News / Risk from longer freight trains highlighted as NTSB sums up Ohio derailment

Drone footage shows the freight train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. NTSBGov/Handout

As US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) members gather in East Palestine, Ohio, today to discuss their findings in the Norfolk Southern (NS) derailment case, exceptionally long trains – a cornerstone of precision scheduled railroading (PSR) – have come under attack in a recent scientific paper.

The February 2023 derailment in East Palestine caused 38 cars to spill consignments of vinyl chloride, ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, ethyl-hexyl acrylate and other toxic chemicals into local soil and waterways, prompting the evacuation of ...