Click here for Mobile Site: http://m.wbztv.com
  • Font Size    
Advertising
E-mail

Close Window E-mail This Page

NTSB Worried About Safety Of Train Signal Warning

Required fields are marked with an asterisk(*)

The information you provide will be used only to send the requested e-mail and will not be used to send any other e-mail communications. Read more in our Privacy Policy

Send E-mail

   Print     Share +    Comments
Sep 23, 2009 12:33 pm US/Eastern

NTSB Worried About Safety Of Train Signal Warning

BOSTON (WBZ) ― A federal safety board is urging checks by all transit lines and railroads that use the same signal system that failed to detect a stopped train in a deadly crash in Washington, DC earlier this year.

Boston is one of the cities with a similar system.

The June 22 crash in Washington killed nine people and injured 70 others. One train was not able to stop in time before slamming into another parked train.

There was a malfunction in the automated system that uses sound waves to warn trains about other trains on the tracks.

Now the National Transportation Safety Board is concerned the same problem could occur in similar systems, such as Boston and other cities.

"Our findings so far indicate a pressing need to issue these recommendations to immediately address safety glitches we have found that could lead to another tragic accident on WMATA or another transit or rail system," NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman said in a statement Tuesday.

MBTA officials say there have been no incidents regarding signals over the years, but they are following the warning and getting the inpections done anyway. Spokesperson Joe Pesaturo tells WBZ the Red Line was upgraded in 2000 and the Orange Line has been updated over the past five years, which equals about 32 miles of track.

The NTSB had said previously that equipment that is supposed to detect stopped trains failed periodically in the days leading up to the crash.

The DC Metro also said the system failed to detect trains during tests after the crash.

The NTSB has requested responses from each of the rail agencies within 30 days on the urgent recommendations, with steps they have taken or plan to take.

(© 2010 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

WBZ's Most Popular

Add Comment

here. here. Need a log in? Register here
  •  * Will not be displayed with comment
  •  * e.g. (http://www.mywebsite.com)
  •  
  • Click here to refresh with new letters

Show Comments (0)

Close Window Login


Close Window Flag Comment


loading...
You need the latest Flash player to view video content.
Click here to download.

Click here to bypass this detection if you already have the latest Flash Player.

Boston Area News

Top News Stories

© MMX, CBS Corporation. All rights reserved.