"Norfolk Southern Says It Will Stop Hauling Key Chemicals on Dec. 1"

"One of the nation’s largest railroads has notified customers that it will stop shipping key chemicals used in water treatment and agriculture on Dec. 1, the latest development in a standoff over a year-end safety deadline few railroads are expected to meet.

Norfolk Southern told customers Tuesday that it would cease hauling poisonous-by-inhalation materials a month ahead of a Dec. 31 deadline to install positive train control, a collision avoidance system Congress required in 2008.

The materials include chlorine, which is used to purify municipal water supplies, and anhydrous ammonia, a key ingredient in fertilizer."

Curtis Tate reports for the McClatchy Washington Bureau October 20, 2015.

Source: McClatchy, 10/23/2015