Railroad companies failed to join safety program after toxic derailment that impacted western Pa.

Railroad companies failed to join safety program after toxic derailment that impacted western Pa.

Two and a half years after a derailed train spewed toxic gases across eastern Ohio, none of the nation’s largest freight railroads have fulfilled promises to join a voluntary federal close call program designed to reduce rail hazards and prevent accidents. Two railroads — BNSF and Norfolk Southern — launched partial trials, but haven’t fully joined the program. A federal working group formed to negotiate railroad participation recently disbanded…