Sound Transit, WSDOT Cited In DuPont Amtrak Derailment: NTSB

SEATTLE, WA — The deadly December 2017 Amtrak derailment near DuPont was a totally preventable incident that was caused by a mix of speed, human error, and missteps by transportation agencies, the National Transportation Safety Board said in issuing its final report on the crash Tuesday.

"Could this accident have been prevented? The answer is a resounding yes," Chair Robert L. Sumwalt said in an opening statement at the NTSB meeting Tuesday. "Three people did not have to die. Fifty-seven others on board the train, and eight in highway vehicles, did not have to suffer injuries. None of us had to be here today."

The derailment happened on Dec. 18, 2017 at around 7:30 a.m. The Amtrak train was headed south from Seattle to Portland along a new, faster route that follows I-5. As the train approached a trestle crossing I-5 near DuPont, it hit a 30 MPH curve going 78 MPH. The train jumped off the tracks and sent train cars crashing onto I-5.

Three people died, 57 aboard the train were injured, and eight people in vehicles were hurt. The highway was closed for days. The total damage hit $25.8 million.

Sumwalt said that what happened in DuPont is part of a pattern where train engineers fail to slow down in speed zones. He cited two other deadly train crashes — an Amtrak crash outside Philadelphia, and a Metro-North crash near New York City — as similar to DuPont.

The engineer in the DuPont crash knew about the 30 MPH speed limit at the DuPont curve, but lost track of where he was because he was unfamiliar with the route, Sumwalt said. There was only one sign warning of a reduced speed limit, and it was two miles before the curve.

Sumwalt said that a safety system called Positive Train Control (PTC) could have prevented the derailment. It was one safety feature that was not in place when service began on the new I-5 route.

He cited Sound Transit for allowing Amtrak to operate on its tracks before PTC was in place. The NTSB also said Sound Transit should have made the DuPont curve a "crew focus zone," which Sound Transit has since done.

"Sound Transit was responsible for preparing the track and its associated signals and signage for revenue service, and they performed a preliminary hazard analysis in 2015," he said. "The accident curve was identified, as were three mitigation strategies. Two strategies consisted of complying with [Federal Railroad Administration] regulations. The third—'future PTC' —was not operational when revenue service began.

"Yet Sound Transit did not identify additional mitigation measures before certifying the property for revenue service."

Sound Transit owns the tracks because it operates Sounder service between Lakewood and Tacoma. It made the track safety upgrades mentioned by Sumwalt with Amtrak funding, but PTC was still being installed in December 2017.

Sound Transit responded to the NTSB findings, highlighting that it has since installed PTC on its Sounder commuter lines, and in the DuPont area.

"We continue to extend our deep sympathies to all of the individuals and families affected. While Sound Transit does not operate any service in the segment of track where the accident took place, as owner of the track we commit to closely reviewing the NTSB’s report and implementing recommendations in collaboration with Amtrak, the Washington State Department of Transportation, BNSF and the Federal Railroad Administration," the statement read.

The NTSB made over two dozen recommendations to various agencies to prevent future derailments, including ones for WSDOT, Sound Transit, and Amtrak.

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