One of the nation’s leading rail-based suppliers of transportation logistics, CSX Corporation, has experienced an alarming rise in its number of train accidents, collisions and derailments during the past 12-months—most of which could be attributed to negligence, worker fatigue and lax safety procedures. Even more disturbing for the Jacksonville, Florida-based company, this escalating trend comes during a time when train accidents nationwide have been on the decline for other Class I railroads (carriers with operating revenues of $250 million or more in 1991 dollars—approximately $460 million today). Specifically, the national accident average has decreased by about six percent during the past four years; while CSX has seen a 59 percent increase in accidents since 2013.
In 2017 alone, CSX was involved in more than 205 accidents, resulting in a rate of 3.17 accidents per million miles traveled—an unacceptable number that is well above the industry average. On February 4th of this year, the eastern United States railway company found itself as the focus of a crash investigation after an Amtrak and CSX train collided just outside of Columbia, South Carolina in a town by the name of Cayce. The incident occurred after a switch used to divert trains to a side track was incorrectly reported as being in the proper position for through traffic by a CSX employee—a mistake that hurtled the passenger train into a parked CSX freight train, thereby injuring 116 people and killing two individuals. Recently, the law firm of Harrell and Harrell was called on to represent one of those who were injured, filing the first lawsuit in the state of Florida on behalf of a passenger. The complaint filed on March 7th, 2018 was also the first to solely target CSX Transportation.
While both the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) are still investigating the accident before issuing an official report, the NTSB has disclosed that the engineer of the Amtrak train—one of the incident’s casualties—was able to sound his horn for a full three seconds and engage the emergency brake before impact.
Unfortunately, the train was still traveling at approximately 50 mph when it struck the empty freight train with enough intensity to move it a full 15 feet before the Amtrak locomotive fell from the tracks. This incident marked the third high-profile crash for Amtrak in just two months. December of this year witnessed a particularly catastrophic accident in Washington State that heightened the discussion on Positive Train Control (PTC)—an advanced technology system that uses GPS as well as sensors on the train and the tracks that can automatically slow or stop a train if it detects a dangerous situation, including train collisions, excess speed derailment and—what might prove to be a key factor in the Cayce, South Carolina crash—train movements through misaligned track switches.
So why don’t more railroads employ PTC? What most don’t realize is that PTC has actually been mandated by federal law since the end of 2015 for any Class 1 main lines that regularly handle either commuter passengers or hazardous materials, but few railroads have yet to make the upgrade. Congress has since extended the deadline for 50 percent compliance to December 31, 2018 while making the end of 2020 the time when all railways/railroads must have the safety technology functional.
If you or someone you love is injured while working or riding on a train due to another’s negligence, you may be entitled to legal and financial compensation. Call 888-519-RAIL to speak to a dedicated and experienced railroad injury attorney with Jacksonville’s Rail Justice.
