Author: Gina Ferrantella

PHMSA’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) under docket HM-265 titled “Hazardous Materials: Advancing Safety of Highway, Rail, and Vessel Transportation” was published in the Federal register on October 28, 2024.

PHMSA has provided a 90-day comment period with comments due by January 27, 2025.

Each company should review the proposed rulemaking to determine how these changes may affect them.

The initial plan of Equipment EI-0001 was to escalate cars to severity level XX (restricted at interchange) that have not moved or are more than 2 years overdue for periodic air brake testing. In September 2023, the Arbitration and Rules Committee voted to change the initial focus to those cars that are overdue and have not moved in over 1 year. There are 30,000 cars that will be escalated to XX severity level by Wednesday, September 04, 2024.