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Read the comments on almost any article about the accident. "How come there isn't something in place to stop a train that is going too fast?" will eventually appear in every one of them. And it's a good question. How come there isn't something in place to stop a car, bus, or truck that is...

This is exactly the type of knee-jerk reactions I hoped we could avoid. A second crewman or signal system change won't actually fix anything. What happens when someone falls asleep over at VRE or LIRR? Can we address crew fatigue??? Further, will Amtrak trains need a second head end crewman anywher...

with media quoting snozing, let it be known the engineer told investigators he zoned out, he did not say he was sleeping. zoning out can be anything from having your thoughts on other than what your doing to having a brain fart. ever watch someone do something, next it seems like he pauses for minu...

The (slightly?) more reputable Wall St Journal has also published a similar story, using the phrase "zoned out": "I think anybody who's ever driven a car and sort of gotten to that place where you're not really conscious, and then you snap yourself out of it, that's in effect what ha...

Engineer zoned out but not on cell phone according to NY Times. Well, the only thing that can be traced on a cell phone are calls and sending texts. However, there is no way to validate dozens of other things that could be done on a smart phone, such as reading files, playing games, listening to mu...

I have heard that the locomotive and cars are going to be initially moved inside the shed at the Highbridge Car Appearance Facility for the NTSB to continue it's investigation. I would have thought they would go to Harmon, but I guess the distance's shorter and it's better to keep them away from th...

I just figured that's simple physics. A Shoreliner weighs something like 100k lbs. A P32AC-DM weighs 274k lbs. Once the train hits the dirt, of course it's going to take the locomotive longer to skid to a stop than the passenger cars-- it weighs 2.75x as much. I don't think that's necessarily true....

Some reporter from WTNH on twitter was trying to make an issue over the fact that cab car was CDOT. What's next, Blumenthal and Malloy demanding all CDOT equipment stay on the New Haven Line? /eyeroll Whatever's in the CDOT contract. So let it be written, so let it be done. But more at issue now is...

Push and pull are likely equally safe but where the engine is arranged does have an impact on the physics of an accident. It is quite possible that had the heavy locomotive been first in our most recent accident, the momentum induced by its heavy weight may have sailed it into the river along with s...

You will keep your pension if you weren't earning it fraudulently. But you didn't really want an answer, did you? You almost sound like you want this crook to keep his pension. He's a criminal. It is virtually impossible to void a person's pension if they have met the minimum stated requirements fo...

True. It is best not to give out MN material to those not employed by them. It sucks but that's the would we live in. I guess that, as you say, it does indeed suck. Looking at this as an outsider to the industry, I can't help thinking that it must not be a very rewarding work environment to live in...

Jaap said it:there aren't any places on Metro-North where these wreck damaged cars may be held without the public being able to catch sight of them while awaiting all the legal claims to be settled and then they will be sent away for scrapping.Does someone have room in their basement for them? No, ...

The airport analogy was a good one. A commercial airline would never allow damaged (especially crash-damaged) equipment to be displayed in public view because it is bad public relations. It would be like hospitals leaving dead patients out in the hallways. The airline industry understands that peopl...

I was driving through Danbury yesterday and there was crossing (the first one out of the Danbury station) with the lights flashing but no gates down. There was a MNRR work crew of 7 or 8 guys there, one of which waved cars across the tracks past the flashing lights. This morning, at the crossing dow...

Which of these bridges is most needy of replacement? Is there reason to believe that mechanical or structural failure is imminent? Age alone shouldn't determine that - I suspect that the new bridges won't be as sturdy as the ones they're replacing.