Mr. Speaker, last year's rail tragedy at Lac-Mégantic has prompted an examination by Parliament of the transport of dangerous goods. We learned that for 25 years, experts had been saying DOT-111 railcars were unsafe to carry dangerous goods, yet we still see hundreds rolling past homes, schools and daycares in my riding every day. The minister's announcement last week, ten months after the disaster, that these dangerous cars would continue to roll for three more years is not good enough.
At a recent town hall meeting on rail safety, residents in my riding asked why these trains were not being redirected onto safer routes, away from dense population centres. If the Transportation Safety Board says that these railcars can rupture at 20 miles per hour, why are these trains not being slowed down in populated areas? Why can the public not know what is being transported a few feet from their bedrooms? Why is the minister allowing the railroads to decide whether these routes and speeds are safe or not?
My residents, and residents elsewhere living near railway tracks, deserve better.