WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board will examine grade crossing design, operations, and “human performance” as it continues its investigation of a December collision between a CSX Transportation train and a Philadelphia trolley.
Those areas of interest are outlined in a preliminary report on the Dec. 9, 2021, collision involving the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority trolley and a westbound CSX train in Darby, Pa. The report was released earlier this week. Seven people were injured in the accident, six of them on the trolley [see “Seven injured as SEPTA trolley, CSX train collide,” Trains News Wire, Dec. 9, 2021]. The accident also caused an estimated $130,500 damage, $125,000 of that to the trolley.
The report indicates that, after making a passenger stop, the trolley operator entered the Darby Diamond location, where the trolley and CSX lines intersect at a grade crossing, as the crossing gates were activated by the approaching freight train. The gates landed on the roof of the trolley, which was fouling the CSX track when it was struck by the train. NTSB investigators determined the gates and lights were operating properly.
The complete preliminary report is available here. Preliminary reports outline the basic facts of an incident and reach no conclusions as to cause or fault.
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