Page 44 - Train Control News Today

At triple digit speed when it was supposed to be going slow. the ntsb 106 miles per hour in a 50 mile-per-hour zone. we also learned tonight for the first time the emergency break brakes were used fully as the train hit top speed at 106 heading into the curve, hurdling away from downtown philly. the six whole seconds after the emergency brakes were hit, the train only slowed to 102. still twice as fast as allowed here. then there is news about the absence of a technology called positive train co...

Component of positive train control. the idea is to use gps, the network system satellite network to tell you exactly where your train is and the system would also know where other trains are. >> so even if this engineer didnt realize he was coming upon this curve or was speeding in general, we dont know what this should have slowed him down is what you are saying? >> thats correct. >> is there any way to turn that system off? >> i would have to believe there is a way. for example, on commercial...

Monitor the speeds of the train, preventing any mistakes that might be made as a result of human error. >> well the technology new technology coming on to the scene on this positive train control, congress has mandated a certain number of trains particularly those all passenger trains and those carrying hazardous materials be equipped with positive train control. this would prevent collisions between trains its excellent technology. the problem with the regulation is that its covering only about...

To enforce the civil speed to keep the train below its maximum speed. and so we have called for positive train control for many, many years. its on our most wanted list. congress has mandated that it be instauld by the end of this year. so we are very keen on positive train control. based on what we know right now, we feel that had such a system been installed in this section of track, this accident would not have occurred. right here? >> [ inaudible ]. >> is this train equipped with a dead-man ...

About how theyll try to evaluate why? >> well the first thing the ntsb thing will do besides surveying the site and looking at the train and the tracks is theyre going to get that black box off the locomotive. because the locomotive black box is very much like an aircraft black box and it will tell the speed, the settings on the controls when and where the train blew its whistle. that wont be an issue here but it will have a recreation of this journey of the train very much like an airplane blac...

Made that curve safely. >> i mentioned a similar accident to our viewers a short time ago. there was an accident and i believe we have the video. and an accident on metro north tracks that are amtrak tracks north of manhattan a year and half oochlth and metro north commuter train missed a curv e and turned out that the engineer was taking the curve three times the posted speed and he was going much faster than that. >> is that the kind of thing we might be looking at here? >> positive train cont...

Democratic congressmen from pennsylvania, robert brady represents the district where were stand right now in frankford, philadelphia. and brandon boyer represents parts of the philly area as well right nearby. congressman, youre the leader of the city politically, you are. what are you going to do about this? talk about this ptc thing? >> well its positive train control is a device that if its in the engine and its on the poles, it would have stopped the train. >> so its a deadman switch? >> exa...

Theres no indication of terrorism, its typical for them to respond, particularly given the state of heightened alert, literally around the world, but i think at the press conference theyll be able to say whether or not that csx train was there or if this was a derailment going around the turn and really give us an account on the people that have been taken so far to the hospital because the police there will be able to brief the mayor on that and also sadly, the condition of everyone, if everyon...

On an acela train last night, this accident would not have happened because there is automatic train stop that is part of the acela system. so it is possible to do this even though we dont have positive train control implemented nationwide. and frankly, i dont understand why we havent implemented positive train stop on the northeast corridor. we can do it. >> professor, let me ask you about that the automatic train stop. how is it to put in trains and trains that dont have it as in this one? >> ...

Two years ago a metro north train derailed in new york after going into a curve at nearly three times the speed limit. right after the "today" shows jeff rosen showed us technology could have prevented it from happening. >> state-of-the-art collision avoidance technology. >> its called positive train control, or ptc. a sophisticated system of sensors on the rails and inside the locomotive even using satellites to track the trains movements and prevent many accidents caused by operator error. if ...