Union Pacific’s Fritz says railroad’s process of getting vaccine for workers has been complex
GO Transit adopts Japanese safety system
Crew members on Toronto GO Transit commuter trains have begun using the longstanding Japanese practice of “Shisa Kanko,” or point and call, to improve safety. The website Daily Hive reports the approach requires workers to use loud calls and dramatic hand gestures during stops, such as pointing in both directions and calling “clear right, clear left” to make sure no passengers remain before closing car doors. The practice is meant to keep employees from falling into a routine by stimulating their senses. “The gesture may seem a little silly, or a tad dramatic, but it’s effective,” a representative of parent agency Metrolinx told the website. “Japan’s public transit system, a transportation network that moved 12 billion passengers annually prior to the pandemic, is considered one of the world’s safest transit systems.”
Cars removed, cleanup continues at site of CP derailment in Minnesota
Freight cars have been removed from the site of the March 7 Canadian Pacific derailment in Plymouth, Minn., and Pineview Lane, which had been closed to allow the movement of heavy machinery, has been reopened. The City of Plymouth reports cleanup will continue as CP crews remove lumber and rock, restore pavement, and remediate wetland areas. Most work will occur during daylight hours but some route maintenance may be required at night. Twenty-two cars derailed in the accident [see “Derailment blocks Canadian Pacific main line …,” Trains News Wire, March 8, 2021]; at one point, the city had warned residents that cleanup could continue into the summer.
