Computer algorithms are thwarting key rail safety measures mandated by Parliament, the Transportation Safety Board revealed this week. Blacklock's Reporter says despite a costly national mandate requiring video and audio recorders in locomotives, the algorithms are causing critical gaps in surveillance during near-miss incidents.“In all three of these occurrences the trains were operating near the border with the United States,” stated the Board's report, citing incidents where essential recordings were missing. The problem was traced to an algorithm.In 2018, Parliament passed Bill C-49, which required the installation of locomotive video and audio recorders to improve safety, a move projected to cost railways $76.8 million. The Safety Board had lobbied for these recorders since 2003, following a fatal 2012 train derailment in Aldershot, Ontario, that killed three crew members and injured 44 passengers. The absence of clear video and audio records from the wreck led to the push for legislation.However, the Board discovered that the mandated surveillance equipment shuts off near the U.S. border, due to an algorithm designed to comply with American regulations. This issue came to light after a 2023 investigation into a near-miss incident involving a Canadian National Railway freight train near Cornwall, Ontario, just 11 kilometers from the New York border.“A geofence algorithm cuts out the in-cab voice recording when the locomotive is operating in the U.S.,” the report stated. The Transportation Department promised to work with rail companies to resolve the problem within the existing regulations.The 2023 incident involved a CN freight train carrying dangerous goods that rolled through a stop signal at 43 miles per hour, coming dangerously close to a VIA Rail passenger train. The CN conductor managed to halt the train just in time to avoid a collision, but investigators noted that the first 35 minutes of in-cab audio were missing from the recording.This marks the third incident investigated by the Board in which critical voice recordings were unavailable, highlighting a significant flaw in the system. Despite these issues, the installation of surveillance equipment remains a contentious issue, with both rail unions and Conservative senators criticizing it as an invasion of privacy.“I think it is a huge breach of privacy,” said Sen. Michael MacDonald (N.S.) during the Senate debate on the bill. “We have to draw the line somewhere, and I’m very strongly of the opinion that we have to draw the line on this.”
