National Transportation Safety Board photoPhotos released earlier this month by the National Transportation Safety Board reveal that Metro’s series 1000 rail cars experience significant damage even when placed in the middle of a train. The photos were taken following a crash at the West Falls Church rail yard last November, when two six-car trains collided. The trains were both out-of-service, but three Metro employees, including the train operator, were injured.
The crash destroyed three Metro rail cars, all series 1000, which are the oldest and least crash-durable in the agency’s fleet. The cars were placed in the middle of the six-car train as part of a safety move following the fatal June 22, 2009 Red Line crash. Despite the cars’ location in the center of the train, there was still significant structural damage and telescoping — where one rail car begins to climb over another.
Metro has stated that moving the cars to the center of the train would mitigate damage in the event of a crash. Last year, the Washington Post reported that this was mostly a public-relations move, and that Metro had no scientific data to support their claim. When asked this week via email, Metro spokesperson Ron Holzer declined to answer if Metro had obtained any data which indicated that “bellying” the series 1000 cars improved safety.
