Lac-Mégantic residents march for better rail safety

Dozens of people from Lac-Mégantic and surrounding areas marched in the town on Sunday to demand better rail safety measures.

They carried signs protesting against the transport of oil and other dangerous materials. One read, "47 good reasons for a rail bypass in Lac-Mégantic" — referring to the 47 people killed in July 2013 when a train derailed and exploded in the centre of the town. 

The march was organized by an entity called the Citizens and Community Group Rail Safety Coalition.The group is asking that the existing railway through the town be repaired and that a secondary train track be constructed "as quickly as possible."

Thomas Walsh, the lawyer for Tom Harding — the train engineer on duty the night of the 2013 disaster — joined the march.

"It's a gesture of solidarity," he said, adding that train engineers are joining up with environmentalists and other groups of concerned citizens asking for better regulations and other improvements to the country's railways.

He said people working for railways across North America refer to trains towing dangerous materials as "bomb trains."

Harding is facing charges of criminal negligence causing death in connection with the disaster.

Walsh said his client has a certain degree of responsibility, but that there are other people working for rail companies who are far more responsible than he is.

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The coalition that organized the march is also asking for the town of Lac-Mégantic to file for an interim injunction against the Central Maine and Quebec Railway in Federal Court. The company should immediately repair any problems on the railway and ensure that it is completely safe to use, the coalition says.

In September, the town received a petition demanding an immediate halt to the rail transportation of dangerous materials. The petition, signed by thousands, said the Central Maine and Quebec Railway still had not repaired its tracks and therefore they were not fit to carry dangerous materials.