U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Aspinwall, and Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., plan to press the next Congress to invest up to $200 billion in passenger and freight rail overhauls across the country over the next five years, including tens of billions of dollars in safety improvements that Mr. Deluzio says are critical for Western Pennsylvania.

The pair is sponsoring legislation dubbed the All Aboard Act, which would boost high-speed rail and electrification projects, expand passenger rail service and establish a rail worker training grant program. Spreading $200 billion over five years, the proposal would bolster safety through programs created by the bipartisan infrastructure law, including $30 billion for a range of infrastructure improvements and $10 billion for projects making rail crossings safer.

Mr. Deluzio has been advocating for improved safety since a Norfolk Southern freighter carrying cancer-causing chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, near the Pennsylvania border in February 2023. The accident led to an unprecedented $600 million settlement on behalf of thousands of people impacted by the crash.

"I have spent a lot of time, more time than I expected, working on rail issues," Mr. Deluzio said in a news conference alongside Mr. Markey and labor and rail advocates last week. "Our neighbors in East Palestine, Ohio, lived through the horrific Norfolk Southern derailment as did my constituents in Beaver County. And we know we've got to fight for our people, for their safety and security. We know we can't trust the big railroads to regulate themselves. We need action from Congress to protect communities like mine who live near the tracks."

The congressman said about 95% of his constituents live within 5 miles of railroad tracks.

Mr. Markey and Mr. Deluzio, who both emphasized the proposal's commitment to union rail workers, will need to reintroduce the act and build more support in the new Congress next year.

Lawmakers expect robust debate on the levels of investment for rail as the Senate Commerce Committee looks to begin work on the next Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act.

While it would be an uphill battle to get a Republican-controlled House, Senate and White House to back Mr. Deluzio's and Mr. Markey's legislation, there are provisions that could gain bipartisan support and make their way into the larger reauthorization bill — particularly as states like Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi also have passenger rail projects underway, according to Mr. Markey's office.

The legislation would overhaul how states receive federal funding for rail investment, currently distributed through competitive grants. The All Aboard Act would instead set up a "dedicated rail formula program for states to do rail planning, maintenance, operations and capital investment," according to the lawmakers.

It would also invest $300 million to establish freight and passenger rail training centers run in partnership with organized labor.

Endorsed by almost two dozen labor, environmental and transportation advocacy groups, the act also includes a $50 billion "green railroad fund" to help electrify highly-polluting rail yards and the most-trafficked corridors.

"Other countries have long embraced clean, electrified trains," Mr. Markey told reporters. "But in the United States, outdated, smog-spewing locomotives continue to pollute the air of environmental justice communities and rail workers alike."

Chris Townsend, a longtime organizer with the United Electrical Workers, said in the news conference that thousands of workers linked to the rail industry, with a large concentration in Pennsylvania, grapple with "too many old jalopy locomotives ... that need to be replaced with new, clean ... electrified rail pieces."

Greg Regan, president of the Transportation Trades Department of the AFL-CIO, said in a statement that the proposal would expand high-speed rail programs and passenger rail systems, including Amtrak, while "reducing air pollution for both rail workers and the surrounding communities" and upholding an "essential industry safety standard by requiring two-person crews" for any resulting federally-funded projects.

Mr. Deluzio has separately been pressing Congress on the Railway Safety Act — which already has bipartisan support — since the East Palestine derailment.

That proposal calls on the Department of Transportation to establish new regulations for trains carrying hazardous materials, including requiring rail carriers or shippers to provide advanced notice to state emergency teams; reduce blocked rail crossings; and meet length, weight and speed restrictions. The bill also phases out certain tank cars and includes new fees and fines for carriers who fail to comply with safety regulations.

But the bill has stalled in the committee process. Introduced in the House last year by Mr. Deluzio and Republican New York Rep. Nick LaLota, it also has bipartisan backing in the Senate, including Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., and Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri.

Several original cosponsors are on their way out of the Senate, however, through election losses, retirement or a changing career track, including Sens. Bob Casey, D-Pa. and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla. (tapped for Secretary of State by President-elect Donald Trump), Sen. JD Vance of Ohio (the vice president-elect) and Sen. Mike Braun (the governor-elect of Indiana).

Messages left with Mr. Deluzio's office and Norfolk Southern were not immediately returned.

The congressman also introduced legislation geared to help protect the rights of an increasing number of Amtrak riders in Pennsylvania and nationwide. The bill would stop Amtrak from forcing passengers to give up certain rights when they buy their tickets, such as agreeing to arbitration and class action waivers in the case of personal injury claims, discrimination, gross negligence or wrongful death.

©2024 PG Publishing Co. Visit at post-gazette.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.