Second Ohio County bans remotes CLEVELAND, March 18 -- Huron County, Ohio, has banned remote control locomotives, the second Ohio County to do so in as many months. On March 11, the commissioners of Huron County -- home to the cities of Willard and Bellevue, which have a total of four railroads running through them (NS, CSX, W&LE and Ashland) -- voted in favor of a ban on remote control locomotives. Huron County is the third county in the United States -- the second in Ohio -- to take action against remote control trains. On January 31, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, adopted a resolution calling for a ban on remote control, and on February 18, Whitley County, Ky., adopted a resolution calling upon the Federal Railroad Administration to ban remotes. The Huron County resolution forbids remote control operations until safety considerations are met. It also bans their operation if hazardous materials are involved, citing the possibility of terrorism or vandalism. Huron County's resolution also noted that the Federal Railroad Administration has only issued recommended "guidelines" -- not enforceable guidelines -- to provide for the implementation of remote control operations. The Huron County Emergency Management Agency’s Rail Safety Task Force was instrumental in getting the ban. BLE Division 526 (Willard, Ohio) members Larry Robinson, Jim Blum and Chris Miller brought the matter to the attention of the Task Force. Tina Morton of the Emergency Management Agency helped to get the resolution passed. Ohio State Legislative Board Chairman J.F. Ong would like to thank the aforementioned BLE members, Ms. Morton, the Huron County Emergency Management Agency, the Huron County Commissioners and Ohio State Legislative Board Vice-Chairman Tim Hanely for their efforts. Click here for a PDF of the resolution: http://www.ble.org/pr/pdf/huronres.pdf Tuesday, March 18, 2003 bentley@ble.org http://www.ble.org/pr/news/newsflash.asp?id=3704 © 2003 Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers http://www.ble.org