this post was submitted on 09 Jul 2024

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1103

Hazmat transportation be like (i.ibb.co)

submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago

Don't forget oil tankers and cruise ships with their fuel, cargo, and waste.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

Norfolk Southern, what's your function?

"Flyin' off the rails and hitting everyone!"

[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 months ago

its still funny to me that organ transit is just done in a vehicle, in a styrofoam cooler. They just put stickers on the back of the vehicle and call it a day.

[–] [email protected] 25 points 3 months ago (2 children)

I worked as a conductor for a little while. It's a law that anything containing hazardous materials HAS to move after a certain amount of time. I personally toured over 100 cars of hazmat from one end of the yard, through town, and back around into the other end of the yard so we could say it moved.

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Everybody gives the German rail flak for being late all the time and for 100 years-old technology and lacking personnel. But rail crashes are really rare. You gotta give them that. The switches may be operated by hand, but they’re safe.

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[–] [email protected] 125 points 3 months ago (1 children)

[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 months ago (1 children)

The feds still technically own large portions of the rail system, why would they throw themselves under the bus.

[–] [email protected] 51 points 3 months ago (4 children)

That’s absolutely false. The feds only own small, short rail for passenger services. Other than that they own the northeast corridor from Washington DC to Boston. All other rail is directly owned by the rail companies. The feds really should nationalize the rail and have these cartels pay to use the rail. That way the fed can actually make sure the rail is in good condition and stop these big chemical spills.

[+] [email protected] -13 points 3 months ago (4 children)

They own several sections of track and you forgot to mention that it's the most popular publicly owned transit in the US. It's not insignificant. And similarly they still maintain interest in the transcontinental railroad they just do not gain a profit or have complete control. You also fail to note that the federal government owns Amtrak so how exactly was what I said "completely false".

[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago (5 children)

it’s the most popular publicly owned transit in the US

compared next to what? Fucking nasa?

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[–] [email protected] 19 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (13 children)

Wrong again, the most popular US public transportation would go to the New York City Subway. At 2 billion rides a year compared to Amtrack’s about 23 million rides a year. It is insignificant compared to the hundred and sixty thousand miles of rail in the US. Amtrak only owns 750 miles of track. So you tell me is .4% of all the rail in the US significant? The only interest the feds maintain in US rail, aside from owning amtrack, is in regulating railroads and transportation. Those agencies would be the federal railroad administration and the surface transportation board, along with state regulators in some states. What you said is completely false, as you said “the feds still technically own large portions of the rail system” and I’m telling you that .4% is not large portions of the rail system.

[+] [email protected] -11 points 3 months ago (1 children)

The New York subway system isn't federal, it's state.

No, it's not. A thousand miles of track is more then exists in all of some countries.

I think your idea of large is just skewed, short lines are a thing and are often shorter then 750 though that is changing with rapid consolidation.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

“They own several sections of track and you forgot to mention that it's the most popular publicly owned transit in the US.” I don’t know how you came to the conclusion that I said the New York subway is federal. I said that it is actually the most popular public transportation in the US. Okay cool some countries have less than 1000 miles of rail, I’m sure I could have figured that out on my own. But the US has 160,000 miles and 750 of that is, guess what, .4%. So yes it’s fucking small compared to the total rail in the US. My idea of large is not skewed in the slightest, 160,000 is much bigger than 750, simple maths. Yeah short lines are a thing, and guess what, they are not long. It honestly makes no sense that you are comparing amtrack to countries that don’t have much rail, when the entire conversation is about US rail. Like I can say that the US has more miles of road than Cuba, but that has no impact on how many of the roads are paved vs dirt in the US. That’s pretty much what you are saying. Let me put it this way, there was approximately 245 billion miles traveled in 2021 for European passenger rail. While for the same year amtrack had 12.1 million miles traveled. Which if you do the math is .005%.

[–] [email protected] -2 points 3 months ago (8 children)

How exactly is state regulated state funded subway relevant to federally regulated partially federally funded railroads? It's not in my opinion but if you're going somewhere with it I'm intrigued.

Correct, it's not gigantic but for a federal rail system even the "small" Amtrak section it in itself isn't small.

Nope, I think it's skewed. If you think that small section isn't enough for governmental interest in lack of regulation I think you're absolutely mistaken.

Much like how the NYC subway is in no way related to federal rail or federally regulated rail. I don't even think mta handles hazmat in any way at all whatsoever so how does it matter in relation to chemical spills?

Again, I think you're simply not willing to connect the dots.

Btw that's 137000 miles of publicly funded highly regulated passenger rail which by your account we have 750 miles. And you claim I'm bringing up irrelevant stuff.

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago (1 children)

You fail to note that those rails are irrelevant to the conversation.

Stop being an idiot choosing to completely miss and obfuscate the point. It's just... pathetic.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 3 months ago

They're not, they have interest in not being regulated well enough for the same reason any other for profit business does.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Which of the recent chemical spills have been on federally owned rail?

[–] [email protected] -4 points 3 months ago (7 children)

None as far as I'm aware. The point is they make a profit so they have the same reason to avoid being regulated well enough.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago (1 children)

None as far as I'm aware

Wow, I guess that kind of makes that a totally irrelevant derailing of this post about chemical spills on railways.

[–] [email protected] -2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

The chemical spills are because of lack of regulation. Agreed?

That lack of regulation is because of for profit companies going as cheap as possible to make more money. Agreed?

The federal government owns a for profit passenger line that is comparatively large to other private passenger lines in the us. Agreed?

The federal government has a hand in regulating the same rails it has a stake in. Agreed?

So how exactly are these things not relevant in relation to chemical spills due to lack of regulation.... Like what?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Sorry, “the government runs some passenger lines so it’s the government’s fault that private companies on privately owned rail regularly create environmental disasters” doesn’t check out.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 3 months ago

With regulation being a federal issue yes. How is that a leap?

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[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 months ago

I hate it when Amtrak dumps hazardous waste everywhere!

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[–] [email protected] 40 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Is this a general indictment of railroad companies, or am I about to read about something ghastly in the news?

[–] [email protected] 13 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

It's not a US only issue

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lac-M%C3%A9gantic_rail_disaster

Railroad companies need to be shut down and the whole thing needs to be nationalized.

[–] [email protected] 52 points 3 months ago (2 children)

No, but apparently you missed the largest chemical spill in US history while you were asleep over the last year or so.

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/ohio-derailment-chemicals-spilled-impact-residents-rcna71561

and the one that happened after that.

and the other one that happened again right after that.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

I wish i could sleep for about a year or so.

[–] [email protected] 29 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Oh, I don't doubt that they have a horrible track record, I know how that scene from the meme ends.

You know how sometimes you hear about breaking events from memes? I was wondering if this was that.

[–] [email protected] 27 points 3 months ago

track record

I see what you did there

[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 months ago (1 children)

There was a massive ammonia spill in the last few days.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 months ago

Thanks, I found a story about that: article

That's scary stuff, ammonia's no joke. It sounds like if the wind was blowing the other way several people could have been teargassed to death. Imagine if that happened in a city...

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