PTC is a joke, it’s like TSA. in a text book, PTC would prevent all kinds of onboard casualties resulting from crew errors. But in a text book, Amtrak would run on time, Gennies wouldn’t catch on fire*, trees wouldn’t fall across the main*, crazy old men wouldn’t shoot conductors*, ice wouldn’t foul switches* or freeze up viewliner*s, birds wouldn’t make nests in signal boxes*, cars wouldn’t stop mid-crossing*, trespassers wouldn’t walk down the middle of the tracks* etc....
PTC is a “I don’t know how to do your job but my binder tells me you are doing it wrong” gesture. It already resulted in one spectacular accident in Niles and we’re so lucky nobody was hurt. It doesn’t address any of the problems above with a *. If there’s one thing the railroaders around here will tell you, it’s that the railroad does not and will never work like the text book says it will.
Watch this space here for a big accident that PTC didn’t prevent. It’s going to happen.
For what it’s worth, in two weeks I’m addressing a conference of steel mill executives and managers and telling them not to let their people rely on PTC-like tools in crane operation because they only lead to complacency and ultimately to accidents.
The new Acela: It's not Aveliable.