Federation of Canadian Municipalities calls on Ottawa to bolster rail safety

CALGARY—The organization that represents Canadian municipalities is getting behind the City of Calgary’s push for better rail safety.

There have been two derailments in Calgary in two months involving rail cars carrying energy industry chemicals, although there were no spills.

The Federation of Canadian Municipalities says Ottawa should come up with a way to give communities more timely information about dangerous goods carried on trains.

Federation president Claude Dauphin says municipalities need this information to safely and quickly respond to derailments.

Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi says city staff risk their lives to deal with these emergencies and the current rules aren’t good enough.

The federation says it will be meeting with federal Transport Minister Lisa Raitt to discuss its concerns.