Windsor Ontario - Windsor is poised to end its dispute with Canada's railway companies over the issue of hazardous goods rolling through the city.
 
City leaders since mid-2014 have refused to sign a waiver requested by Canadian Pacific, Canadian National, and Essex Terminal Railway on a nondisclosure agreement surrounding dangerous goods on its trains.
 
The city was initially believed to be only one across Canada not to sign the waiver and received national attention until a handful of others later joined the protest.
 
The waiver would give city officials the right to know what hazardous goods are being transported by rail but be prevented from discussing it publicly.
 
"We are now recommending that we sign," said Windsor's fire Chief Bruce Montone, the city's designated emergency planning official.
 
"Previously, there was not a lot of clarity on the waiver they were insisting we sign."
 
But new directives by Canada's transport minister and upgraded regulations regarding the handling of dangerous goods on trains have drastically changed the debate, he said.
 
The federal transportation ministry moved swiftly to crack down on hazardous goods travelling on Canada's freight trains, including unsafe rail cars, following the Lake Megantic railway disaster in southeastern Quebec.
 
The July 2013 accident killed 47 people, destroyed 30 buildings, and injured dozens of other residents in the small town after a 74 car freight train carrying Bakken crude oil derailed and exploded.
 
Countless lawsuits followed, including one by the Quebec government which sued Canadian Pacific Railway alleging it was negligent with the train and failed to take precautions that would have prevented the disaster.
 
As a result of the new federal regulations, real-time apps are now in place on what is being carried on each train and its location, along with many other safety changes, Montone said.
 
"We love that you can get the information at any given time," he said.
 
"You can punch in a rail car number and it will give us the contents of the car and what's on the train. The situation today is very much different (than a couple of years ago)," Montone said.
 
"We are recommending to city council that we be authorized to sign the waiver and go from there."
 
The recommendation has already been approved by the city's rail issues, environment, transportation, and public safety committees.
 
It will go to city council some time next month for final approval, Montone said.
 
During the impasse, the railways threatened they were not going to provide any information on what was on board freight trains travelling through Windsor, including hazardous materials, unless the waiver was signed.
 
The standoff created dangers because any accident that required emergency response would be difficult to address unless there was full disclosure by the railways of what was inside each railway car, city officials said.
 
But the railway companies complained they didn't know what the city would do with the hazardous goods information once it was in their hands.
 
They threatened to legally penalize city or emergency response officials in Windsor should information on dangerous goods get into the wrong hands.
 
That triggered city council to refuse to sign off on the proposed nondisclosure agreement as that would have waived their rights.
 
Dave Battagello.