BOSTON (WHDH) - The Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority on Tuesday said that it’s working to “end the employment” of a Green Line operator who allegedly shifted their train’s master controller into the “full-power position” moments before colliding with another trolley at more than 30 mph earlier this summer.
The striking train accelerated to a speed of 31 mph before crashing with the train ahead of it that was moving about 10 mph on the B Line near the Agganis Arena on the evening of July 30, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a new investigative report.
Twenty-four passengers and three crew members were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
“A preliminary review of striking train’s event recorder data revealed that the operator of the striking train placed the master controller in a full-power position prior to the accident,” the NTSB said.
The operator of the speeding trolley, who has worked for the MBTA for 7 years, was initially placed on administrative leave after the crash. The driver was placed on unpaid leave on Monday and MBTA officials say they are now “taking the steps necessary to end the employment of the individual involved in the collision.”
The sky was clear with no precipitation at the time of the accident, investigators noted.
In a statement, the union for the carmen said:
“The union will review the internal MBTA report once available and the full NTSB report once available. We have been able to provide input to the process around those reports and will help to ensure rider safety, operator safety, and due process are prioritized in all next steps including with regard to investments in the necessary sensor systems and other mechanisms to make the MBTA as safe as possible in all conditions.”
Dr. Carl Berkowitz, a transportation safety expert, told 7NEWS that accelerating in a manner in which the train in question did is “usually the result of lack of attention” or “fatigue.”
A safety system to help prevent train collisions has been installed on the MBTA’s Blue, Orange, and Red lines, along with the Commuter Rail, but not the Green Line.
That system will start being installed next year and is expected to be online in 2024.
An investigation remains ongoing with a focus on internal and external oversight, operational testing, crashworthiness of the equipment involved, and employee fitness for duty.
Gov. Charlie Baker confirmed that his administration will refer the NTSB’s latest report and “make adjustments accordingly.”
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