The federal government has unveiled a new set of rules aimed at improving rail safety in Canada.
They include tougher hand brake requirements, more Transport Canada staff to do audits, more research on crude oil properties and a requirement that rail companies submit training plans for review.
The news comes after a review of the Lac-Megantic disaster by the Transportation Safety Board.
It found 254 missing or late accident reports over a seven-year period.
On August 26, 2014, three cars derailed at a rail yard in Emerson, Man.
There was no spill and no injuries, but it did raise concerns.
"It was a scentless propane, so that's when my concern (increased) because without having any scent on it - that was dangerous to us,” said Mike Letkeman, who lives near the rail yard.
Nearly 40 homes were evacuated as part of a state of emergency.
While the federal government has unveiled a new set of rules aimed at improving rail safety across the country, the measures are drawing criticism from some.
"You can't allow companies to first and foremost be inspecting themselves, and that's still the system that we have in Canada," said Thomas Mulcair, federal NDP leader.
Part of the guidelines include letting municipalities know what's coming through on each rail car.
"Who will have the time to basically go through that? It's just like trying to track who's driving through your town with cars or trucks," said Wayne Arseny, mayor of Emerson.
He said even though rail cars move slowly through his town - better labelling would let emergency personnel deal with issues faster.
"I think cars should be clearly (labelled), so that fire departments and emergency personnel will instantly know," he said. "A lot of times you can't get close to the car to look at those numbers, so you have to use binoculars.”
The City of Winnipeg released a statement on Oct. 30.
“As per federal regulation the rail lines have begun to report the manifest/inventory of materials that pass through the city. The information that is received, is received after the materials have passed through the city,” said the city.
“The City’s Emergency Preparedness Program meets with rail line companies and rail lines conducts exercises and seminars on a regular basis. The City takes an all hazards approach to emergency planning and therefore is prepared for rail incidents. WFPS responds to all rail incidents with caution, believing there is likely hazardous materials. HazMat from fire department is always dispatched with a rail 911 call, then sent back if not needed.”
- with a report from Cheryl Holmes and files from The Canadian Press
