The National Transportation Safety Board released new details from its investigation of the October 2021 Metro derailment, which sidelined the 7000 series rail cars for months.
A newly released image one Metro rail car appears to be higher than the others on the train that derailed, which the NTSB describes as “vertical car body disturbance.”
In another picture, the same train is seen running its wheels on the ground and kicking up dust.
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The train actually derailed and re railed itself three times that day before finally coming to a complete stop outside the Arlington Cemetery Station.
Sources close to the investigation say video of the event, which has not yet been released, is even more alarming.
No one was seriously hurt after the derailment, but there has been harsh criticism from the NTSB.
“The potential for fatalities and serious injuries was significant,” NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said. “This could have resulted in a catastrophic event.”
Metro Derailment
While the new information from the NTSB doesn’t provide an exact cause for the derailment, a lot of attention is being paid to the amount of force that was used to press the train wheels together. The wheels on the 7000 series had been moving outward.
Metro said it agreed more force is needed to repress the wheels on all the 7000 series trains – a process that could take three years and will cost about $55 million.
Metro hasn't specified when work on those 7000 series cars will begin. The transit agency said it does not expect significant impacts to service.
Meanwhile, the NTSB discovered that the train operator involved in the derailment was out of compliance with his safety recertification. The operator was granted a waiver because the pandemic led to delays in the recertification process.
