Train Rail Cars

Rail safety

Rail is an important piece of the oil transportation network, allowing producers the flexibility to move products to different markets in response to demand. Rail also complements pipeline transport capacity and provides an alternative for markets that do not have pipeline connections.

Safety requirements:

  • The transportation of crude by road or rail is regulated federally by Transport Canada under the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act (TDG) Act, which is intended to protect public safety, including first responders, in the event of an incident. Regulations developed under this Act establish the safety requirements for the transportation of dangerous goods.
  • Since crude oil is a complex mixture of hydrocarbon fluids and natural gas, special consideration is needed for appropriate classification based upon laboratory samples and appropriate selection of the means of containment as required for public safety under the TDGR. CAPP has developed a “TDG Classification of Crude Oil and Related Products for Transport by Road and Rail” document that provides guidance to consignors on the decision-making necessary to be compliant with the classification requirements of naturally variable crude oil products.

Emergency response training

  • CAPP and the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs (CAFC) developed a standardized awareness program called “Canadian Emergency Response to Flammable Liquid Incidents in Transport (CERFLIT)” so first responders can safely and effectively respond to flammable liquid incidents involving rail cars and truck transport. This course has been endorsed by Transport Canada’s Steering Committee on First Responder Training as part of the bilingual flammable liquid training curriculum for first responders, serving as the first level of awareness training (Level 1).
  • For information on basic operations-level training (Level 2) and advanced operations level training (Level 3) for first responders, the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs CERFLIT Program.
Canadian rail way