The Trump administration is moving to tighten oversight of Mexican rail crews operating freight trains across the U.S. border, citing the need for workers to understand critical safety information in English and to ensure the cross-border practice does not put American rail jobs at risk.
The proposed rule, announced Friday, drew support from two major rail unions. In addition to addressing language and border-crossing concerns, the measure would strengthen certification standards designed to confirm that train crews are qualified to operate safely.
Federal officials said their concerns grew after inspections last fall at two Texas rail yards near the Mexican border involving the railroads most directly affected by the proposed restrictions: Union Pacific and CPKC. Union Pacific did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while CPKC and the Association of American Railroads said they would not comment while reviewing the proposal.
In December, the Federal Railroad Administration sent letters to both CPKC and Union Pacific after focused inspections found that some crews had difficulty understanding English. Regulators urged the companies to reassess their procedures, verify that Mexican crews can communicate in English and ensure those crews do not operate trains more than 10 miles, or 16 kilometers, inside the United States.
Inspectors identified multiple issues at Union Pacific’s Eagle Pass rail yard and CPKC’s Laredo facility. According to federal findings, some train crews struggled to understand operating bulletins and U.S. rules requiring hazardous materials and emergency response information to be kept in English.
Both Union Pacific and CPKC have said they are committed to complying with existing requirements, including limits that keep Mexican crews from traveling more than 10 miles into U.S. territory. Still, federal officials say tougher standards are needed “because railroad crews must be able to communicate fully and accurately when crossing into the United States, most notably with dispatchers and emergency responders during a crisis, as a safety-critical function.”
The rail proposal mirrors a broader Transportation Department push focused on English-language proficiency among commercial drivers. Officials have argued that truck drivers must be able to read road signs and safety warnings and communicate with first responders during crashes or inspections. The department has also sought to withhold millions of dollars in highway funding from New York and California, saying it is not satisfied with those states’ efforts to verify the validity of commercial driver’s licenses they issue.
Mark Wallace, national president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, has warned for years about the use of Mexican train crews, raising concerns tied to rail safety, border security and the protection of U.S. rail jobs.
The union has said that the handoffs used to happen right at the border, but now Union Pacific and CPKC routinely ask Mexican crews to bring trains several miles over the border to one of their railyards where the crew switches can be done more safely. But the firm 10-mile (16-kilometer) restriction in this rule will prevent the railroads from expanding this practice to railyards further into America like the union said UP was considering in New Mexico.
Wallace said the language barrier would pose a hazard in the event of issues such as a derailment.
But the railroads have said that this practice of using Mexican train crews to bring the trains into railyards in America was developed in 2018 with the approval of the first Trump administration to address smuggling concerns. When trains are stopped at the border smugglers often try to conceal drugs or other contraband aboard them and immigrants might jump aboard to get into the United States.
It is also routine for Canadian crews to bring trains a few miles over the northern border with the United States before handing off to American crews.
The SMART-TD union that represents conductors and other rail workers also said the provisions of the rule that will prohibit train crews from using a system that’s similar to cruise control for freight trains when they take their certification tests will help ensure they can operate a train safely.
“Railroad certifications should represent proven ability, not simply possession of a certificate,” said Jared Cassity, who is SMART-TD’s top safety expert. “When lives are on the line, the FRA must know that an engineer can safely operate a train, not just supervise a computer doing it.”
