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WMATA released a few more details last night on the multiple rail car collision at the West Falls Church Rail Yard early Sunday morning. The damage total begins at a minimum of $9 million, according to the transit agency's preliminary figures, as at least three of the $3 million cars involved were totaled. In total, 12 cars were damaged, and Metro says it is still assessing the remaining nine cars to determine if repairs are possible.
Here's how Metro says the crash went down: Train #902, a six-car train, struck the rear of a parked six-car train parked inside the West Falls Church Rail Yard at 4:27 a.m. No customers were on board either of the trains, but three employees, two on the parked train and the driver of train #902, sustained minor, non life-threatening injuries. The two employees on board the parked train had been waiting for train 902 to pull in behind so they could board it and begin to clean it, Metro says.
The driver of #902, whose name has yet to be released, has been a train operator for about a year, and is already on paid administrative leave, per WMATA policy. Notably, the accident took place shortly after the driver's scheduled 10-plus-hour shift, which was supposed to go from 5:55 p.m. Saturday (Nov. 28) to 4:15 a.m. Sunday (Nov. 29), was meant to have ended.
The Tri-State Oversight Committee and the National Transportation Safety Board have both been notified of the crash.
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unless you can find me a letter from god that says this driver was supposed to do this to save humanity, this person has no excuse for CRASHING INTO A PARKED TRAIN IN A TRAIN YARD.
fire. the. employee. now.
Since Metro just hired back a bunch of bus drivers who were fired for cell phone usage, texting, etc. while driving, I'm guessing this guy will get a suspension and then be quietly returned to duty.
Maybe his wife just broke out the back window of the train with a golf club.
+1 flamingcissy
Zzzzzzzzzz
Why fire him? Maybe Metro has to look at why train operators are working 10+ hour shifts??
Pretty soon, we're going to start noticing the reduction in service from all of the rail cars out of commission. This incident has two full train consists out of service. And there are a minimum of 4 cars permanently gone from the Fort Totten crash.
Here's my count on active / inactive Metro cars...
In total I count, including West Falls Church, 22 cars Metro has had to take off the tracks since day 1. Active rolling stock, pre-crash, was 1,126 cars -- with only 850 cars (816 active, 36 on reserve...thanks Wiki) out during rush hours.
So, it doesn't look bad in the short term, but losing 4 or so cars every 6 months certainly isn't a trend to keep up....
Count me happy we have two less 1000 series cars in the Metro system. Would that this guy could have wrecked more of them (assuming no loss of life). Hero.