Train passengers and employees can now expect better safety with the much-awaited reforms on rail safety rules getting approved last Thursday. At least this is true for Los Angeles as the board of Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) unanimously approved the adoption of new safety measures.
The September 12 train crash that killed 26 people and injured nearly 140 others ignited this major change in rail safety rules. This tragedy involved a collision between a commuter train and freight train because the commuter train’s engineer failed to heed a series of red lights.
Temporary Safety Technology
The Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority is the official operator of Metrolink, the region’s railway commuter system. The new rail safety measures MTA approved include:
- installing automatic train-stop technology
- adding a second engineer to each train
- installing digital recorders and video cameras in locomotive cabs
MTA officials said the automatic train-stop technology is an old technology that can engage the brake of a train in eight seconds. They added that they’re installing this technology now while waiting for a better one to come along.
And the Investigation Continues…
At present, investigations are still being done on why the Metrolink train engineer failed to heed the warning signals. One assumption is that he was too exhausted as he was working towards the last hours of his shift. Sen. Dianne Feinstein was one among those who questioned the Metrolink train engineer’s work schedule, which she called “untenable” for he worked 11-hour days, five days a week, in split shifts.
Another assumption points to cellphone text messaging as the culprit. Friends of the Metrolink train engineer claimed that they were exchanging text messages with him minutes before the train crash.
Let’s just hope the rest of the rail tracks in the U.S. also get better technology and safety measures soon.
Related Links:
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