positive train control

A damaged Amtrak train car is lowered from an overpass Tuesday at the scene of a train crash onto Interstate 5 a day earlier in DuPont, Wash. Federal investigators say they don't yet know why the Amtrak train was traveling 50 mph over the speed limit when

National

Derailment Probe Looks At Speed, As Critics Cite Amtrak's 'Lax Safety Culture'

12:15pm December 20, 2017

by David Schaper

The National Transportation Safety Board is trying to figure out why the train was traveling 80 mph in a 30 mph zone when it careened off a highway overpass Monday, killing at least three people.

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Cars from an Amtrak train lay spilled onto Interstate 5 below and alongside smashed vehicles as some train cars remain on the tracks above on Dec. 18, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. The Amtrak train making the first-ever run along a faster new route hurtled off t

Amtrak Derailment Highlights Delays In Implementing New Safety Measures

3:50pm December 19, 2017

by Samantha Raphelson

Positive train control technology was installed but not activated on the track where a deadly derailment occurred on Monday. The technology was still being tested and set to be turned on next year.

Investigators say lives could have been saved in this 2015 crash in Philadelphia if positive train control had been in place.

National

Feds Say Railroads Making Slow Progress On Revolutionary Braking System

6:43pm November 28, 2016

by David Schaper

The Federal Railroad Administration says many railroads are behind schedule in installing technology that could prevent crashes. It would slow or stop a train if the human operator failed to do so.

People examine the wreckage of a New Jersey Transit commuter train that crashed into the station in Hoboken, N.J., during the morning rush hour Thursday.

National

Federal Investigators Find 'Black Box' From Hoboken Train Crash

12:52pm September 30, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

Investigators are looking into what exactly happened when a commuter train plowed into the Hoboken Terminal at a high speed on Thursday morning. The crash killed one person and injured more than 100.

Positive Train Control Might Have Prevented Fatal Crash In June

11:22pm July 14, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

Two freight trains collided in Texas after one ran a stop signal, the National Transportation Safety Board says. Three people died. The section of track did not have Positive Train Control installed.

Investigators and first responders work near the wreckage of Amtrak Northeast Regional Train 188, which derailed May 13, 2015, in north Philadelphia. Eight people were killed and hundreds injured in the crash.

National

One Year After Fatal Amtrak Derailment, Still Waiting For Answers

10:16pm May 12, 2016

by David Schaper

The National Transportation Safety Board has scheduled a meeting next week to detail the probable cause of the accident, which killed 8 people and injured more than 200.