Evidence of meeting #46 for Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was track.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:15 p.m.
Bloc
Roger Gaudet Bloc Montcalm, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
When there is an accident, a derailment or something like that, is Transport Canada required to go to the site?
4:15 p.m.
Director General, Rail Safety, Department of Transport
When an accident happens, the Transportation Safety Board is responsible for investigating to determine the cause. I would say that we, ourselves, are under investigation in some way. The board may find that we did not do our job properly and submit a recommendation.
We still send someone to the site, especially if there are injuries. We must also check whether rules or regulations were not followed. We have the right to investigate to determine whether someone did something that was not in line with the regulations.
But, as for the cause of the accident, it's the TSB that investigates. Its employees go to the site. We have the power to appoint someone we call the minister's observer, someone who will liaise between the investigators and the minister should something need to be resolved right away.
4:15 p.m.
Bloc
Roger Gaudet Bloc Montcalm, QC
Aren't the observer, the minister and your department too closely connected? The same minister is responsible for the TSB and your department.
4:15 p.m.
Director General, Rail Safety, Department of Transport
No, the TSB does not fall under the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities.
4:15 p.m.
Director General, Rail Safety, Department of Transport
I believe it reports directly to Parliament. It doesn't come under us.
4:15 p.m.
Director General, Rail Safety, Department of Transport
No, not at all. The people in the office do a very good job. They conduct good investigations and aren't always very gentle with us, either.
4:15 p.m.
Bloc
4:15 p.m.
Director General, Rail Safety, Department of Transport
It's addressed to the minister. The report is public and appears on the TSB website. If you go to the site, you'll find all the reports written each year. So, if an accident in your riding was investigated, there will be a full report.
4:15 p.m.
Bloc
Roger Gaudet Bloc Montcalm, QC
My other question is about the planned changes in Bill C-33. There are highlights, but I don't understand them at all. Why amend the act? Are things really that bad? Why change the regulations? Are some of its components upsetting people?
4:15 p.m.
Director General, Rail Safety, Department of Transport
In 2005, there were some accidents that received a lot of media attention. There was an increase in accidents between 2002 and 2005. At that point, the minister decided that it was time to revise the act, something that hadn't been done for a number of years. The most recent amendments dated back to 1999. At the same time, your committee—the members who were on it at the time—also considered the seriousness of the situation and decided to conduct its own study.
One of your colleagues, Mr. Bevington, spoke about the accident in Wabamun, which happened on August 3, 2005. It caused fairly significant environmental damage. Two days later, there was another in the Cheakamus Canyon, where there was also damage. There was a series of accidents, there were some fatalities, and so on. That's what instigated a review of the act.
4:15 p.m.
Bloc
Roger Gaudet Bloc Montcalm, QC
Things were going well for 15 or 20 years, then over a period of two or three, there were a lot of accidents. Is it because the standards had been relaxed? Was there negligence involved?
4:15 p.m.
Director General, Rail Safety, Department of Transport
There was an increase in railway traffic.
4:15 p.m.
Director General, Rail Safety, Department of Transport
We tried to carry out our mandate as best as we could. The minister determined at one point that, given the increase in accidents and in traffic, it was time that we sit down and revise the act, that we evaluate everything, because it had been a number of years since it had been done. We didn't get a lot of resources. I can say that we are satisfied with what we were given, to be perfectly honest.
4:15 p.m.
Director General, Rail Safety, Department of Transport
It was more difficult. I would not say that the industry became less safe, but there was an increase in traffic. So the frequency of accidents could well be the same, it could well be less, but in absolute figures, there were more accidents because there were more trains. We had to adapt to that situation.
4:15 p.m.
Conservative
Bradley Trost Conservative Saskatoon—Humboldt, SK
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I just want to follow up on some of Sukh's questions about fatigue.
You mentioned there were new guidelines that had been introduced. Could you elaborate on the new guidelines and the reasoning behind the changes?
4:15 p.m.
Director General, Rail Safety, Department of Transport
First of all, as I said, both reports talked about it. We know it's a harsh environment for train crews. They're working in the middle of the night, sometimes in a dark territory. It's not always easy. Contrary to what a lot of people think, it's a pretty hard job. We have to come up with a better way to assist them in coping with fatigue. We have guidelines to help them cope with that. I mentioned earlier the work-rest rules. We're looking at reopening them, and we'll probably look at maybe fewer hours a day per train crew so that it's easier for them.
It will have to do as well with better scheduling of the train crews so that they know ahead of time that they may go out. Contrary to VIA Rail or commuter rails, which have scheduled trains, it's a bit harder for freight trains. A lot of times the train crew must be rested for a certain period, and they're not sure if they're going to go out. They're trying now, as much as they can, to do better scheduling so that they have a certain timeframe during which they know they may go out and will be rested properly. If you're 36 hours without going out on a train, there's a chance that you got your sleep after your last trip, and you may be awake for some time--12, 14, or 18 hours. So they're going to try, with the railways, to do better scheduling to assist the crews.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Bradley Trost Conservative Saskatoon—Humboldt, SK
Thank you for that.
One of the things I've found most interesting or different about this proposed legislation is the position of one officer in every company who would be completely in charge of safety. The person would be totally, ultimately, responsible for it. I wonder if you could elaborate on the reasoning for that. Has it been done in any other jurisdiction? Where did the idea come from? I'd like a little bit more background on that, because it seems to me a bit of a novel idea.
