However, the rule was narrowly crafted and only applied to certain “high-hazard flammable trains” carrying at least 20 consecutive loaded cars filled with liquids such as crude oil. The safety rule, issued in 2015, required electronically controlled brakes – which apply braking simultaneously across a train rather than railcar by railcar over a span of seconds – to be installed by 2023. 3 in eastern Ohio and spilled chemicals, leaving residents in East Palestine worried about their air, soil and water quality. The effort to create a new safety rule was fought by industry lobbyists, including Norfolk Southern Corp., the Atlanta-based company whose train derailed Feb. The following year, a derailment in Casselton, North Dakota, spilled nearly 500,000 gallons of crude oil and caused $13.5 million in damage, prompting the Obama administration to push for a new safety rule to govern the transportation of hazardous materials, avoid environmental disasters and save lives. In 2013, a train derailment and subsequent fire in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, killed 47 people and required all but three downtown buildings to be demolished for safety reasons. But, when an emergency occurs, stopping quickly with heavier, longer trains is far more difficult. Overall train length and weight have both grown over the last decade partly in an effort by companies to be more efficient.As railroad operators have faced more competition with long-haul truckers, the major companies have worked to decrease costs, including by cutting the workforce.Department of Transportation safety rule that may have helped limit the impact of this month's derailment.
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