2014 Saint-Henri train sideswipe incident

2014 Saint-Henri train sideswipe incident
CN GP9RM #7208, one of the locomotives involved in the sideswipe incident, on October 3, 2009.
Details
DateFebruary 23, 2014 (2014-02-23)
12:05 am
LocationSaint-Henri, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Coordinates45°28′22.2″N 73°35′32.6″W / 45.472833°N 73.592389°W / 45.472833; -73.592389
CountryCanada
LineCN's Montreal subdivision
OperatorCanadian National Railway (CN)
Incident typeSideswipe train collision
CauseHuman error from a distraction and a missed signal
Statistics
TrainsTwo, CN 7208 and CN Q12111-21/CN 121
CrewFour, two on both trains
Deaths0
Injured0

The 2014 Saint-Henri train sideswipe incident was a train collision that occurred at Saint-Henri in Montreal, Quebec, Canada at 12:05 am on February 23, 2014, on the Canadian National (CN)'s Montreal subdivision.[1]

Background

Yard assignment train and train Q12111-21

At 9:00 pm on February 22, 2014, a Canadian National (CN) yard assignment train was switching with a two-man train crew from CN's Taschereau Yard to the Port of Montreal in Montreal, Quebec.[2][3] The train was composed of:

  • CN GP9RM #7208
  • CN GP9RM #7224
  • 25 fully-loaded grain cars
    • Soo Line grain car #122215
    • Soo Line grain car #121820

The yard assignment train departed Taschereau Yard at 11:15 pm. CN train Q12111-21, also known as CN intermodal train 121, was travelling to Toronto from Halifax, Nova Scotia.[1][2][4][5] The train was pulling a total of 120 intermodal cars.[6]

Sideswipe incident

The crew of CN yard assignment train had finished performing a running brake test at 11 mph (18 km/h) to check if the braking system was working, after the tests were done, with the train stopping in 32 seconds, they proceeded on the journey to the Port of Montreal. At 12:03 am on February 23, 2014, the yard assignment was travelling at 11 mph (18 km/h) when it rolls past a red signal at Milepost 3.60, near switch 501.[2]

CN intermodal train 121 sideswipes the yard assignment train at 12:05 am, bending CN #7208's right side of the frame and damaging the track itself on the line, the two Soo Line hopper cars of the 25 hopper cars had derailed along with CN #7224, while the 120-car train of CN intermodal train 121 didn't derail, but intermodal cars 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17 were damaged after scraping the frame of GP9RM #7208.[6] However, not a single person was killed or injured in the wreck.[2][3][4][7][8][9] One of the two GP9RM's fuel tanks began to leak 3,500 litres (3,500,000 millilitres) of diesel fuel as a result of the sideswipe, but didn't start a fire.[4][7][9][10][11]

Investigation

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) launched an investigation and they found multiple causes, they found out that the crew of the CN yard assignment train, passed a red signal, resulting in the collision with CN intermodal train 121. The conductor, at the time, was distracted while copying instructions from the rail traffic controller (RTC). The assistant conductor had left the lead locomotive, leaving the conductor alone in the cab.[2][3]

"The first train tried to brake, but it didn't stop in time and collided with the second train at a point where their tracks converged"

— Guy Laporte, [12]

Borough Mayor Benoît Dorais was upset that Canadian National (CN) had informed elected officials very late and with little detail to back it up, which led to him criticizing CN for poor communication, he stated in an interview:[9]

"I only received an email from CN around 10:00 a.m., 10 hours after the accident"
"It contained very little information, less than what we were reading in the media, which, moreover, contradicted each other."

— Benoit Dorais, [9]

Aftermath

The TSB released its final report on August 6, 2015, identifying the cause of the accident, as the CN yard assignment crew, operating with a remote-control locomotive (Beltpack), failed to recognize and comply with a stop signal, leading to a collision.[1]

While cleanup of the wreckage was going, the two Soo Line hopper cars and CN GP9RM #7224 were re-railed, a crane was used to re-rail CN #7208, and due to the sideswipe damaging the frame of #7208, the frame of #7208 collapsed, causing CN to consider the locomotive damaged beyond repair and resulting in the #7208 being scrapped on site.[2][4][9][13]

GP9RM #7224 was repaired by CN and continued service until being sold to Lambton Diesel Specialists, Inc. (LDSX) and is still in service as LDSX #7224 as of 2026 on the Trillium Railway (TRRY).

After the accident, the Green Party of Canada urges the federal government to strengthen rules for trains operating in urban centers including the CN's Montreal subdivision.

"This is not the place to permit automatic trains"

— Daniel Green, The Gazette, [14]

The Green Party of Canada argued that urban residents were at greater risk because the trains would often pass close to their homes, schools, and businesses. As a result, they called for stricter regulations, better oversight, and stronger safety standards for trains in cities.[14]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Government of Canada, Transportation Safety Board of Canada (2014-02-23). "Rail transportation safety investigation R14D0011 - Transportation Safety Board of Canada". www.bst.gc.ca. Retrieved 2025-11-14.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Government of Canada, Transportation Safety Board of Canada (2014-02-23). "Railway Investigation Report R14D0011 - Transportation Safety Board of Canada". www.tsb.gc.ca. Retrieved 2025-11-14.
  3. 1 2 3 Canada, Transportation Safety Board of. "Competing priorities led to 2014 collision between two Canadian National trains in Montreal, Quebec". www.newswire.ca. Retrieved 2025-11-14.
  4. 1 2 3 4 QMI, Agence (2014-02-23). "Fuite de près de 4000 litres de diesel après une collision entre deux trains à Montréal". Le Journal de Montréal. Retrieved 2025-11-14.
  5. ↑ Montreal, C. T. V. (2014-02-24). "Train derailment rattles St-Henri residents". CTVNews. Retrieved 2025-11-15.
  6. 1 2 "Light fuel spill as trains derail in Montreal". Toronto Sun. 2014-02-23. Retrieved 2025-12-10.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. 1 2 "St-Henri train derailment spills 3,500 litres of diesel fuel". CBC. 2014-02-23. Retrieved 2025-11-15.
  8. ↑ "Déraillement dans Saint-Henri". Radio-Canada (in Canadian French). Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 Léouzon, Roxane (2014-02-24). "Un manque de transparence du CN dénoncé". Journal Métro (in French). Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  10. ↑ "Train derailment in St-Henri, cleanup underway". CTVNews. 2014-02-23. Retrieved 2025-11-14.
  11. ↑ "Accident en 2014: erreur humaine à l'origine de la collision entre deux trains". Journal Métro (in French). 2015-08-07. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  12. ↑ Léouzon, Roxane (2014-02-23). "Déraillement de train dans Saint-Henri". Journal Métro (in French). Retrieved 2025-11-14.
  13. ↑ "TEMPOjr" (PDF). Forest City Railway Society. 45 (3). London, Ontario: 2. March 2014.
  14. 1 2 "Green Party calls for tougher rules for trains through urban areas". Montreal Gazette. 2015-10-02. Archived from the original on 2016-09-27. Retrieved 2025-11-15.

Further reading

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