COLUMBUS, Ohio — A new six-point safety plan was revealed by Norfolk Southern Monday in an "eager" effort to make "meaningful safety improvements."
This action comes more than a month since that train derailed in East Palestine, and another over the weekend in Springfield.
“These railroads, they just don't care,” said Clyde Whitaker, the state director of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers. “They're not held accountable. They think they're above the law."
Those six action items from Norfolk Southern mostly revolve around "hot bearing detectors."
“What that does is scans for a hot wheel or a hot bearing, dragging equipment or a combination of all three we're pushing for in our state is a combination of all three,” said Whitaker.
So here's a breakdown of that list:
Norfolk Southern said it will add 200 hot-bearing detectors, accelerate testing and deployment of advanced hot-bearing detectors, review practices for those detectors -- and re-evaluate the temperature threshold at which an alarm is set off.
In addition to hot bearing detectors,13 new acoustic bearing detectors will be installed.
The will also start utilizing artificial intelligence to identify needed repairs and defects, and lastly -- Norfolk Southern is joining a federal program that will allow rail workers to speak up if they see something is unsafe.
“We need shorter trains. We need better legislation on defect detectors. And right now our Senate in a state has the ability to do what's right,” said Whitaker. “So I hope they do the right thing for the whole state and passes HB 23.”