SENATE MEMORIAL 15

53rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2018

INTRODUCED BY

Michael Padilla

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO WORK WITH THE PUBLIC REGULATION COMMISSION, THE FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION, THE BROTHERHOOD OF LOCOMOTIVE ENGINEERS AND TRAINMEN AND THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SHEET METAL, AIR, RAIL AND TRANSPORTATION WORKERS TRANSPORTATION DIVISION TO REVIEW RAILROAD SAFETY OVERSIGHT IN NEW MEXICO AND DEVELOP A REPORT ON WAYS THAT SAFETY COULD BE ENHANCED BY INCLUDING RAILROAD EMPLOYEES IN THE SAFETY OVERSIGHT PROCESS.

     WHEREAS, two of the nation's high-volume, long-haul freight rail lines cross the width of New Mexico: the BNSF southern transcon rail line and the Union Pacific sunset rail line; and

     WHEREAS, the BNSF southern transcon rail line moves freight between the Pacific ocean port at Long Beach, California, and the shipping and rail hub in Chicago, Illinois, and nearly one hundred trains a day cross New Mexico on this line; and

     WHEREAS, the sunset rail line moves a rapidly growing freight volume between the Pacific ocean port at Long Beach, California, the freight distribution center at New Mexico's international border at Santa Teresa and various ports on the gulf of Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico has three significant passenger service trains: Amtrak's southwest chief with daily service between Los Angeles, California, and Chicago, Illinois; sunset limited with service three times a week between Los Angeles, California, and New Orleans, Louisiana; and RioMetro's rail runner service between Belen and Santa Fe that runs several times each day; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico also has a number of smaller short-haul freight and passenger rail lines; and

     WHEREAS, there are thousands of miles of railroad track in New Mexico transversing a wide variety of terrain, from steep mountain gradients to unpopulated plains to busy urban streets; and

     WHEREAS, railways in New Mexico are served by numerous rail stations, loading facilities and depots; and

     WHEREAS, the federal railroad administration and the public regulation commission have very limited staff resources to provide railroad safety oversight; and

     WHEREAS, there are hundreds of railroad employees that travel over New Mexico's rail tracks or work in the train stations, loading facilities and depots every day; and

     WHEREAS, there were forty rail safety incidents in New Mexico in 2017, resulting in twenty injuries to railroad employees and three fatalities within the general public; and

     WHEREAS, rail safety incidents have the potential to cause great harm, as evidenced by the derailment of a passenger train in Tacoma, Washington, in December 2017 and the June 2016 collision of two trains near Amarillo, Texas;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the department of transportation be requested to work collaboratively with the federal railroad administration, the public regulation commission, the brotherhood of locomotive engineers and trainmen and the international association of sheet metal, air, rail and transportation workers transportation division to evaluate railroad safety oversight in New Mexico and develop a report with proposals to increase the strength and efficiency of that oversight by inclusion of railroad employees in the safety oversight process; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that during its evaluation, the department of transportation receive comments from a wide spectrum of the general public; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the department of transportation, the federal railroad administration, the public regulation commission, the brotherhood of locomotive engineers and trainmen and the international association of sheet metal, air, rail and transportation workers transportation division present the railroad safety oversight report to an appropriate legislative interim committee prior to that committee's last meeting in 2018; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the secretary of transportation, the public regulation commission, the region five office of the federal railroad administration, the New Mexico representative of the brotherhood of locomotive engineers and trainmen and the New Mexico representative of the international association of sheet metal, air, rail and transportation workers transportation division. 

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