Unmanned freight train rolls 200 metres in CP Rail yard

The Transportation Safety Board is looking into an incident in which 80 unmanned freight cars rolled more than 200 metres at Calgary ’s Alyth train yard.

Chris Krepski, spokesperson for the board, said 68 of the 80 cars had a full load when the train began rolling down the track at the Canadian Pacific Railway yard in the southeast.

Krepski said there was no derailment and no injuries were reported in relation to the incident, adding none of the cars were carrying hazardous materials.

He said there were “no conflicting moments” with other trains in the yard.

“(CP Railway) informed us of this, so, we’re going to do follow up with the railway,” he said.

Krepski said the board is still gathering data on the incident, which will determine if a “full-on” investigation is launched.

“I wouldn’t say it’s common, but it happens from time to time,” Krepski said.

Two locomotives and three train cars derailed at the Alyth yard in 2016, and in 2013 seven train cars carrying flammable liquids derailed in the same rail yard.

No injuries were reported in either derailment, but more than 180 metres of track was destroyed in the 2016 incident.