An Amtrak train collided with a maintenance vehicle in Chester, Pennsylvania, killing two Amtrak employees, Backhoe operator Joseph Carter Jr., and supervisor Peter Adamovich in the early morning of April 3, 2016. About 30 of the over 300 passengers aboard were also injured, most with bruises and scrapes. The engineer on the train had only five seconds to brake before crashing into a backhoe occupying the same track.
Investigators with the Federal Railroad Administration (”FRA”) and the National Transportation Safety Board have focused on miscommunication as one shift of track workers and supervisors took over for another. During a shift change, the outgoing supervisor was supposed to inform the incoming supervisor, who then was to meet with his or her crew before anyone enters the track, rail safety experts said. The supervisors also communicate with Amtrak dispatchers. “The procedures were in place, and somebody did not follow them,” said consultant Russell Quimby, a retired NTSB safety engineer.
“FRA rules always require that a notification be made to the workers before there are any changes to their job briefing“, the agency directive said. A federal safety directive also described secondary safety measures Amtrak should consider to prevent crashes, including the use of a device called a “shunt” that sends an electronic signal to the dispatcher. Amtrak Chairman, Joe Boardman promised to remind workers of “the seriousness of following our rules to prevent accidents, injuries and deaths.” “We will begin the safety stand down immediately with all active crews,” Mr. Boardman said in a statement. Amtrak has been also ordered to retrain rail workers on basic safety rules. The FRA directed Amtrak to conduct immediate safety reviews. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s FRA said it told the national passenger railroad to perform a “safety stand-down” which is a review of basic work-safety protocols with its workers.
Mr. Boardman said Amtrak has been working on a plan to reinforce safety rules. He said he also has called for a revamping of Amtrak’s engineering and dispatching departments, and its national operations center. “The FRA direction helps us impart the seriousness of following our rules to prevent accidents, injuries and death,” Mr. Boardman stated.
