NJ Transit is supposed to have system in place by end of 2018.
A deadly commuter train crash in Hoboken station in New Jersey renews focus on a mandatory anti-collision system that has been plagued with lengthy, contentious delays.
Officials said train operator NJ Transit has not installed the positive train control (PTC) system in Hoboken or anywhere else on its network.
PTC works by hitting the brakes on a train if the engineer misses a signal to halt—the equivalent of running a red light. How long it takes a train to stop depends on its weight. Freight trains can take up to 2 miles to stop. The system combines GPS, wireless radio, and other technologies, making it far more complex than originally envisioned and requires more investment and time to make it work, according to railroad companies.
By law, NJ Transit is required to have a system in place by the end of 2018. Amtrak has rolled out PTC on its network, while the freight railroads have mostly been rolling out the technology a section of track at a time.
Thursday morning’s rush-hour crash killed at least one person and injured 108 others.
National Transportation Safety Board vice chair T. Bella Dinh-Zarr said at a news conference in Washington that the board would “absolutely” look at whether the lack of PTC was a factor.
“PTC has been one of our priorities,” she said. “We know that it can prevent accidents.”
It is unclear how fast the train in Hoboken was traveling or whether a PTC system would have prevented an accident
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