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In its investigation of an accident at Goldonna, Louisiana, on December 28, 1977,[1] it was determined that the lack of crashworthiness features on the locomotive caused the death of two crewmembers. Because of this investigation, the Safety Board issued to the FRA recommendation R-78-27 which requested that it expedite its study of improvements to the design of locomotive operator compartments to minimize crash damage. The Safety Board reiterates this recommendation to the FRA and strongly urges that the crashworthiness study be accelerated so that the problem of inadequate crash protection for the occupants of locomotive cabs can be swiftly resolved.
Many passenger injuries were sustained when passengers were thrown forward into seatbacks and the seats rotated because of inadequate locking devices. Other passengers sustained injuries when they were thrown forward and their legs became trapped under seats. The Safety Board has investigated other accidents[2] involving passenger injuries caused by inadequately locked seats.
The Safety Board identified fixtures within passenger cars as injury-producing in its investigation of an accident at Glendale, Maryland, on June 28, 1969,[3] and recommended to the FRA that it initiate studies to determine the relationship between rail passenger car design and passenger injury and, where practical, take action to imprOVe in the design of future high-Speed and rapid transit passenger cars. Amtrak has placed many cars in service since that report was issued. The Safety Board has investigated other accidents [4] in which passenger injuries have been caused by the fixtures within the car. No Federal regulations exist for even minimum standards for interior design of passenger cars. Amtrak's newest cars still have some of the same injury—producing equipment that was cited in past Safety Board investigations.
A 1978 crashworthiness study[5] conducted by the: FRA identified seat rotation as being a cause of passenger injuries and concluded that it is necessary to "prevent double seats from swiveling by providing a positive lock to improve occupant containment." (See appendix G.) The problem of leg entrapment was also identified as a significant cause of
- ↑ Railroad Accident Report—Collision of a Louisiana and Arkansas Railway Freight Train and a L. V. Rhymes tractor-semitrailer at Goldonna, Louisiana, December 28, 1977 (NTSB-RHR-78-1).
- ↑ Railroad Accident Report—"Rear End Collision of Conrail Commuter Train No. 400 and Amtrak Passenger Train No. 60, Sea Brook, Maryland, June 9, 1978" (NTSB-RAR-79-3), and Railroad Accident Report "National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) Head-End Collision of Train No. 111 and Passenger Track Machine Equipment, Edison, New Jersey, April 20, 1979" (NTSB-RAR-79-10).
- ↑ Railroad Accident Report—"Penn Central Company Train Second 115 (Silver Star) Derailment at Glendale", Maryland, June 28, 1969" (RAR-70-1).
- ↑ Railroad Accident Report—"Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad Company Train No. 10/76 Derailment with Three Fatalities and Numerous Personal Injuries, Franconia, Virginia, January 27, 1970" (NTSB-RAR-71—1); Railroad Accident Report—"Derailment of Amtrak Train No. 1 while operating on the Illinois Central Railroad near Salem, Illinois, June 10, 1971" (NTSB RAR—72—5); Railroad Accident Report--"Collision of Illinois Central Gulf Railroad Commuter Trains, Chicago, lllinois, October 30, 1972" (NTSB RAR-73-5); Railroad Accident Report-"Derailment of an Amtrak train on the tracks of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad Company, at Melvern, Kansas, July 5, 1974" (NTSB-RAR-75—1); and Railroad Accident Report—"Collision of two Penn Central commuter trains at Botanical Garden Station, New York City, January 2, 1975" (NTSB RAR-74-8).
- ↑ "Rail Safety/Equipment CraShworthiness." FRA/ORD 77/73.
