NTSB investigating passenger comments that train stopped then started before crash

September 22nd, 2009 NTSB issues safety recommendations to MetroWASHINGTON — Transit lines and railroads that use the same signal system that failed to detect a stopped train in the area of a deadly Washington crash should check them to make sure they are working correctly, a federal safety board urged Tuesday. The National Transportation Safety Board said it was not ready to say what caused the June 22 crash that killed nine and injured 70 when a train hit another one stopped on the tracks.

July 22nd, 2009 NTSB: Human error eyed as cause of SF train crashSAN FRANCISCO — Federal investigators say they are focusing on human error as the cause of a light-rail train crash in San Francisco that injured dozens of people after finding no indication of mechanical or systems failures. The National Transportation Safety Board said Wednesday the operator of the San Francisco Municipal Railway train in Saturday's collision told investigators he blacked out before the crash.

July 17th, 2009 Report: Passenger drove NYC-bound commuter trainNEW YORK — A witness has told police that a Long Island Rail Road engineer let a passenger operate a train bound for New York City. MTA Police Chief Michael Coan says the train ran smoothly and no one was injured.

July 17th, 2009 NY prosecutors probe whether passenger drove trainMINEOLA, N.Y. — A prosecutor says criminal charges are possible after reports that a Long Island Rail Road engineer let a passenger operate a train bound for New York City.

July 14th, 2009 NTSB: Boston trolley in 2008 crash going too fastBOSTON — Federal investigators say a Boston trolley operator who was killed when her train rammed into another didn't heed a red warning signal and was going too fast. National Transportation Safety Board investigators say Terrese Edmonds shouldn't have been traveling more than 10 mph after pulling out of a station in suburban Newton last year.

July 1st, 2009 NTSB: DC train signal failed before crashWASHINGTON — Investigators say equipment that is supposed to detect stopped trains failed periodically in the days leading up to a deadly Metro transit train crash in Washington, D.C. Nine people were killed and more than 70 injured June 22 when a train slammed into another train stopped on tracks.

June 26th, 2009 Metro superintendent reassigned following crashWASHINGTON — The Washington-area mass transit authority has temporarily reassigned the superintendent of the automatic control system that is supposed to prevent train crashes. Federal investigators said Thursday that Metro's signaling system failed to detect a test train stopped in the same place as one that was struck during a deadly crash this week.

June 26th, 2009 Memorial service set for operator in DC crashWASHINGTON — A memorial service will be held for the operator of a Washington Metro train involved in Monday's crash. Jeanice McMillan, 42, of Springfield, Va., was to be remembered Friday morning at the Temple of Praise Fellowship Hall in D.C.

June 26th, 2009 NTSB: Metro signal system didn't detect test trainWASHINGTON — The signaling system for the Washington-area transit agency failed to detect a test train stopped in the same place as one that was struck during a deadly crash this week, federal investigators said Thursday. The National Transportation Safety Board's test results indicate the oncoming train involved in Monday's crash that killed nine could have lacked information that another train was stopped on the tracks ahead.

June 24th, 2009 Investigators seek why automated train didn't stopWASHINGTON — Federal investigators were testing the automated controls for Washington D.C. transit trains Wednesday, hoping to figure out why the computerized system designed to prevent collisions failed in a deadly crash this week.

June 23rd, 2009 NTSB: Train in DC crash should have been replacedWASHINGTON — An emergency brake button was found depressed in the Metrorail train that crashed into another in Monday's transit accident that killed nine people in the nation's capital, federal safety officials said Tuesday. They also said the striking train was in automatic rather than manual control.

June 23rd, 2009 5 of those killed in DC metro crash identifiedWASHINGTON — Officials are identifying five of the victims killed in a subway train crash in Washington, D.C. Metro officials said at a special board meeting Tuesday that four passengers ranging in age from 23 to 64 were killed when a train barreling down the tracks hit a stopped train a day earlier.

June 23rd, 2009 DC train union head: Too soon to talk crash causeWASHINGTON — The head of the transit workers' union in the nation's capital says any comments about the cause of a train accident that killed nine people would be premature and irresponsible. The president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 689 said Tuesday that it is important that steps are taken to avoid any future tragedy.

June 23rd, 2009 DC Metro chief: First train stopped, second hit itWASHINGTON — The general manager of the Washington Metro says the two-train collision occurred when one train stopped at a platform near the Fort Totten station, and a second train hit it from behind. John Catoe told reporters Monday that for reasons we do not know the second train plowed into the back of that train.

May 10th, 2009 No mechanical problems seen in Mass. trolley crashBOSTON — A spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board says no mechanical problems have been found on a Boston train that crashed into another Friday, injuring about 50 people.