NTSB Seeks Order Banning Use of Cell Phones by Train Operators

September 16, 2008-

Ever since the news that teenage train enthusiasts were text messaging the train engineer at the time of the train crash in Chatsworth, the NTSB has sought an order banning the use of cell phones by train operators on Metrolink trains.

The question frequently being asked, is did the train operator see the red light, or was he text messaging? Did he see fog, was the view obscured, or was he text messaging?

The US National Transport Safety Board (NTSB), which is investigating the train crash, said it is seeking a court order demanding that Verizon Wireless release the phone records of the engineer’s cell phone, including the text messages. Since the engineer died during the collision, the only way to resolve the question is to get the cell phone records.

NTSB board member, Katy Higgins, stated that she was trying to determines if the engineer properly reacted to the red light, but later stated that the signals all worked properly at the time of impact.

“The question is, did he see it as red? Did he see it as something else? Did he see it at all?”, according to the official Associated Press release.

The NTSB is not taking any chances, and they are leading the effort to increase rail safety by banning rail employees using mobile phones while they are working on the train.

Even though Metrolink already bans engineers from using mobile phones while operating trains, no federal law exists at this time. This begs the question as to whether a law could have stopped this most recent Metrolink crash, since the train operator was not supposed to be using his phone to begin with.

Although NTSB investigators have warned it was too early to determine the cause of the Metrolink Train crash, they want a court order banning cell phones by train operators, until a new law is passed.

Other causes of the Chatsworth train accident could be computer, or equipment failures, or that the engineer suffered some physical ailments that incapacitated him, but the facts seem to indicate the operator was texting and simply not paying attention. If you were one of the victims injured in the train crash, or someone you love was injured in this accident, which was the worst train accident in California history, or simply wants to donate blood, contact Chatsworth train crash lawyers