National Transportation Safety Board - Railroad Accident Brief DCA-09-MR-004

On Friday, May 8, 2009, about 7:14 p.m., westbound Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line train 3612 struck the rear of standing westbound MBTA Green Line train 3808 near Government Center Station in Boston, Massachusetts. The accident occurred in the underground tunnel segment on the Green Line of the MBTA subway system. Each train consisted of two light-rail “married-pair” railcar sets. One car from each train derailed upright as a result of the collision.

Sixty-eight injured passengers and crewmembers were transported to local hospitals. Monetary damages were estimated to be about $9.6 million.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the May 8, 2009, collision of two Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Green Line Trains in Boston, Massachusetts, was the failure of the pilot operator of the striking train to observe and appropriately respond to the red signal aspect at 744A because he was engaged in the prohibited use of a wireless device, specifically text messaging, that distracted him from his duties. Contributing to the accident was the lack of a positive train control system that would have intervened to stop the train and prevent the collision.

[Communications Aspects: Distraction by text messaging]

National Transportation Safety Board Report RAB9817

At about 3:45 p.m., mountain standard time, on January 13, 1997, Amtrak train No. 25, consisting of 3 locomotive units, 2 baggage cars, and 7 passenger cars, derailed the 2nd and 3rd locomotive units and all 9 cars near milepost (MP) 528.5 on the Union Pacific Railroad (UP) in Granite, Wyoming. The train was traveling at a recorded speed of 59 mph in 70-mph territory when the derailment occurred.
Twenty of the 109 passengers, 3 of the 12 on-board-service personnel, and 1 of the 5 operating crew members sustained minor injuries. The costs associated with the accident were $1,706,651.
The investigation revealed that the derailment occurred at a broken rail located just west of a spring frog on No.1 main track. A portion of the west end of the rail had a weld about 11 1?2 inches long on the running surface (head) of the rail, and the gauge face of the head had also been welded in order to match it with the rail to which it was attached. The welded area broke out under the movement of train No. 25, causing the derailment.
A metallurgical examination of the broken rail and weld indicated that the weld was of “poor quality.” The weld material on the gauge face of the rail did not penetrate properly because the rail was not properly preheated before welding. UP officials stated that welds made to rail ends are routine repairs and as such there were no written records regarding when the weld was made or who performed the task. Local UP officers and welders could not recall when the weld was made.
The track in the accident area had been visually inspected by a track inspector several hours before the derailment and no defects were noted. The condition that led to the failure of the weld was an internal condition and would not have been apparent during a visual inspection. The rail had been inspected by a rail defect detector car on December 16, 1996, and no internal defects had been noted during that inspection.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was a field weld on the end of a rail that broke under the moving train because the rail was not properly preheated prior to welding.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-09-FR-010

On July 18, 2009, about 2:50 p.m., at West Portal Station, San Francisco, California, San Francisco Municipal Railway Transit System (MUNI) L Line train 1433 struck the rear end of standing MUNI K Line train 1407. The operators of both trains and 46 passengers were taken to hospitals. The operator of the striking train and 27 of the passengers had serious injuries. The incident was not affected by weather; it occurred as the trains were just exiting a tunnel. Estimated damages were $4.5 million.

Before the accident, the automatic train control system (ATCS)3 had been operating the K Line train through the underground section of the MUNI railway system on the outbound track from downtown San Francisco. (See figure 1.) When the train automatically stopped at West Portal Station platform, the operator, as she was supposed to, cut out the ATCS and slowly moved the train forward in manual. At the end of the platform she stopped the train and prepared to enter the street and proceed onto the K Line.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-09-FR-008

About 2:00 a.m. on Sunday 5 July 2009, two monorails collided on a fixed guideway system referred to as the Epcot beam near the Concourse station within Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. The accident occurred when the Pink monorail backed through an improperly aligned switch-beam and struck the Purple monorail. An operator and six passengers were on board the Purple monorail at the time of the collision. The operator was fatally injured; the passengers were not injured. The only occupant of the Pink monorail, the operator, was taken to a nearby hospital and treated and released. At the time of the accident, weather conditions were clear with light winds and a temperature of 76 degrees Fahrenheit. One operating cab from each of the monorails was destroyed. Total damages were estimated at $24 million.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Report PB2010-916302

On Monday, June 22, 2009, about 4:58 p.m., eastern daylight time, inbound Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Metrorail train 112 struck the rear of stopped inbound Metrorail train 214. The accident occurred on aboveground track on the Metrorail Red Line near the Fort Totten station in Washington, D.C. The lead car of train 112 struck the rear car of train 214, causing the rear car of train 214 to telescope into the lead car of train 112, resulting in a loss of occupant survival space in the lead car of about 63 feet (about 84 percent of its total length). Nine people aboard train 112, including the train operator, were killed. Emergency response agencies reported transporting 52 people to local hospitals. Damage to train equipment was estimated to be $12 million.

As a result of its investigation of this accident, the National Transportation Safety Board makes recommendations to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Federal Transit Administration, the Tri-State Oversight Committee, the Board of Directors of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, Alstom Signaling Inc., and six transit systems that use General Railway Signal Company track circuit modules (Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, Metropolitan Atlanta Regional Transportation Authority, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and Chicago Transit Authority).

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-09-FR-005

On Sunday, May 10, 2009, about 6:38 p.m., a CSX Transportation (CSX) remote control operator (RCO) was struck and killed by a train consisting of a remote controlled locomotive and seven cars (yard job number Y296-10). At the time of the accident, the RCO was working alone on track 23 in Selkirk Yard in Selkirk, New York. The RCO was controlling the train remotely at the east end of the yard and was planning to couple additional cars in preparation for movement onto another track. Before the RCO could add the additional cars, he had to replace a missing coupler knuckle2 on what was to be the eighth car of the train consist. He was in the process of coupling the seventh and eighth cars when the moving equipment struck him. At the time of the accident, it was daylight and sunny, and the temperature was 54° F.

After the RCO was struck, the yardmaster received an automated alarm “… CSX 8479 Operator A is down, Operator A is down, Operator A is down” followed by a radio communication from the RCO that he was down and hurt. When other CSX personnel working in the yard also heard the alarm and radio communication indicating that the RCO was down, they rushed to the location where he was working. The yardmaster immediately called 911, and emergency response personnel from the Bethlehem Emergency Medical Services (EMS) arrived on scene about 9 to 10 minutes after being notified.3 The RCO was alive when the emergency response personnel arrived; however, he died en route to the hospital.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-09-MR-00

On Friday, May 8, 2009, about 7:14 p.m., westbound Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line train 3612 struck the rear of standing westbound MBTA Green Line train 3808 near Government Center Station in Boston, Massachusetts. The accident occurred in the underground tunnel segment on the Green Line of the MBTA subway system. Each train consisted of two light-rail “married-pair” railcar sets2. One car from each train derailed upright as a result of the collision. Sixty-eight injured passengers and crewmembers were transported to local hospitals. Monetary damages were estimated to be about $9.6 million.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-09-FR-001

On Thursday, November 20, 2008, about 11:25 a.m., eastbound Metrolink passenger train 306 failed to stop at a red signal and had a raking side collision with the last eight cars and two rear locomotives of westbound Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) freight train LCAL 011120 that was entering a siding to meet the Metrolink train. The accident occurred at control point (CP) Lilac near Rialto, California. (See figure 1.) There were 15 passengers and 3 crew members on the Metrolink train. Four passengers received minor injuries. The two crew members of the BNSF freight train were unhurt. Neither train derailed. The weather was clear with calm winds, and the temperature was 76º F.

The Metrolink train, which had one locomotive and four passenger cars, was about 400 feet long. The BNSF train, which consisted of 6 locomotives (4 at the front of the train and 2 at the rear) and 102 cars (96 loaded and 6 empty), was 6,926 feet long and weighed 12,201 tons. The left front corner of the locomotive of the Metrolink train was damaged when it scraped the BNSF train. The last eight cars and the 2 rear locomotives of the BNSF train were scraped by the Metrolink locomotive. The total damage was estimated to be $25,000.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Report NTSB/RAR-10/01

About 4:22 p.m., Pacific daylight time, on Friday, September 12, 2008, westbound Southern California Regional Rail Authority Metrolink train 111, consisting of one locomotive and three passenger cars, collided head-on with eastbound Union Pacific Railroad (UP) freight train LOF65–12 near Chatsworth, California. The Metrolink train derailed its locomotive and lead passenger car; the UP train derailed its 2 locomotives and 10 of its 17 cars. The force of the collision caused the locomotive of train 111 to telescope into the lead passenger coach by about 52 feet. The accident resulted in 25 fatalities, including the engineer of train 111. Emergency response agencies reported transporting 102 injured passengers to local hospitals. Damages were estimated to be in excess of $12 million.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-08-FR-006

On May 28, 2008, about 10:05 a.m., southbound Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Green Line train 003 traveling on elevated track between Harlem/Lake Avenue station and Cottage Grove derailed after crossing switch 85A, which was lined against the direction of the train at south main track marker 338 in Chicago, Illinois. (See figure 1.) Train 003 consisted of four passenger cars coupled in sets of two. There were 24 passengers onboard. Fourteen passengers sustained minor injuries and were transported to area hospitals, where they were treated and released; the other 10 passengers declined medical attention. The total property damage to track, cars, and signal equipment was about $338,000. At the time of the derailment, the winds were variable at 11 mph, visibility was 10 miles, and the temperature was 52º F.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Report NTSB/RAR-09/02

On May 28, 2008, about 5:51 p.m., eastern daylight time, westbound Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Green Line train 3667, traveling about 38 mph, struck the rear of westbound Green Line train 3681, which had stopped for a red signal. The accident occurred in Newton, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. Each train consisted of two light rail trolley cars and carried two crewmembers—a train operator at the front of the lead car and a trail operator in the second car. The operator of the striking train was killed; the other three crewmembers sustained minor injuries. An estimated 185 to 200 passengers were on the two trains at the time of the collision. Of these, four sustained minor injuries, and one was seriously injured. Total damage was estimated to be about $8.6 million.

In the course of its investigation of this accident, the NTSB identified the following safety issues: lack of a positive train control system on the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority light rail system, lack of coordination between crewmembers on Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority light rail trains with regard to signal indications, inadequate requirements for Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority train operators to report possible signal malfunctions, and lack of screening of rail transit operators for possible obstructive sleep apnea. As a result of its investigation of this accident, the NTSB makes recommendations to the Federal Transit Administration, all U.S. rail transit agencies, and the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. The National Transportation Safety Board also reiterates one safety recommendation to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-08-FR-005

On April 1, 2008, about 3:22 a.m., a CSX Transportation (CSX) yard crew foreman was severely injured when he was struck by a free-rolling freight car in CSX’s Stanley Yard in Walbridge, Ohio. He injured his left arm and shoulder, head, face, and lungs. At the time of the accident, it was dark and 53° F, with a light rain and winds up to 31 mph.

The foreman and his helper had been switching railcars by using a remote-controlled locomotive. They had started their shift at 10:30 p.m. on March 31, the night before the accident; they were scheduled to finish at 6:30 a.m. on April 1. About 1:00 a.m., after the two men had completed several switching moves, the yardmaster told them that the freight cars on track 4 had to be switched so that they could be added to a departing train. (See figure 1.) Consequently, the foreman walked south between tracks 4 and 5 to check that all cars were coupled, and the helper climbed inside the locomotive that was attached to the cars. As the foreman walked along the cars, he radioed the helper and told him to move the cars north so that he could verify that the cars were properly coupled. The helper later said he had moved the cars about 20 or 30 feet when he heard the foreman say over the radio, “That’ll do.” The helper stopped the cars and awaited further instructions.

About a minute later, the helper said he heard the foreman use the radio to call for help. The helper left the locomotive to find the foreman. At 3:22 a.m., he found him under a freight car that had been free rolling on track 5; the yardmaster was already at the scene when the helper arrived.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-08-FR-004

On March 13, 2008, about 1:11 p.m., eastbound Amtrak Acela train 2154 struck two roadway workers at milepost (MP) 186.1 on track 2 along Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor in Providence, Rhode Island. The train was traveling about 50 mph at the time of impact. One worker was killed and the other was seriously injured. A third worker sustained minor injuries moving out of the train’s path. The injured were transported to and treated at a local hospital.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Report NTSB/RAR-09/01

On Friday, November 30, 2007, Amtrak (National Railroad Passenger Corporation) passenger train 371, consisting of one locomotive and three passenger cars, struck the rear of a standing Norfolk Southern Railway Company freight train near Chicago, Illinois. The forward portion of the Amtrak locomotive came to rest on top of a container on the rear car of the freight train. Sixty-six passengers and five crewmembers were transported to hospitals; two passengers and one crewmember were subsequently admitted. The weather was clear, and the temperature was 30º F. Estimated damage was $1,299,000

As a result of its investigation of this accident, the Safety Board identified the following safety issues: wayside signal indication training and proficiency programs, crewmember communication and action in response to operating concerns, and inadequate locomotive cab emergency egress and rescue access.

As a result of its investigation of this accident, the National Transportation Safety Board makes recommendations to the Federal Railroad Administration, Amtrak, the Association of American Railroads, the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, the United Transportation Union, and the American Public Transportation Association.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-08-FR-002

On Saturday, November 10, 2007, about 12:03 p.m., eastbound Union Pacific Railroad (UP) freight train RVVCGC-07 struck the rear end of stopped eastbound UP freight train IGSMN-10 in Bertram, California. The striking train consisted of 6 locomotives and 60 loaded cars and was traveling about 28 mph when it collided with the stopped train, which consisted of 5 locomotives and 111 loaded cars. The stopped train was awaiting a scheduled meet with a westbound UP freight train when the accident occurred. As a result of the collision, the striking train’s three lead locomotives derailed;
they also caught fire due to a fuel tank that ruptured on impact. The local fire department extinguished the fire. The two crewmembers on board the striking train were killed. The weather was clear, and the temperature was about 74° F. Total estimated damage was $2 million.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-07-FR-010

On August 30, 2007, about 4:59 a.m., a westbound BNSF Railway Company (BNSF) train, consisting of a locomotive and two cars, was being remotely controlled when it collided with the side of a standing tank car that was fouling2 a crossover between two tracks at BNSF’s Mormon Yard in Stockton, California. A helper, who was remotely controlling the moving train, had been riding the side ladder on the leading end of a covered hopper car. When the hopper car collided with the tank car, the helper was killed. At the time of the accident, it was dark, and the temperature was 74° F. The property damage was $500.

The remote control train crew consisted of a foreman, who was on his regular assignment, and the helper, who had filled a vacant position. The foreman and the helper had 5 years and 2 years of experience, respectively, as remote control operators. The crew had reported for duty at 11:00 p.m. on August 29 (the night before the accident) and had been on duty about 6 hours when the accident occurred. Each man had a remote control transmitter attached to his vest. Each man had also carried a railroad radio and a handheld lantern.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-07-MR-009

On Monday, March 12, 2007, about 6:58 a.m., CSX Transportation (CSX) train No. Q39010, a mixed freight train, derailed near Oneida, New York. The train was en route from Buffalo, New York, to Selkirk, New York. At the time of the derailment, the train was traveling about 47 mph. The train consisted of 3 locomotives and 78 cars. Twenty-nine cars derailed. Six tank cars were breached, including four carrying liquefied petroleum gas, one carrying toluene, and one carrying ferric chloride. An explosion and fire followed that led local emergency response officials to close two elementary schools and evacuate a 1-mile area around the derailment site. Four firefighters were taken to a hospital for observation as a precaution because they had stepped in a pool of ferric chloride. There were no fatalities. Estimated damages and environmental cleanup costs were $6.73 million.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-07-FR-008

About 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 7, 2007, the crew of CN Railway (CN) train R95491 left two locomotives, which had only air brakes applied, on a grade at the CN’s interchange point at Lumber Street in Chicago, Illinois. The two uncontrolled and unmanned locomotives rolled to the north. They traveled from CN’s track No. 4 onto Amtrak’s track No. 4, where, at 9:56 p.m., they collided with the lead locomotive of standing Northern Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad (Metra) train 839. At the time of the collision, the event recorder data indicated, the speed of the runaway CN locomotives was 14 mph. They had traveled about 1,789 feet.

About 55 passengers were aboard the eighth Metra passenger car at the time of the collision. The other seven passenger cars were empty. Seven passengers and the Metra engineer and assistant conductor were transported to area hospitals with minor injuries; they were treated and released. The total property damage was estimated to be $75,766.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Report NTSB/RAR-08/01

On Tuesday, January 9, 2007, at 1:38 p.m., southbound Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority passenger train 322 operated by Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad struck a track maintenance vehicle that was on the track near Woburn, Massachusetts. The track maintenance vehicle was thrown forward about 210 feet; the train did not derail. Of the six maintenance-of-way employees working on or near the track maintenance vehicle, two were killed, and two were seriously injured. Emergency responders treated and released 10 passengers at the accident scene.

As a result of its investigation of the accident, the National Transportation Safety Board identified the following safety issues: train dispatcher procedures for blocking track segments to protect maintenance of- way work crews working on the track; maintenance-of-way work crews shunting signaled track to protect themselves while working on the track; and alcohol and drug use by maintenance-of-way employees in the railroad industry.

As a result of its investigation of this accident, the National Transportation Safety Board makes recommendations to the Federal Railroad Administration and the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Report NTSB/RAR-07/03

On January 7, 2007, about 3:45 p.m. eastern standard time, northbound Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Metrorail train 504 derailed one car as the train traversed a crossover from track 2 to track 1. The accident occurred in an underground tunnel on the Metrorail Green Line near the Mt. Vernon Square 7th Street-Convention Center station at chain marker E2 23+28. The train was traveling about 18 mph as it approached the station. The train consisted of six cars. The fifth car from the head end of the train derailed. About 80 passengers were on board at the time of the accident. Twenty-three passengers were transported to local hospitals for treatment and released. Emergency response personnel from Washington, D.C., provided the on-scene treatment and transportation of the injured passengers.

The safety issues identified in this accident are wheel-truing procedures, mitigating measures for wheel climb derailments, and Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority interdepartmental coordination.

As a result of its investigation of this accident, the National Transportation Safety Board makes recommendations to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-07-FR-004

About 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, November 30, 2006, a northbound Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) Metrorail Yellow Line subway train struck and fatally injured two Metrorail employees who were performing a routine walking inspection along an outdoor section of main track near the Eisenhower Avenue station in Alexandria, Virginia. The accident occurred as the northbound train was traveling along track normally used for southbound traffic.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-07-FR-003

About 11:00 a.m. on November 9, 2006, a Harsco Track Technologies (Harsco) rail grinder was moving on the Union Pacific Railroad (UP) when it derailed near Baxter, California. The rail grinder consisted of 2 modified locomotives and 11 specialized rail cars. Ten of the cars derailed. One UP  conductor-pilot, one Harsco subcontractor cook, and eight Harsco employees, including one  supervisor, were on board at the time of the accident. Two of the Harsco employees were killed. A fire broke out in the wreckage following the derailment. Monetary damage to the equipment and track was estimated to be $3.33 million.

The grinder was being sent from Sparks, Nevada, to Tehachapi, California, a distance of about 300 miles. No grinding was intended between these locations, so the grinder was configured to move in transit. The grinder had been assembled in 1995 and had operated ever since. The locomotives and

the rail cars had pneumatic and mechanical brake systems. Both locomotives had dynamic brakes; however, neither dynamic brake was functioning. The compressors on the locomotives were connected to a common brake pipe that was set at 90 pounds per square inch (psi).

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-07-FR-001

On October 13, 2006, at 9:20 a.m., a Union Pacific Railroad (UP) switching brakeman was struck and killed by three coupled railroad cars at the UP’s Watsonville Junction Yard in Pajaro, California. The brakeman had been assigned to a two-person crew (one brakeman, one conductor) designated as LRQ42R-13, which was a regular weekday assignment. Their assignment was to switch railroad cars using a remote-controlled locomotive.

This crew was the only one working in the yard. The conductor was using an Operator Control Unit (OCU) to remotely control a locomotive that was used to switch railroad cars onto various yard tracks. (See figure 1.) The brakeman was to (1) ensure that the car couplings were successfully completed, (2) set the hand brakes, as needed, and (3) connect the air hoses.

The two men started switching cars about 8:00 a.m.; their first two switching operations of the day were uneventful. During the third switching operation, three railroad cars were to be switched on the south end of the yard. After the locomotive and the three coupled railroad cars were moving about 9 mph, the conductor lifted an uncoupling lever that uncoupled the cars from the locomotive and allowed the cars to roll freely onto track 4 at 9 mph, which was 6 mph faster than the maximum permissible speed for this release of free-rolling cars. The UP uses the terms “pinning” and “kicking” to classify the speed of free-rolling cars that are being released during switching operations. The term “pinning” is used for speeds of 3 mph or less; the term “kicking” is used for speeds greater than 3 mph.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-06-FR-009

On August 5, 2006, about 3:53 p.m., a 5-foot 6-inch, 110-pound, 18-year-old female passenger exiting a Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) commuter train at Woodside station in Queens, New York, fell through a 7 7/8-inch horizontal gap between the rail car and the station platform. (See figure 1.) After falling through the gap to track level beneath the platform, she did not follow instructions from the train conductor and her friends to remain still and wait to be rescued. Instead, the woman crawled under the platform and into the path of an oncoming passenger train. She sustained fatal injuries. Toxicology testing showed that her blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was 0.23 gram percent.2 The weather at the time of the accident was sunny, clear, and warm.

The passenger was part of a group en route to a concert on Randall’s Island in New York City. Some of the group had met earlier and had begun to drink alcohol before arriving at the LIRR Merrick station, where they met with more friends. They planned to travel on the LIRR from Merrick station to Jamaica station and then change trains for Woodside station, where they would take a bus to Randall’s Island. At Jamaica station, they boarded train 6113 (car 7548) to Woodside station. According to witnesses, many in the group had brought alcoholic beverages on board and were drinking on the train.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Report NTSB/RAR-07/02

On Tuesday, July 11, 2006, about 5:06 p.m., central daylight time, the last car of northbound Chicago Transit Authority Blue Line train number 220 derailed in the subway between the Clark/Lake and Grand/Milwaukee stations in downtown Chicago, Illinois. About 1,000 passengers were on board the eight-car rapid transit train. Following the derailment, the train came to a stop, and electrical arcing between the last car and the 600-volt direct current third rail generated smoke. The single operator in the lead car received a number of calls on the train intercom. The operator exited the control compartment, stepped onto the catwalk, and walked beside the train to investigate.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-06-FR-007

On Saturday, July 1, 2006, about 2:53 p.m., southbound Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) passenger train 1143 collided head on with standing northbound SEPTA train 1134 near Abington, Pennsylvania. The southbound train was traveling about 11 mph when it struck the northbound train. As a result of the collision, the control cab car and two passenger cars on the southbound train and the control cab car on the northbound train were derailed. Thirty-eight passengers were injured and treated on scene. Of those, 29 were transported to local hospitals, and 8 were admitted. All six crewmembers from both trains were also taken to local hospitals; three of them were admitted. Total property damage was about $179,700.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-06-FR-006

About 3:25 p.m. on June 26, 2006, National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) train PO5871-26, en route from New Orleans, Louisiana, to Chicago, Illinois, and operating over CN railroad (CN) main line track, encountered a section of misaligned track near Arcola, Louisiana. (See figure 1.) The train was traveling about 67 mph when the engineer said he saw that the track ahead was misaligned by about 2 feet to the east. He made an immediate full service brake application,2 and although the train negotiated the area without derailing, the misaligned track caused passengers to be jostled about in the cars. Nine of the train’s 104 passengers reported injuries at the scene, and 4 were transported to a local hospital where they were treated and released. None of the 10 Amtrak employees aboard the train was injured.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-06-FR-005

About 10:16 a.m. on Sunday, May 14, 2006, a southbound Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) Metrorail Red Line subway train struck and killed a Metrorail employee as the train was about to enter the Dupont Circle station in Washington, D.C. The employee was an automatic train control system mechanic who had been working with two other mechanics at the interlocking2 just north of the Dupont Circle station. All three mechanics had moved between the two main tracks north of the interlocking in order to stay clear of a northbound train that was leaving the station. As the southbound accident train was arriving, the other two mechanics remained in the clear between the two trains as they passed and were not injured. According to signal system data logs, the southbound train was moving about 40 mph as it traveled past the interlocking.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-06-FR-004

About 4:17 p.m., central standard time, on January 18, 2006, eastbound Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) freight train No. 226A117 (226), while traveling about 50 mph near Lincoln, Alabama, diverted from the main track onto a siding track where it struck the rear of eastbound NS train No. 22RA116 (22R), which was stopped in the siding. The collision derailed the three locomotives and the first seven cars of train 226 and the rear three cars of train 22R. The three crewmembers of train 226 were injured. Property damage was estimated to be about $5.2 million.

National Transportation Safety Board - USA

Railroad Accident Brief DCA-06-FR-003

On January 5, 2006, about 6:44 a.m., a northbound Virginia Railway Express commuter train, 304-05, operating on CSX Transportation’s (CSX’s) RF&P Subdivision derailed three passenger cars and a locomotive at Possum Point near Quantico, Virginia. Seven passengers and two crewmembers required medical attention.

The train had originated in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and was destined for Washington, D.C. It was a scheduled commuter train with one locomotive and six passenger cars, and the train crew consisted of an engineer, a conductor, and an assistant conductor. According to the documentation and to the crewmembers, the crew had boarded the train at Fredericksburg, where they had inspected the locomotive, reviewed the paperwork, held a job briefing, and performed a brake test.

Before the accident, the train had stopped at several stations, including Quantico, the last station before the accident. The train was in “push-pull” operation. The engineer was operating the train from the cab control car, in the lead of the train. The locomotive was at the rear of the train. About 520 passengers were aboard.