Mayo Clinic to Canadian Pacific Railroad: Safety first

Mayo submits safety proposals for railroad

By Jeffrey Pieters, Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN

Flammable and hazardous materials, such as ethanol, propane and anhydrous ammonia, carried through Rochester on the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad, pose a bigger public safety threat than coal ever did.

So says Mayo Clinic in a written statement to federal regulators reviewing Canadian Pacific Railway's proposed acquisition of the DM&E.

The statement was to be filed today with the federal Surface Transportation Board, which will decide by fall whether to allow the acquisition, and under what conditions to allow it.

What Mayo wants

Mayo Clinic's proposed safety requirements for the railroad line through Rochester include requiring the railroad company to:

• Build multiple grade-separated road crossings of the tracks, meaning using bridges or tunnels.
• Adhere to local speed limits of 10 mph for trains carrying hazardous cargo and 20 mph for other cargo.
• Inform Rochester emergency services before hazardous materials are sent through the city.
• Limit the number of trains through Rochester.

(The rest is here.)