Euclid Is a 30-year study of rail accidents a good indicator for a looming crisis of safety? What we know about the 501 crash alone seems to be a better indicator with its revelation of Amtrak’s compromising safety by rushing the promotion of a new train.
Is a 30-year study of rail accidents a good indicator for a looming crisis of safety? What we know about the 501 crash alone seems to be a better indicator with its revelation of Amtrak’s compromising safety by rushing the promotion of a new train.
I also posted in this thread statistics enumerating the human-caused accidents (collisions and derailments) on Amtrak 2011 to 2017. The numbers remained very low.
SD70Dude Keep the show going boys, I'll be back in a flash. Gotta grab some more popcorn! Seriously though, I agree with Electroliner that Joe could use a hobby. Perhaps model railroading would be less stressful than ranting about Amtrak.
Keep the show going boys, I'll be back in a flash. Gotta grab some more popcorn!
Seriously though, I agree with Electroliner that Joe could use a hobby. Perhaps model railroading would be less stressful than ranting about Amtrak.
Joe's whole life was running trains. When he retired in 2014 after ~55 years (some on the NH and Penn Central, those paragons of great operation?) he had nothing left. So since then, for the past four years he's been ranting about the terrible training on Amtrak and how he has a secret plan for deliverance. He has nothing. I would love to know what really happened in his alleged meeting with Amtrak higher-ups. We only have his story. My hunch is they quickly realized he had nothing at all beyond:"AMTRAK BAD! I HAVE PLAN!"
End of "meeting."
BaltACD Euclid Is a 30-year study of rail accidents a good indicator for a looming crisis of safety? What we know about the 501 crash alone seems to be a better indicator with its revelation of Amtrak’s compromising safety by rushing the promotion of a new train. Amtrak did not set the dates or times that the new route would be open for training nor did Amtrak set the start date for operation on the new route - Washington State DOT did. Amtrak did not push back and state to WSDOT that time allowed for training was inadequate and would present issues to the project. Amtrak trapped itself in it's 'Can Do' attitude and it would comply with the schedule WSDOT set.
Amtrak did not set the dates or times that the new route would be open for training nor did Amtrak set the start date for operation on the new route - Washington State DOT did.
Amtrak did not push back and state to WSDOT that time allowed for training was inadequate and would present issues to the project. Amtrak trapped itself in it's 'Can Do' attitude and it would comply with the schedule WSDOT set.
Yes, Amtrak let their "Can Do" attitude overrule their responsibility toward the safety of their passengers. Was this a one-time blunder or the start of a new direction?
EuclidIs a 30-year study of rail accidents a good indicator for a looming crisis of safety? What we know about the 501 crash alone seems to be a better indicator with its revelation of Amtrak’s compromising safety by rushing the promotion of a new train.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
charlie hebdo 243129 Your misuse of words, typos and spelling errors would lead one to believe you are a substance abuser. You seem obsessed with misusing words, typos and spelling errors (although you make these errors also) the triviality of which suggests a rather deep-seeded anxiety whose theme will be unspoken. You also keep demanding people qualify their statements about you (whatever you mean by that is anyone's guess, as I have no reason to modify what I have said) or show you where you said or did something. All of these ploys serve to deflect from the FACT that you cannot give a rational response to the statistics and the FRA summary of a nearly 30-year study of rail accidents. Likely Amtrak caught this as well. Thus your sketchy "proposal" on a 3x5 card is based on a false premise, namely that there is a looming and growing crisis of safety in Amtrak. OBSESSIONS
243129 Your misuse of words, typos and spelling errors would lead one to believe you are a substance abuser.
You seem obsessed with misusing words, typos and spelling errors (although you make these errors also) the triviality of which suggests a rather deep-seeded anxiety whose theme will be unspoken. You also keep demanding people qualify their statements about you (whatever you mean by that is anyone's guess, as I have no reason to modify what I have said) or show you where you said or did something. All of these ploys serve to deflect from the FACT that you cannot give a rational response to the statistics and the FRA summary of a nearly 30-year study of rail accidents. Likely Amtrak caught this as well. Thus your sketchy "proposal" on a 3x5 card is based on a false premise, namely that there is a looming and growing crisis of safety in Amtrak.
OBSESSIONS
All that in an attempt to mask the fact that when confronted to qualify your allegations you run. Weak charlie, very weak.
Greetings from Alberta
-an Articulate Malcontent
243129Your misuse of words, typos and spelling errors would lead one to believe you are a substance abuser.
So much edge.
It's been fun. But it isn't much fun anymore. Signing off for now.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any
Balt, you are spot on.7
charlie hebdo 243129 charlie hebdo 243129 Calling me names and insulting me does not cover the fact that you run when I confront you with allegations you have made. Tell the families of those who perished at DuPont , Frankford Junction and Chatsworth etc. that statistics show that the accident rate has declined. More bluster plus anecdotal evidence to deflect from the glaring fact: HUMAN ERROR ACCIDENTS DECLINED OVER A ~40 YEAR PERIOD.But you can only run around telling any and all a disaster is waiting to happen. Tell us, how many human error accidents were you involved with in your 50+ years? I was involved in no human error accidents. I see you are still avoiding a.k.a. running from qualifying your allegations about me. So 'Trumpesque' of you. Qualifying? The statements are clear and succinct For more clarity, I suggest you read the long post. It sums up the problems.
243129 charlie hebdo 243129 Calling me names and insulting me does not cover the fact that you run when I confront you with allegations you have made. Tell the families of those who perished at DuPont , Frankford Junction and Chatsworth etc. that statistics show that the accident rate has declined. More bluster plus anecdotal evidence to deflect from the glaring fact: HUMAN ERROR ACCIDENTS DECLINED OVER A ~40 YEAR PERIOD.But you can only run around telling any and all a disaster is waiting to happen. Tell us, how many human error accidents were you involved with in your 50+ years? I was involved in no human error accidents. I see you are still avoiding a.k.a. running from qualifying your allegations about me. So 'Trumpesque' of you.
charlie hebdo 243129 Calling me names and insulting me does not cover the fact that you run when I confront you with allegations you have made. Tell the families of those who perished at DuPont , Frankford Junction and Chatsworth etc. that statistics show that the accident rate has declined. More bluster plus anecdotal evidence to deflect from the glaring fact: HUMAN ERROR ACCIDENTS DECLINED OVER A ~40 YEAR PERIOD.But you can only run around telling any and all a disaster is waiting to happen. Tell us, how many human error accidents were you involved with in your 50+ years?
243129 Calling me names and insulting me does not cover the fact that you run when I confront you with allegations you have made. Tell the families of those who perished at DuPont , Frankford Junction and Chatsworth etc. that statistics show that the accident rate has declined.
More bluster plus anecdotal evidence to deflect from the glaring fact:
HUMAN ERROR ACCIDENTS DECLINED OVER A ~40 YEAR PERIOD.But you can only run around telling any and all a disaster is waiting to happen. Tell us, how many human error accidents were you involved with in your 50+ years?
I was involved in no human error accidents.
I see you are still avoiding a.k.a. running from qualifying your allegations about me. So 'Trumpesque' of you.
Qualifying? The statements are clear and succinct For more clarity, I suggest you read the long post. It sums up the problems.
The allegations you have made of me are baseless and when asked to qualify them you run.
Electroliner 1935 243129 I was involved in no human error accidents But that is as it should be. But you have ignored what Charlie just said. You lack the skill to get yor case presented in a manor that it needs. Then you rant and don't wamt to take any constructive criticism and then pout and question the "credentials" of those who offer it. You are very bitter over the rejection and just won't take NO for an answer. Your feelings get hurt and you simmer and lash back in a very petulant form. I presume that you are near seventy years of age. (Assuming you started at 18 + 50 years of service) so maybe you need a change of scenery. I suggest you go fishing or find some other activity that will challenge you in something less frustrating than posting here.
243129 I was involved in no human error accidents
But that is as it should be. But you have ignored what Charlie just said. You lack the skill to get yor case presented in a manor that it needs. Then you rant and don't wamt to take any constructive criticism and then pout and question the "credentials" of those who offer it. You are very bitter over the rejection and just won't take NO for an answer. Your feelings get hurt and you simmer and lash back in a very petulant form. I presume that you are near seventy years of age. (Assuming you started at 18 + 50 years of service) so maybe you need a change of scenery. I suggest you go fishing or find some other activity that will challenge you in something less frustrating than posting here.
Were you not the guy who was complaining about his mailbox being cluttered?
"Pout"? Show where I "pout". "Petulant"? Your amigo charlie has called me names and launched insults at me and you call me "petulant"?
Your misuse of words, typos and spelling errors would lead one to believe you are a substance abuser.
243129I was involved in no human error accidents
Reading over some of Joe's postings, one thing stands out: his persistent avoidance of specifics about what sort of training he would recommend. Instead he posted and reposted numerous times the letters he sent to Amtrak officials, pols, media, etc., which largely are denunciations of the hiring and training processes/practices at Amtrak for enginers and dire warnings of accidents*. About the only positive notes sounded are use of senior engineers in that process and reverting to having junior engineers, aka firemen, onboard.
Joe is likely right about Amtrak training being substandard. But in terms of getting his message across to those with the authority to change that culture, he is his own worst enemy. But not his fault, really. He was not trained nor is he skilled at transmitting a persuasive message. But instead of recognizing that, he hunkers down in reactive mode, unwilling to accept any constructive critiques. Maybe that is the price paid for 50+ years in operations?
* Dire warning of impending disasters unsupported by data**, which he ignores or devalues. Result? He is dismissed by the readers as though he were Chicken Little or "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" or simply a cranky old man yelling at the kids on his lawn.
** Between 1978 and 2006, the total number of rail-related accidents and incidents has fallen from 90,653 to 12,833, an all-time low representing a decline of 86 percent. Between 1978 and 2006, total rail-related fatalities have declined from 1,646 to 915, a reduction of 44 percent. From 1978 to 2006, total employee cases (fatal and nonfatal) have dropped from 65,193 to 5,035, the record low; this represents a decline of 92 percent. In the same period, total employee deaths have fallen from 122 in 1978 to 16 in 2006, a decrease of 87 percent. [FRA Report]
243129Amtrak hires engineers off of the street. Some of the candidates first train ride is when they travel to Choo Choo U. in Wilmington .Airlines hire candidates with previous flight experience.
You should tell that to JetBlue......
https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/flights/todayinthesky/2017/09/06/jetblue-help-wanted-pilots-can-paid-instructors-while-training-join-airline/633008001/
"But by providing the training and the prospect of a job, the JetBlue program offered the six initial candidates an option to switch from jobs such as heavy-machine operator, supermarket sales clerk and accountant."
Pew Pew Pew, Sniped
An "expensive model collector"
243129 The 'mob' is assembling. Another 'sniper' has surfaced. No life? You should aspire to do the things I have done and the things I continue to do.
The 'mob' is assembling. Another 'sniper' has surfaced. No life? You should aspire to do the things I have done and the things I continue to do.
I have always aspired to be ignored by Amtrak, but every time I have talked to them in a work releated function, they listen to me. But yes, if your finaces permit, and you stick around past 60 if you have your 30 years in, you are life challenged.
Sniped.
243129Tell the families of those who perished at DuPont , Frankford Junction and Chatsworth etc. that statistics show that the accident rate has declined.
Appealing to emotion is a logical fallacy.
Zug (the original sniper)
n012944 243129 Real time, hands on experience of over a half century in the operating department of a Class 1 railroad is my congruence with reality. Which in itself means nothing. I have worked with several people that have been working for the railroad since before I was born, that couldn't handle a Lionel set around a Christmas tree. I have worked with people that are brand new and the "get it". All 50 years means is you couldn't afford to retire at 30, or you had no life to do so. It does not mean you were good at the job.
243129 Real time, hands on experience of over a half century in the operating department of a Class 1 railroad is my congruence with reality.
Real time, hands on experience of over a half century in the operating department of a Class 1 railroad is my congruence with reality.
Which in itself means nothing. I have worked with several people that have been working for the railroad since before I was born, that couldn't handle a Lionel set around a Christmas tree. I have worked with people that are brand new and the "get it". All 50 years means is you couldn't afford to retire at 30, or you had no life to do so. It does not mean you were good at the job.
charlie hebdo 243129 Real time, hands on experience of over a half century in the operating department of a Class 1 railroad is my congruence with reality. Trying to have a meaningful discussion with such a blowhard who tries to compensate for his ignorance with bluster and juvenile sophistry is a waste of everyone's time. I think we all know why Amtrak rejected your ideas and why you persist in portraying yourself as a skilled engineer who was victimized by Amtrak rather than the embittered retiree you obviously are. You should be grateful they continued to employ you well past your prime. Clearly you do not want to admit to the fact that the human error accident rate on Amtrak and the other Class Ones has declined for many years, in fact throughout much of your career.
Trying to have a meaningful discussion with such a blowhard who tries to compensate for his ignorance with bluster and juvenile sophistry is a waste of everyone's time. I think we all know why Amtrak rejected your ideas and why you persist in portraying yourself as a skilled engineer who was victimized by Amtrak rather than the embittered retiree you obviously are. You should be grateful they continued to employ you well past your prime.
Clearly you do not want to admit to the fact that the human error accident rate on Amtrak and the other Class Ones has declined for many years, in fact throughout much of your career.
Calling me names and insulting me does not cover the fact that you run when I confront you with allegations you have made.
Tell the families of those who perished at DuPont , Frankford Junction and Chatsworth etc. that statistics show that the accident rate has declined.
I think of all the guys I know that retired/quit/got fired throughout my career. Mostly the ones that retired, though. Many with 30-40+ years of service. It's funny how little we think about them at work. They were here, they did their part, and they left.
To put it simply - they were just warm bodies for the seat. They left, and someone else took their place *just like that*. I believe some people lose that perspective and think they are more than what they actually were. If I left tomorrow, I doubt my name would be mentioned around the shanty much (or at least not without a 4 letter adjective). That's ok. This job is a paycheck, mostly. I do enjoy some parts of it - but I don't pretend to be the stuff of legends. There will be a newer, younger generation to fill my spot when I go.
243129Real time, hands on experience of over a half century in the operating department of a Class 1 railroad is my congruence with reality.
243129You have my opinion of statistics.
He didn't ask for your opinion; but rather your coursework.
Correcting spelling and grammar on an internet forum? So much edge.
charlie hebdo 243129 Statistics? I stay with #3. My "propositions" are based on reality and first hand experience. What is your coursework with statistics? It's the title of a book. You don't understand propositions? What evidence do we have that your experience (opinion about training) is congruent with reality?
243129 Statistics? I stay with #3. My "propositions" are based on reality and first hand experience.
What is your coursework with statistics?
It's the title of a book.
You don't understand propositions?
What evidence do we have that your experience (opinion about training) is congruent with reality?
Once again you dodge my question. Typical of you.
You have my opinion of statistics.
I certainly do understand propositions.
"Autobigraphy" is the formal title of this book you speak of?
243129Statistics? I stay with #3. My "propositions" are based on reality and first hand experience.
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