Amtrak train derails in Washington state

80 is standard freight and passenger speed (Actually 79, but who cares) in my area, there is a dual track main which is well maintained and supported that kind of speed.

There are signals that regulate speed as well as setting up train protection in a specific two or three block manner so no worries there.

 

Harmonic is a problem at about 25 or so give or take a few. It actually takes the form of "Hunting" as the trucks under the freight car starts hunting back and forth. When you go below that speed or above it, the trains settles down.

Another problem is known as string lining. If you have some weight strung out in a curve and added too much horsepower, the whole thing flops to the inside of the curve.

Passenger cars are usually with good trucks made for high speed travel with a number of anti sway appliances on them even a bit of airride if you are lucky. Im leaning towards someone either screwed up or someone allowed that route to inaugurate without adequate oversight or even a kid putting something on the track.

 

I got the impression it was a "new route" over an older long-abandoned rail line. I'm sure a lot of work was done to bring back up to spec but maybe not enough.

May have simply been a misunderstanding of section speed limit by the system or the driver.

 

I love the part about it being billed as a "shorter, more reliable route"...only to derail on the first trip.

 

That Pacific rail line had undergone renovation and Allegedly had inspections done by the Washington Department of Transportation this year and cleared.... Guess we'll soon find out what Actually caused That derailment

 

Just showed an overhead shot of the train. 4 cars off on the road, 2 flipped over onto the bridge concrete barrier guard and I think one on the opposite side of the guard barrier with the one hanging over the barrier guard in front of it.

 

Traffic is being diverted onto 510. They say pay attention to any directions given. Joint Base Lewis-McChord is coordinating the route I guess.

But truckers I would be careful before going off anywhere unknown.

 

People experierienced in this sort of thing are guessing it was over speed around a 30 mph curb.

 

If the driver was speeding over limit then they will come down on him like a ton of bricks.

No different than that pot smoking engineer from Conrail with just three engines running three red signals to get into the way of a amtrack passenger train roughly the 1986 time period on the NE corridor in Maryland.

 

The above report from WRAL said it was going 81.1 mph. The speed was supposed to be for 79 mph on the bridge.