The Washington Metro subway train that plowed into the back of a second train Monday was being run automatically, with its computerized collision-prevention system on, and evidence suggests that the operator applied an emergency brake before the fatal collision, the leader of the federal investigative team said Tuesday.
Deborah A.P. Hersman, a member and chairwoman-designate of the National Transportation Safety Board, said the agency is looking into all factors that might have contributed to the worst catastrophe in the Metro's 33-year history.
The death toll in the Metro accident rose to nine yesterday, but Washington Mayor Adrian M. Fenty said city emergency officials were confident that no more victims remained, and rescue operations ended in midafternoon. About 80 people were injured in the crash, which occurred about 5 p.m. Monday on the Red Line.
Officials confirmed that Train 112, which struck a train stopped on the tracks near the Fort Totten station, was made up of six of the oldest rail cars in the Metro fleet. The cars, known as Series 1000 models, are 1970s-vintage equipment that the NTSB had urged the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Administration to replace several years ago after questioning their ability to withstand a crash.
Hersman said the older train did not have an automatic data recording device - contrary to the NTSB's recommendation that the Metro install such "black boxes" in all its trains. As a result, she said, there would be no information about train speed or whether the brakes had been applied before impact.
The other train, made up of newer cars, had such a data recording device, and officials were hoping that it would yield useful clues.
Meanwhile, an article in The Washington Post said Train 112 was two months overdue for required brake maintenance. Hersman said she could not confirm that report and that the matter remains under investigation.
The revelations came as the NTSB assumed the lead role in the probe and began the painstaking process of identifying the factors that contributed to the crash or added to its severity.
Hersman, who was recently nominated by President Barack Obama to head the board, said the agency will look into a wide variety of issues - from the condition of the tracks to the training of WMATA personnel and maintenance of the system.
"We haven't ruled anything out," she said.
