Rail hazards are not uncommon in Winnipeg.
In 2012, aa ball of fire soared into the sky above Saint-Boniface after a fuel plant caught fire, igniting an oil tanker in its wake.
For Tom Scott, who has lived in St. Boniface for 34 years, it was a wake-up call.
“We see the damage that can happen very quickly. It’s just not, you know, something happens and, “Well, it’s gotten a little out of hand.” We will take care of it. It can get out of hand quite easily,” he said.
This is not the first rail transportation event he has encountered during his time in St. Boniface.
“We had a derailment here. And as you know, there have been many other derailments, much more serious derailments,” he said.
“It’s more concerning.”
A recent report from the University of Manitoba shows that 40 percent of St. Boniface residents are exposed to dangers related to rail transportation.
“The possibility of a derailment, and if the train is carrying dangerous goods, there could be a spill leading to a fire which could result in the evacuation or isolation of residents of the communities,” said Ijeoma Eze, the one of the authors of the report.
Over the past decade, she said the average train length has increased by more than 27 percent per year. This means “increased delays and safety risks,” particularly for St. Boniface’s 26 schools, hospitals, seniors’ facilities and daycares located within 800 meters of the railway tracks.
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This is the evacuation and isolation buffer zone recommended by Transport Canada, which it says is too small.
“Depending on the intensity of the incident, yes, it could be felt up to two kilometers from the scene of the incident,” she said.
Eze recommends moving the railway as a potential solution, but St. Boniface councilor Matt Allard said it’s complicated.
“There are serious negative interactions, whether it’s safety, convenience or noise. And on the other hand, I think I heard the other day that there would be 2,000 jobs – and good paying jobs – in Winnipeg,” he said, adding that if that was a solution simple, it probably would have happened.
“If we could wave a magic wand and completely separate the rail lines from any municipality in Manitoba, keep jobs going and keep goods moving (and) Winnipeg residents happy, then that’s the one I would wave . But they’ve been looking for this wand… (for) years.
He referenced the latest railway relocation study undertaken by the province.
But for Scott, the question is not so vague.
“Moving the rail lines eliminates all the dangers, eliminates all the worries, all the worries, all the health problems, all the traffic jams and paves the way for a healthier lifestyle for everyone,” he said. he declared.
Eze’s study states that “when rail lines pass through residential areas, safety risks, pollution, noise, vibration and traffic hazards are imposed on residents. Significant social, health, economic and security challenges (also) arise.
These include injuries, landscape disruption, loss of community cohesion, increased stress, increased crime and decreased property values.
St. Boniface didn’t always face these risks with such strict measures, Scott said, reflecting on his early years there.
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“I remember a time when we very rarely had a level crossing there. Now trains pass there all the time,” he said. “So that’s more concerning.”
Yet the trains themselves are not the problem, he said: “It’s what they carry, their size, etc.” »
He hopes that some form of decision or movement can come soon.
“Maybe we can never get rid of all the rail lines, but maybe in 20 years we will have 50 percent fewer of them. That’s a big reduction. You know, in five years, if we got rid of even two or three rail lines, that would be a start. We will never finish if we don’t start,” he said.
Scott compared rail relocation of residential areas to self-improvement.
“It’s not that you expect to be the better person when you wake up today, but you hope to be a better person than yesterday because of what you’ve learned. I think the city should have the same mentality: learn things.
“They should make things better for the people who live here, who contribute taxes…A community is only as good as the people who live in it,” he said. “So let’s make things better for everyone.”
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