Hazardous Materials 

Transportation
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

n

Overview

• Scope of Hazardous Materials 

Transportation

• Department of 

Transportation’s Hazmat 

Program

• Training and Information 

Products
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

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Who Are Our Customers?

• Hazardous Materials Carriers

• Hazardous Materials Shippers

• Package Manufacturers, 

Retesters, and Reconditioners

• State and Local Governments

– Law Enforcement

– Emergency Responders and 

Planners

• The Public
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

n

Hazmat Shipments in the U.S.

The Department of Transportation (DOT) currently 

lists approximately 3,000 hazardous materials 

(hazmat) descriptions – these materials, if 

accidentally or intentionally released, can pose risks 

to public health and safety, property, or the 

environment. 

Over 800,000 Shipments Daily

3.1 Billion Tons Shipped Annually by All Modes

Hazardous Materials Support $446 Billion of 

US Economy Annually
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

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Annual Shipments of Select 

Commodities

• Chlorine - 45,000 rail tank-cars 

• Anhydrous Ammonia 

– 45,000 tank-cars

– 200,000 tank-trucks

• Gasoline - 18,000,000 tank trucks

• Liquefied Petroleum Gas

– 56,000 rail tank-cars 

– 2,000,000 tank-trucks
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

n

Hazmat Transportation’s 

Safety Record – All Modes

2001 2002 2003 2004

Incidents 

Reported 17,794 15,117 15,162 14,740

Deaths 12 9 15 13

Injuries 168 136 119 289

Damages 

(in $M) $69.4 $54.1 $53.6 $52.6

as of 11/14/05
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

n

Federal Hazmat Law – “protect 

against the risks to life, property, 

and the environment which are 

inherent in the transportation of 

hazardous materials in intrastate, 

interstate, and foreign commerce.”
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

n

Responsibilities

• PHMSA is responsible for 

formulating, issuing, enforcing, and 

revising hazardous materials 

regulations (HMR) and issuing 

exemptions and approvals under 

the Federal hazmat law

• The HMR (49 CFR Parts 171-180) 

govern the packaging and safe 

transportation of hazardous 

materials by air, highway, rail, and 

water (except bulk transportation 

onboard vessels)
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

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Responsibilities (con’t)

• PHMSA enforces regulations –

emphasizing:

– Packaging Manufacturers, Retesters and 

Reconditioners

– Multimodal shippers of hazmat

• Modal administrations (FAA, FMCSA, and 

FRA) enforce the regulations respective to 

their mode

• U.S. Coast Guard (Department of 

Homeland Security) enforces the 

respective to maritime operations
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

n

PHMSA’s Office of Hazardous 

Materials Safety

• Hazmat Standards

• International and Interagency 

Coordination

• Special Permits and Approvals

• Inspection and Enforcement

• Planning, Analysis and Technical 

Support

• Hazardous Materials Emergency 

Preparedness Grants

• Training and Information 

Dissemination
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

n

Hazmat Standards

• Produce and maintain national 

safety standards for hazmat 

transportation

• Participate in international 

standards development

• Provide guidance in 

compliance and enforcement of 

these standards
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

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International and 

Interagency Coordination

• Promote a uniform global approach 

to the safe transportation of 

hazardous materials through the 

development of consistent domestic 

and international regulations

• Participate in international forums 

as part of an on-going process of 

harmonizing the US Hazardous 

Materials Regulations with 

international standards and 

regulations
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

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Special Permits and 

Approvals

• Administer a program for the 

disposition of requests for 

exemptions from, and special 

approvals under, the hazardous 

materials regulations
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

n

Inspections and 

Enforcement

• Plan and manage a national 

program of safety inspection 

and enforcement of the 

hazardous materials 

regulations

• Enforcement Specialists 

conduct compliance 

inspections
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

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Planning, Analysis and 

Technical Support

• Provide integrated planning, 

development, and evaluation of 

programmatic activities

• Provide scientific, engineering, 

radiological and risk analysis 

expertise and technical foundation 

for the national and international 

hazardous materials transportation 

safety standards and programs

• Maintain the supporting information 

systems
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

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Hazmat Emergency 

Preparedness Grants

• Provide financial and technical 

assistance to enhance State, 

Territorial, Tribal, and local hazmat 

emergency planning and training

• Distribute fees collected from 

shippers and carriers of hazardous 

materials to emergency responders 

for hazmat training and to Local 

Emergency Planning Committees 

(LEPCs) for hazmat planning
Hazardous

Materials

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Training and Information 

Dissemination

• Enhance hazardous materials 

transportation safety through the 

development and dissemination of 

instructional and education 

materials

• Maintain liaisons with the hazmat 

transportation community

• Provide outreach and technical 

assistance through Hazardous 

Materials Safety Assistance Team 

(HMSAT)
Hazardous

Materials

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In A Typical Year, We . . .

• Distribute over 2 million training and 

information publications

• Receive and respond to more than 12,000 

requests for assistance

• Assist more than 31,000 callers requesting 

information, clarification, or interpretation of 

the regulations

• Issue more than 5,000 Approvals and more 

than 1,000 Special Permits

• Train more than 5,000 Federal, state, and 

local representatives

• Conduct over 1,600 compliance inspections
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

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Training and Information 

Products

• Training Modules on 

CD-ROM

– General Hazmat

– Security Awareness

• Hazmat Marking, 

Labeling and Placarding 

Guide (Chart 12)

• Training Videos

– Materials of Trade

– Responding to Incidents 

Involving Commercial 

Explosives
Hazardous

Materials

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Emergency Response 

Guidebook

• Provides emergency 

response guidance to first 

responders of incidents 

involving hazardous 

materials

• Published every 3 – 4 

years

• In 2004, PHMSA

produced and distributed 

more than 2.1 million 

copies at no cost to the 

nation’s first responders
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

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Hazardous Materials 

INFO-LINE

1-800-HMR49-22

(1-800-467-4922)

Hours of Operation: 9 am – 5 pm EST

E-mail: infocntr@dot.gov

– Obtain answers to HMR questions

– Request copies of Federal Register, 

exemptions or training materials

– Report HMR violations

– Fax on Demand
Hazardous

Materials

Transportatio

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Informational Resources

http://hazmat.dot.gov