Long Trains Pose Risks for Railroads, Warned Experts.
The Federal Railroad Administration has issued a safety advisory to railroads, warning them about the potential problems and derailments that long trains can cause. While the advisory did not recommend limiting train size, it did suggest precautions such as ensuring engineers are trained to handle long trains and that locomotives don't lose communication with devices at the end of trains. Members of Congress and state lawmakers have proposed establishing limits on train size, but major freight railroads have pushed back against the idea. The Federal Railroad Administration cited three derailments involving trains longer than 12,250 feet where train length was a factor in its advisory.