SECURING RAIL FREIGHT

The author discusses the importance and difficulty of keeping railroad freight transportation secure from attacks by terrorists, accidental hazardous waste spillage, and natural disasters. He describes the differing positions of some of the key agencies involved in keeping our railroads secure; relates the consequences of a freight train derailment in Baltimore in July, 2001 that was carrying hazardous chemicals (though there were no deaths or injuries, the fire burned for 5 days and caused extensive delays to the transportation system); notes the many "lead" agencies involved in securing railroads; and discusses agency cooperation. The author relates that, because the federal government has not provided detailed guidelines in this area, the railroads and private chemical companies have developed their own procedures since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The railroad industry has been policing itself for many years, and has a degree of confidence that it can continue to keep its freight trains secure. One area of disagreement among agencies is how much information should be shared, and when. Some agencies feel that the sooner they are warned, the better. While other agencies and federal officials think that too much warning could tip off terrorists and give them crucial information to plan attacks.

• Record URL:
  • http://www.homelandsecurity.org/
• Corporate Authors:

  ANSER Institute for Homeland Security

  2900 South Quincy Street, Suite 800
  Arlington, VA  United States  22206
• Authors:
  • Dunham, S
• Publication Date: 2003-2

Language

• English

Media Info

• Pagination: 11 p.
• Serial:
  • Journal of Homeland Security
  • Publisher: ANSER Institute for Homeland Security

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Cooperation; Countermeasures; Derailments; Disaster preparedness; Disasters and emergency operations; Fatalities; Federal government; Fires; Freight trains; Government agencies; Hazardous chemicals; Information dissemination; Injuries; Interagency relations; National security; Procedures; Railroad crashes; Railroads; Spills (Pollution); Terrorism; Threats
• Identifier Terms: Terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001
• Geographic Terms: Baltimore (Maryland); United States
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Data and Information Technology; Freight Transportation; Railroads; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00972516
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Apr 22 2004 12:00AM