Search

Your Hazmat Route Goes Out of Service. What Now?

Posted on 4/29/2024 by Lion Technology Inc.

Shippers of hazardous materials play an important role in ensuring hazmat is transported safely. When a hazmat route goes out of service, life gets harder.

Shippers must quickly assess alternative routes while ensuring they remain compliant with the Hazardous Materials Regulations. Failure to do so can result in expensive civil penalties, damage to a company’s reputation, or harm to human health and the environment.

Some routes are simply too dangerous for hazmat to travel along. Some routes are partially restricted and allow most hazmat, but some don’t allow any hazmat at all.

Restricted routes can include tunnels, bridges, sections of interstate highway, and more.

Sometimes, a hazmat route will become unavailable, such as the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland—a major hazmat route along the east coast that collapsed earlier this year. An incident like this can create a ripple effect across the supply chain.

Mitigating the Impact

Preparedness is key to mitigating impact. Contingency plans outlining alternative routes, emergency contacts, and protocols can help handle unexpected events such as route closures. Regularly reviewing and updating these plans ensures they remain relevant.

Shippers should cultivate strong partnerships with carriers, emergency responders, and regulatory agencies. By working together closely, they can pool resources, share information, and coordinate responses effectively.

Training is required for anyone who directly affects hazardous materials shipping and is an important aspect of hazmat safety. Investing in recurrent training programs that ensure employees know what to do in an emergency and compliance with the HMR can help minimize risks whether there's a route disruption or not.

Hazmat shippers play a critical role in ensuring the safe transportation of hazardous materials. While not every situation requires the same level of agile reponse, it is always best to be prepared.

Tags: hazardous materials, hazmat shipping

Find a Post

Compliance Archives

Lion - Quotes

The workshop covered a lot of information without being too overwhelming. Lion is much better, more comprehensive than other training providers.

George Alva

Manufacturing Manager

The instructor was very very informative, helpful, understandable and pleasant. This course answered many questions I had, being new to this industry.

Frances Mona

Shipping Manager

I used the IT support number available and my issue was resolved within a few minutes. I don't see anything that could have made it better.

Danny Province

EHS Professional

I will never go anywhere, but to Lion Technology.

Dawn Swofford

EHS Technician

Very well structured, comprehensive, and comparable to live training seminars I've participated in previously. I will recommend the online course to other colleagues with training requirement needs.

Neil Luciano

EHS Manager

These are the best classes I attend each year. I always take something away and implement improvements at my sites.

Kim Racine

EH&S Manager

The instructor created a great learning environment.

Avinash Thummadi

CAD & Environmental Manager

Excellent. I learned more in two days with Lion than at a 5-day program I took with another provider.

Francisco Gallardo

HES Technician

Much better than my previous class with another company. The Lion instructor made sense, kept me awake and made me laugh!

Marti Severs

Enterprise Safety Manager

I have attended other training providers, but Lion is best. Lion is king of the hazmat jungle!!!

Henry Watkins

Hazardous Waste Technician

Download Our Latest Whitepaper

Four key considerations to help you maximize the convenience and quality of your experience with online training.

Latest Whitepaper

By submitting your phone number, you agree to receive recurring marketing and training text messages. Consent to receive text messages is not required for any purchases. Text STOP at any time to cancel. Message and data rates may apply. View our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.