OK Chatsworth; that was a passenger train, and any rail passenger agency is prepared to have PTC, enacted under RSIA '08, where there is any volume beyond, say, an Amtrak "one a day" put in place.
And the Feddytrough is there to "pick it up".
But as the Goodwell investigation unfolds, and the outcry gains force, how much will the stakeholders in the investor owned Class I system bear of the estimated $15B to have all affected systems in compliance?
The shippers are of course a stakeholder; how much will they bear before "short hauling" the roads anyway they can post-PANAMAX?
Will Hours of Service become even more constricted; will there be screening for sleep deprivation as there already is for substances?
Answer to which I hope "wise men" hold.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Regarding Spuyten Duyvil, it appears that while the existing train control system could have slowed or stopped a train in the face of a Restricting signal, there is no capacity for the system to react if the train were operating at excessive speed. In short, nothing that could be considered Positive Train Control under RSIA '08.
By contrast, the Amtrak Corridor has a system that is 'PTC compliant' with the Act.
The NTSB report on Goodwell has now been released; it appears that the Engineer had vision issues that should have disqualified him from Engine service. It further established that PTC would have avoided the incident.
PTC on any line handling any appreciable volume of traffic, freight or passenger, now appears inevitable.
While, as I noted immediately, taxpayers will bear the burden for making compliant those lines that are predominantly passenger, the shippers will bear the burden for the rest. This will only make railroad transportation less competitive with other modes.
Randy Resor, whose passing I noted at the Amtrak Forum, was a staunch advocate for Positive Train Control. I always disagreed with him on a systemwide need for such, but unfortunately, before an even more serious incident that would have been avoidable with PTC occurs, I am starting to waver from my previously stated position.