Category: Train Accidents

NTSB Finds Positive Train Control Would Have Prevented Amtrak Cascades 501 Crash

Amtrak train

Last week, our blog discussed how positive train control (PTC) can prevent passenger train crashes. In December, Amtrak Cascades Train 501 derailed after going around a turn at almost 50 miles per hour above the posted speed limit. The crash resulted in three deaths and multiple injuries. Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) […]

Can Positive Train Control Prevent Passenger Train Crashes?

train derailment

December’s Amtrak crash in DuPont, Washington killed three people and caused multiple injuries. Investigators discovered the train was speeding through a curve at roughly 50 miles per hour over the posted speed limit when it derailed. Positive train control (PTC) is a technology that is designed to prevent train collisions, overspeed derailments, incursions into work […]

Multiple Casualties Reported After Washington Amtrak Derailment

train derailment

Multiple fatalities and injuries were reported after an Amtrak train derailed above an overpass in DuPont, Washington. According to Pierce County officials, Amtrak Train 501 was travelling along a new route when it derailed above an overpass on Interstate 5. Railcars fell off the overpass and crushed vehicles below. Photos taken by witnesses show additional […]

Should SEPTA Monitor Train Operators?

Amtrak train

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued a recommendation to SEPTA and the Federal Railroad Administration that calls for the installation of cameras on all rail-transit vehicles. According to the NTSB, inward and outward-facing cameras could help determine what crewmembers were doing in the moments before a train crash. The cameras recommended by the […]

Has NJ Transit Stepped Up Sleep Apnea Testing Since the Hoboken Train Crash?

WABC-TV recently featured a report updating the aftermath Hoboken train crash. Specifically, the news story focused on whether New Jersey Transit has been testing its train operators for sleep apnea more since the incident. This is due to the fact that following the Hoboken train wreck, the locomotive’s engineer was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea. […]

Is It Too Dangerous to Ride a New Jersey Transit Train?

train derailment

According to WCAU-TV in Philadelphia, a Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) investigation has unearthed several safety violations within the New Jersey Transit train system. The FRA review began in the spring well before the Hoboken train accident in September that left over 100 injured and claimed one woman’s life. What Types of Safety Violations Were Found […]

What to Do in a Train Crash

wrongful death

In the wake of the Hoboken train crash that left one woman dead and more than 100 others injured, there are still a lot of questions left to be answered. What led to the train wreck? How can we keep train wrecks like this from happening? Until we can figure out how to prevent train […]