2/5/54 - WJ TOWER WILMINGTON DEL.

[shlustig]

Double-track mainline, movement by signal indication, automatic train stop system in use.

Yard tracks on both sides of the mainline.

Yard crew on light engine moving westward on yard track with 5 crewmen ran past the fouling point of Tk. #2.

Train #2 ("National Limited" - 2 units [59-A & 59-x] & 13 cars) approaching at 80 mph on Clear signals; engineer observed the home signal go from "Clear" to "STOP" and made emergency brake application. Speed at impact (sideswipe) was 75 mph; both units and 10 cars derailed. No fatalities and only 13 employees and passengers injured.

Query: would PTC prevent this type of incident?

[BR&P]

Query: would PTC prevent this type of incident?

I am not fully conversant on PTC. But the yard engine was NOT foul - until it WAS. Sounds like the passenger engineer was on the ball, wiped the clock immediately, but there just was not enough time to slow the train down. So PTC could not have stopped the train any sooner.

I suppose questions to be asked are would the yard engine also have PTC, and how much of a "cushion" or space would be built into the logic of the system. In other words - if a careless yard crew went by a limiting location, would PTC stop that yard engine BEFORE it got out foul of the main? And of course speed and weight would be factors in stopping distance so it's tough to give a hard and fast answer.

Maybe someone well versed in PTC can elaborate on how this possibility would be addressed.

[mmi16]

Query: would PTC prevent this type of incident?

I am not fully conversant on PTC. But the yard engine was NOT foul - until it WAS. Sounds like the passenger engineer was on the ball, wiped the clock immediately, but there just was not enough time to slow the train down. So PTC could not have stopped the train any sooner.

I suppose questions to be asked are would the yard engine also have PTC, and how much of a "cushion" or space would be built into the logic of the system. In other words - if a careless yard crew went by a limiting location, would PTC stop that yard engine BEFORE it got out foul of the main? And of course speed and weight would be factors in stopping distance so it's tough to give a hard and fast answer.

Maybe someone well versed in PTC can elaborate on how this possibility would be addressed.

Yard Tracks WILL NOT have PTC and Yard Engines in the yard will not have PTC operational if they are in fact equipped for PTC, the switch to the Main Track will be integrated into PTC - in the same way as it was in 1952. The same result will happen with or without PTC.

[mmi16]

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