"Told To Fix Leaky Oil Train Cars in 2 Months, Owners Sought 3 Years"

"WASHINGTON -- Railroad tank cars equipped with defective valves still will be allowed to transport crude oil and other hazardous materials through the end of the year, despite a March directive from federal regulators requiring their replacement within 60 days.

The Federal Railroad Administration order followed a Bellingham (Wash.) Herald story about a leaking oil train reported in Washington state in January. The Railway Supply Institute, trade group representing tank-car owners, wrote the agency in April asking for a three-year extension to replace the faulty valves on tank cars that carry hazardous materials.

About 6,000 tank cars were affected by the recall, issued on March 13. On May 12, the day of the original deadline, regulators wrote back to the trade group that the agency found no basis to give tank car owners until 2018 to comply, but nonetheless gave them until Dec. 31, an extension of more than six months."

Curtis Tate and Samantha Wohlfeil report for the McClatchy Washington Bureau September 2, 2015.

SEE ALSO:

"Feds Seek To Boost Safety of Oil Train Track Crossings" (The Hill)

"'Bomb Trains' Continue To Roll Through Heavily Populated Areas" (National Observer)

"New Report Shows 1 Million Kids Go To School Near Rail Lines" (KION)

"City Council Opposes Plan To Ship Oil Via Train Through L.A." (My News L.A.)