A new rule recently announced by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) requires that passenger cars’ vestibule and interior passageway doors be fitted with removable panels and windows and also a manual override to open doors.
Throughout the course of its four-plus decade history, Amtrak has drawn the scorn of detractors who saw the federally-subsidized passenger railroad is a drain on taxpayers.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has booted a union from the investigation into a fatal Metro-North crash in the Bronx on Sunday, Fox News reported.
Siemens Rail Systems and Cummins are partnering on a new passenger locomotive the companies say will be one of the most energy-efficient and lightweight diesel electric locomotives available today in North America.
With the revelation the engineer of the Metro-North train that crashed Sunday in the Bronx and killed four people might have zoned out just before the crash, the conversation has turned toward the implementation of Positive Train Control (PTC).
The Metro-North train that crashed Sunday in the Bronx and left four people dead was traveling 82 m.p.h. as it took a curve with a speed limit of 30 m.p.h., various media reported today. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating whether human error or brake failure is to blame, The Associated Press reported. But, the NTSB said on Twitter there “were 9 station stops prior to the derailment. We are not aware of any prior issues with the brakes.” “The zone leading up to that curve is 70 miles per hour and yes, there was an excess of speed,”
A Congressman from New Jersey has proposed federal legislation he says will improve railroad safety and responders’ ability to communicate in the event of an accident.
While President Obama has made high-speed passenger rail a priority, freight railroads have “been the quiet recipient of more than $600 million in federal investment” during the Obama administration, McClatchy reported.
A train carrying more than 100 passengers derailed in New York early Sunday, killing four people and injuring more than 60. Officials say 11 of the injured passengers were in critical condition.
At least four people were killed and 40 more were injured when a Manhattan-bound Metro-North train derailed just north of the Spuyten Duyvil station, according to various media reports.