WASHINGTON - INVESTIGATORS are trying to find out why a Washington, DC, train under automated control didn't stop before it slammed into a stopped train in front of it, jackknifing violently in the air. Nine people were killed and more than 70 injured.
Transit system kept old fleet as it lacked money for new cars
Federal officials had sought to phase out the aging fleet because of safety concerns, but the transit system kept the old trains running, saying it lacked money for new cars.
Ms Hersman told The Associated Press that the NTSB had warned in 2006 that the old fleet should be replaced or retrofitted to make it better able to survive a crash.
Officials say the emergency brake control was pushed down and there was evidence that the operator tried to slow her car before impact during Monday's evening rush hour, but the train kept going.
'That train was never supposed to get closer than 1,200 feet, period,' said Mr Jackie Jeter, president of a union that represents workers on Washington's Metro.
Emergency brake controls are referred to as 'mushrooms' on transit trains, protruding from the operator's console so they can be slammed down with a swift slap of the palm.
Ms Debbie Hersman, an investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board, said on Tuesday it wasn't clear when the button was pressed or how it got that way. Much on the train, including toggle switches and other controls, could have been disturbed in the crash, she said.
Safety officials also are investigating a passenger's statement that the train had stopped briefly then started again before the accident.
The horror of the worst disaster in the system's 33-year history shocked the Washington region, where the Metro system is an integral part of the economic and social fabric.
As is typical of rush-hour trains, the moving train had been operating under automatic control, but the computerized system failed to avert the approaching crash. The transit agency tried to assure riders their trains were still safe, and all were running on manual control on Tuesday as a precaution against computer malfunction.
When the train is in automatic mode, the operator's main job is to open and close the doors and respond to emergencies.
The cars in the moving train were some of the oldest in the transit network, dating to the founding of the system in 1976. -- AP
