Conn. lawmakers press for quick investigation of Metro North crash

Lawmakers in Connecticut pushed Monday for a quick investigation of the accident on the state’s Metro North commuter railway that injured more than 70 people last week.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) conducted a briefing on Monday for lawmakers at the site of the accident that saw a train from New York City to New Haven, Conn., derail last Friday in Fairfield, Conn.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), who was one of the lawmakers who attended the NTSB briefing, said that he wanted to balance a thorough investigation with resuming commuter rail service in his state quickly.

“I have been in close contact with National Transportation Safety Board leadership and on site investigators and am confident they will do a thorough and timely investigation to determine the cause of this alarming crash, including a careful review of the safety features of the new Metro-North cars,” Blumenthal said in a statement released on Monday. 

“The NTSB understands that the quicker they are done investigating on site, the sooner the railroad can be repaired and service can be restored.”

{mosads}New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which operates the Metro North commuter rail system, said the accident occurred when a northbound train derailed at about 6:10 p.m. Friday evening and crashed into an oncoming southbound train. 

The MTA said the Metro North trains were involved were carrying about 700 passengers combined. The agency has said that more than 70 people were injured in the accident last week, but thus far, no fatalities have been reported.

Blumenthal said on Monday after touring what he called “staggering” damage at the crash site that the lack of fatalities in the crash could be attributed to advanced safety features of Metro North’s trains.

“Safety features and improved standards such as the new cars may have saved lives yesterday and need to be thoroughly understood,” he said. “These and other investments in upgrading public services are consequential. Safe and reliable rail service is a key priority for our economy. It is imperative that we identify the cause of this crash and work swiftly to repair the damaged infrastructure and systems in such a way that this kind of catastrophe never happens again.”

Metro North said over the weekend that it was planning to begin operating bus shuttles between its Bridgeport and Stamford stations in Connecticut “until further notice.”

Officials worried the service interruption would snarl commutes into New York City, where many suburban Connecticut residents work.

Another lawmaker who attended the crash site briefing, Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), said on Monday that she would also push for swift repairs of the damaged railway.

“I send my condolences to those injured in yesterday’s train collision and wish them and their families a quick and peaceful recovery,” Himes said in a statement. “At a briefing this morning at the site of the crash, NTSB officials assured me, Gov. [Daniel Malloy (D)] and Sens. [Richard] Blumenthal (D) and [Chris] Murphy (D) that they will do everything possible to determine what caused this crash and how we can learn from this incident to prevent future accidents. In the meantime, I will urge officials to move swiftly to restore safe commuter train service.”

The NTSB tweeted over the weekend that the “on scene phase of this investigation will continue for several more days.” 

The agency estimated that the trains that collided were traveling at 70 miles per hour.