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  • Hazmat rules

  • Discussion relating to the Canadian National, past and present. Also includes discussion of Illinois Central and Grand Trunk Western and other subsidiary roads (including Bessemer & Lake Erie and the Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range Railway). Official site: WWW.CN.CA
Discussion relating to the Canadian National, past and present. Also includes discussion of Illinois Central and Grand Trunk Western and other subsidiary roads (including Bessemer & Lake Erie and the Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range Railway). Official site: WWW.CN.CA

Moderators: Komachi, Ken V

 #1533300  by John_Perkowski
 
CN Issues Embargo On Hazardous Materials

Fair use excerpt from the article
In a notice to customers, the railroad says it will “continue to move these commodities, but manage the flow through a permit process from our centralized operations center.” The railroad said it was taking the move to “protect network fluidity.”

I wonder if it will apply to US Operations.
 #1533321  by ExCon90
 
Since the speed restriction imposed by the Canadian government won't apply in the US, CN can't use that as justification for curtailing hazmat shipments within the US, and I don't think US law permits railroads to simply refuse hazmat shipments or impose anything resembling an embargo absent extraneous circumstances such as congestion. A problem may arise in the case of hazmat shipments originating in the US and destined to Canada; in such cases, based on past practice I think the Canadian embargo would be considered justification for restricting shipments originating in the US. The whole thing about the speed restriction looks to me like a knee-jerk reaction by micromanagers without direct responsibility who don't understand the situation.
 #1537731  by Ranger762
 
ExCon90 wrote: Mon Feb 10, 2020 4:43 pm looks to me like a knee-jerk reaction by micromanagers without direct responsibility who don't understand the situation.
Well, has any legislation ever be written by someone knowledgeable on the topic? Any law that's regulating something that isn't widely known by everyone is full of loopholes, errors, unclear parts... Everyone who's ever had to work with, for example, gun laws can confirm that.