Hazardous materials (hazmat) are potentially
harmful to people and environment due to their toxic
ingredients. Although a significant portion of hazmat is
transported via rail-roads, until recently the focus was on
highway shipments. In this work, we develop a risk assessment
methodology that takes into consideration the differentiating
features of trains and the characteristics of train accident.
The proposed methodology, which includes Bayes theorem
and logical diagrams, was used to study a US based case
example, which was further analyzed to gain relevant
managerial insights.