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Re: The UP Loco Had A Camera -- Why Didn't The Metrolink Loco?
Author: T Judah
Date: 02-14-2009 - 12:25
Anything to blame Metro-Link - right? Pardon me, but your bias is showing!
That said, let's remember that no matter who actually did the dirty deed, or why; Metro-Link officers are responsible and must be held to account. Being responsible, they must respond; fixing whatever it is that is broke. And if they don't do it to our (the public in this case) satisfaction, those company officers must then be replaced.
As to whether this engineer deliberately did it, OPB did not say he did - just that the possibility is still open to investigation. This is justified, considering that the level of distraction producible by texting itself just can't explain the extremes of distraction that are evident here. It is a valid question that should be fully vetted by the NTSB and perhaps the courts as well.
One note: Though they are very good at what they do, I do not quite have OPB's confidence in the NTSB's thoroughness and impartiality. Sometimes it falls short. One case in point; I believe it was an accident in Maryland (perhaps the one you speak of) that happened on the CSX where a MARQ train hit an Amtrak at a crossover. As it turns out, the NTSB completely missed that one, reporting that the engineer forgot about a yellow approach aspect after departing a station stop.
It was later proven wrong in court, thanks in part to an alert investigative reporter blowing the whistle. Turns out the engineer that ran that red aspect had developed a serious colorblindness over time , but had managed to repeatedly get the company doctor to cover it up. Both were later convicted in federal court on criminal negligence charges related to that train wreck, according to The Readers Digest.
Still, we expect managements to respond - period. They must fix whatever goes wrong, as soon as it possibly can be discovered - hopefully before anyone gets hurt. But none of this demand on management can ever relieve any individual employee of his/her own culpability - period.
That said, let's remember that no matter who actually did the dirty deed, or why; Metro-Link officers are responsible and must be held to account. Being responsible, they must respond; fixing whatever it is that is broke. And if they don't do it to our (the public in this case) satisfaction, those company officers must then be replaced.
As to whether this engineer deliberately did it, OPB did not say he did - just that the possibility is still open to investigation. This is justified, considering that the level of distraction producible by texting itself just can't explain the extremes of distraction that are evident here. It is a valid question that should be fully vetted by the NTSB and perhaps the courts as well.
One note: Though they are very good at what they do, I do not quite have OPB's confidence in the NTSB's thoroughness and impartiality. Sometimes it falls short. One case in point; I believe it was an accident in Maryland (perhaps the one you speak of) that happened on the CSX where a MARQ train hit an Amtrak at a crossover. As it turns out, the NTSB completely missed that one, reporting that the engineer forgot about a yellow approach aspect after departing a station stop.
It was later proven wrong in court, thanks in part to an alert investigative reporter blowing the whistle. Turns out the engineer that ran that red aspect had developed a serious colorblindness over time , but had managed to repeatedly get the company doctor to cover it up. Both were later convicted in federal court on criminal negligence charges related to that train wreck, according to The Readers Digest.
Still, we expect managements to respond - period. They must fix whatever goes wrong, as soon as it possibly can be discovered - hopefully before anyone gets hurt. But none of this demand on management can ever relieve any individual employee of his/her own culpability - period.
