NTSB: Metro-North train was speeding

The New York Metro-North commuter train that crashed over the weekend was traveling 52 miles per hour above the speed limit when the accident occurred, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

The train, which crashed on Sunday en route to New York City from Poughkeepsie, N.Y., was traveling at a speed of 82 miles per hour when it derailed in the Bronx, the agency said in a briefing on its investigation on Monday afternoon. 

The NTSB said that the speed limit for the area of the commuter railway’s track where the accident occurred was 30 miles per hour.

{mosads}The agency said that its preliminary investigation showed that the Metro-North’s trains brakes were engaged at their maximum levels five seconds before the crash, which resulted in the deaths of four passengers and injuries to more than 60 others.

The agency said on Monday that the train had made nine stops successfully before it derailed on its way to New York City.

The Sunday morning crash was the second major Metro-North accident this year, following a collision of two trains in Connecticut in May. A freight train also derailed on tracks that are operated by the Metro North in July.

Officials have said that the train that crashed on Sunday was carrying approximately 150 passengers at the time of its derailment.