B.C.

No one was hurt when the cars on the loaded Canadian National coal train jumped the tracks Feb. 12, 2011.

The safety board determined a wheel with obvious signs of fatigue broke, setting off the derailment.

The TSB report says under Association of American Railroads standards the wheel would have been condemned, but if Transport Canada standards were applied on inspection the wheel would have been left in service.

The board is recommending Transport Canada review its wheel safety standards to bring them up to the level of the Association of American Railroads.

Following the derailment, Transport Canada agreed to work with the industry to rewrite the inspection and safety rules around fatigue standards and wheel impact load detectors.

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