New Committee To Look At Railway Safety

With the recent fatal train crash in Quebec that destroyed a community, a lot of groups are talking about how to make rail shipping safer, when it comes to dangerous goods such as oil.

Last week, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities formed a committee on rail safety in Canada.  Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities President David Marit is one of two Saskatchewan delegates on the committee.

"We're hoping to put forward some good recommendations to the railways and Transport Canada, as far as ways that we can deal with the concerns being raised here," said Marit.

He says there will always be rail traffic, especially in Saskatchewan but the group wants to find ways to make it as safe as possible, while not making it so inconvenient for companies that they give up on it.

Marit says their main concerns are focused on trains that go through the heart of communities since there is the potential for serious disasters, like what happened in Quebec.  Making sure first responders are also prepared to handle goods, like oil, being shipped on trains is another focus of the panel.