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[quote user="Overmod"]See, a fascinating thing about this is that people in the United States realized as early as the Miller anticlimber patents that the object was not, and ever could be, absorbing the crash energy of a head-to-head impact entirely with "CEM" composed of crumple zones. [/quote] That has never been pursued, neither in the USA nor in Europe. In the USA they investigated late what equipment according to Tier 1 standard can withstand. The result for two equal trains of locomotive and five cars (IIRC) was a crash at max. 18 mph. In Europe more than 900 accident reports were evaluated and a standard developed that covers 90% of the accidents. Result are the following scenarios: [url]http://voith.com/corp-de/m_vt_statische_verteilung_der_aufprallkraefte_d_460x220.jpg[/url] I have often said that there is no crashworthiness design that can survive the crash energy of  medium/high speed collissions. [quote user="Overmod"] the 'answer' essentially lies in controlled derailment rather than pool-cueing; in keeping consists flexibly joined (to the greatest extent possible) with CEM attenuation inherent in the sections between vehicles but not tending to allow them to 'twist' apart, with reasonable precautions against the kind of tear-open accident we saw in the early M8 sideswipe. [/quote] Sounds quite good, theoretically. I don't think that this is technically practicable. I don't see a way to control this. There is not just the danger of crushing but also the secondary impact. And our head reacts far more sensible on a side impact than a front impact. [quote user="Overmod"]n part this involves careful attention to the area around the tracks, so that unlike Eischeide (or Amtrak 188) there aren't any little posts to bring tons of concrete down on your heads in a direction that can't provide effective 'CEM'[/quote] As most track already exists it is too late for these considerations. And Eschede was a very untypical derailment. Cause for the accident was a broken wheel rim that got caught in a switch. <a href="http://archiv.rhein-zeitung.de/on/99/05/20/topnews/eschede4_.jpg">http://archiv.rhein-zeitung.de/on/99/05/20/topnews/eschede4_.jpg</a> There is a rubber layer between wheel rim and wheel disk. This kind of wheel doesn't exist anymore. Regards, Volker
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