New freight crew rule tests rail industry's clout, one year after East Palestine disaster

• One year after the East Palestine, Ohio train derailment created an environmental disaster, the Biden administration unveiled new regulations intended to shore up freight rail safety.
• The new rule requiring two person crews on large trains closes a loophole that allowed railroads to keep operating one-person crews.
• But the rule stops short of the kind of rail safety innovations that the Biden administration and members of Congress had originally envisioned in response to East Palestine.
• Making any major updates to rail safety will require congressional funding that the freight industry opposes.

One year after the East Palestine, Ohio train derailment created an environmental disaster, the Biden administration on Tuesday unveiled new regulations intended to shore up freight rail safety.

A new rule finalized by the Federal Railroad Administration will require freight trains in the United States to operate with at least two crewmembers in most circumstances.

The government previously instituted a two-person crew requirement, but a loophole allowed railroads to keep operating one-person crews without performing a rigorous risk assessment or notifying regulators.

"Common sense tells us that large freight trains, some of which can be over three miles long, should have at least two crew members on board - and now there's a federal regulation in place to ensure trains are safely staffed," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement Tuesday.

The United States averages at least one train derailment every day. In 2023, there were seven rail-related employee deaths, said Buttigieg. He said the new rule will make railroads safer and prevent worker injuries and fatigue.

Yet the new rule stops short of the kind of