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Ryan calls for more safety measures on CSX trains in Hudson Valley

Mar 03, 2023 12:21 pm

Mid-Hudson News reports that Congressperson Pat Ryan sent a letter to CSX President & CEO Joseph Hinrichs demanding the company adopt more safety standards to stop a major train accident locally. Ryan says CSX trains carrying toxic materials have derailed repeatedly over the past several years, including in the Hudson Valley. Ryan, a Democrat who represents the 18th Congressional District and a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, also wants a congressional hearing on rail safety. Ryan said, “We’ve seen a disturbing pattern of CSX consistently putting profit over safety, creating serious risk that what happened in Ohio could repeat itself right here in the Hudson Valley.... Just like Norfolk Southern, CSX and other big rail corporations spent millions lobbying the last President to deregulate the railways, resulting in the administration withdrawing a proposal to require faster brakes on trains carrying highly flammable materials and ending regular rail safety audits of railroads." In 2017, there was a CSX derailment in Newburgh that spilled 4,600 tons of diesel fuel. There are 131 miles of CSX tracks along the Hudson River and into New Jersey. Read more about this story at Mid-Hudson News.