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On August 6th the Chairman of the WA State Legislative Board of
the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers
and Trainmen, Shahraim C. Allen, sent a letter of concerns to Scott
Ferguson, Department of Ecology, lead for Gov. Inslee's Marine and Rail Oil Transportation Study.
None of Chairman
Allen's concerns about rail safety are mentioned in the October 1st draft
report.
Areas of BLET concern include imminent risk to public health and safety
due to :
* the number
of inexperienced, “new hire” railroad
employees entering the railroad workforce inadequately trained and/or
familiarized with the workplace environment.
* the proposed
use of Single-Person Train Crews in
freight rail operations.
* both chronic
and acute fatigue in the railroad
industry.
* track
maintenance not commensurate with the number of heavy tonnage trains operated
on rail lines in Washington State.
* inadequate
regulatory oversight and cumbersome rulemaking by the Federal Railroad
Administration.
* the lack of
accountability in all area of operations
management within the railroads.
* crew fatigue
caused by inaccurate train line-ups, and poor or improper crew lodging
conditions.
* inadequate
Whistleblower protections afforded
railroad employees.
Why were these public safety concerns not addressed in the Gov's report??
This document being overlooked by DOE in Governor's safety report was the subject of my public comment. It was absolutely astounding that this voice of concern was not considered in the safety analysis. It makes me wonder just how many other documents of concerns were likewise omitted. More specifically, have they acknowledged the Washington State Physicians for Social Responsibility and their most profound statistics and facts on the healthy and safety affects of both oil proposals, specifically at Grays Harbor, and crude oil in general. Glaring omissions from this group appointed by our Governor to keep us safe and out of harm's way.
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