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New story on the Northridge Metrolink crash.

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[quote user="wabash1"] ok guys what im about to say is gospol anywhere in the united states. If you have a green proceed take off or keep going  at track speed. a yellow ( approach) means proceed to next signal prepared to stop. train or engine exceeding 30 mph ( my road medium speed) must at once reduce to that speed. simple get your train down to 30 mph or less and prepared to stop at next signal. Now this signal is only telling you of track condition. next block is occupied, or the dispatcher has not lined you up. that is what this signal means now if you can see the next signal even at a 1/2 mile away and it is green get going. track speed. most of the guys here wont but you can as the restriction is gone. now a approach restricted ( flashing yellow and there is others) means proceed by next signal not exceeding restricted speed ( not exceeding  15 mph may be 20 on other roads)  this is a signal that means what it says if the next signal is green ( not likley ) you still do restricted speed til the head end goes past this signal. if your going faster than 15 mph and the fra man is there with radar gun in hand you will be told to stop your train and you will be releaved. ( or train master and road forman also) .after passing signal do as indication says do.. Now there is signals i have no idea what they mean nor care. ( sorry csx guys but medium clear , green over yellow flashing to the 3rd power of pie ) yea right... thats why i like the old southern signal green means go a yellow means slow down and a red is stop. if you put a number plate on it then its restricting. thats it. I hope this helps in understanding that in most cases the signal is conveying track conditions but in ctc the dispatcher may not have you line up. but in this case the man at the throttle was wrong, and why did this happen many times you go by the signal and its clear you never meet anyone here but this timeyou had a yellow but in past you always had a green  you text message someone forget about that signal leave like you always do in a hurry to get done and get by the stop and run into a train. why do i know this because ive done it. Not by a stop but stopped set out some cars thinking about going home last signal was clear but was stopped for 20 min. when i rounded corner and remebered what happen i slapped the throttle off when I did see the signal it was green, it could have been otherwise i lucked out. but its easily done it happens quick and it can be deadly, that is why i am not for 1 man crews it was the conductor who reminded me. heck i was going home. its easy to lose focus, just to prove it show me one person who has never daydreamed or had other thoughts while going down the road driving there personal vehicle. you dont haft to have a close call or even screwed up but see how easy it was, and if you say you didnt i will call you a liar. [/quote] I agree with everything you said here.  It does appear that the engineer was at fault for running the final signal, which was red.  The explanation appears to be a lack of attention due to text messaging.  I don’t know if that is the final official conclusion, as I am not aware of how the investigation process plays out and when or if it is finished.   <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p> However, there are witnesses who say the final signal was green.  They may be mistaken, or they may be lying, or they may be correct.  There are no witnesses who say the final light was red.  Under the circumstances, it should have been red.  Testing failed to find a reason why it would not have been red.   <o:p></o:p> So this raises this question:  Would the engineer’s guilt or innocence pivot solely on whether the final signal was red or green?  Some have suggested that it would not for various reasons as follows: <o:p></o:p> 1)        Even if the final signal were green, the engineer violated the first or second preceding signals by not approaching the final green signal at restricted speed.   <o:p></o:p> 2)        Even if the final signal were green, the engineer violated the delayed-in-block rule by not approaching the final signal at restricted speed. <o:p></o:p> 3)        Even if the final signal were green, the engineer should not have passed it because he was told that he was to have met another train there.         <o:p></o:p> <o:p></o:p> I do not see how reason #1 can apply.  I don’t know if reason #2 applies because I don’t know if there was a delayed-in-block rule or what it says if there was one.  I don’t know if reason #3 applies because I don't know how the knowledge of an intended meet is to be reconciled against signal indications.
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