"The Obama administration's launch of a crude-by-rail safety inspection push dubbed the 'Bakken blitz' could open fault lines between freight operators and oil producers that have turned to the tracks to tote a record-high volume of flammable fuel."
"The potential for tension centers on parallel safety concerns stemming from the fatal July 6 derailment in Quebec of a 73-car Bakken oil train; operator choices such as using one-person crews on freight trains carrying hazardous materials, now prohibited in Canada; and shipper responsibilities such as classifying crude to reflect chemical properties that could lead to more severe fires and damage in the event of an accidental release.
A month before the Federal Railroad Administration and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration kick-started their joint oil-train inspection operation, a senior FRA official pointed to possible tank car corrosion from hydraulic fracturing chemicals and warned of regulators' inability to detect widespread misclassification of fuel shipments."
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