Illinois city the 16th to oppose remotes
CLEVELAND, April 17 -- The Village of Dupo, Ill., became the 16th U.S. city to approve a resolution prohibiting the use of remote control locomotives.
Sixteen cities and seven counties have now adopted resolutions that call for improved safety of remote control operations.
The resolution, passed on April 7, urges the Federal Railroad Administration to develop comprehensive regulations governing the use of remote control.
Members of the group Railroad Employees for Safety/Quality (RRESQ) worked for the passage of the resolution along with members of the BLE. BLE Illinois State Legislative Board Chairman C.E. Way attended the meetings in support of the resolution.
Dupo Mayor Ron Dell said use of remote control locomotives is "known to present significant danger to persons and property with respect to collision, derailment and possible release of hazardous material." He added that the risk is especially worrisome in the face of a federal government safety alert related to vandalism and terrorist threats against railroads.
"It has been reported that in the past year, there have been 37 separate rail accidents, including two fatalities, involving one or more cars operated by remote control technology," said Dell.
For a PDF of the resolution, click here:
http://www.ble.org/pr/pdf/dupo.pdf
(The Cahokia-Dupo Journal contributed to this article.)
Thursday, April 17, 2003
bentley@ble.org
