May 18, 2026
With SMART-TD once again leading the charge, another state is aiming to lock critical rail safety protections into law with not one, but two, pieces of legislation.
Introduced by Senator Erika Geiss (D-District 1) on May 13, 2026, Senate Bills 958 and 959 require a minimum two-person crew (2-PC) on freight trains and ensure that wayside detector systems are not only installed and functioning properly but that carriers place this important safety equipment at certain spots along the railroad tracks in an attempt to prevent derailments before they happen.
Both bills are scheduled for their first hearing this Tuesday, May 19 at 3:30 p.m. in the Senate Transportation & Infrastructure Committee.
Senate Bill 958 would codify a minimum two-person crew on freight trains in Michigan if the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) rule were eliminated. The second piece of legislation, Senate Bill 959, requires that Class I and Class II carriers place wayside detector systems along every 10 miles or less of track and that Class III’s do so every 35 miles or less.
With the 2023 East Palestine derailment still fresh in the minds of railroaders and many communities, Michigan State Safety & Legislative Director Eric Stanger (Local 1709) explains that this is common sense legislation that goes beyond one political party.
“Rail safety is a bipartisan issue, plain and simple,” he explained. “No matter what side of the aisle you find yourself on, we should all be able to agree that trains traveling throughout our state should have a full crew in the cab and that any and all safety protections should be taken so that we don’t have a repeat of what happened in East Palestine in our own backyard.”
Just this year, SMART-TD has successfully championed rail safety bills in Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. Virginia’s 2-PC law was just signed by Governor Abigail Spanberger in April, and the other two states are closer to having laws on the books themselves after clearing crucial legislative hurdles.
While Michigan’s bills are just getting started on their legislative journeys, SLD Sanger is hopeful that they can build off of the rail safety momentum in statehouses across the country.
“These bills benefit both rail safety and local communities throughout the state of Michigan,” he said. “Lawmakers owe it to their constituents to send a message that they’re ‘with us’ on rail safety, and we look forward to working with our brothers and sisters throughout the state to get these bills passed.”
SMART News will continue to provide updates as the bills move through legislature.
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