Metro Crash Injures Three and Causes Millions in Damage

It was the end of the night and and the Metro train operator was rolling into the West Falls Church Station for cleaning. Unfortunately, the story did not end there. Instead the six-car train plowed into a stationary train containing Metro employees cleaning.

The collision injured both the cleaners and the train operator, who were taken to area hospitals. The economic damage was estimated at nine million dollars, as three cars were damaged beyond repair.

The inevitable question, why? Ever since the June 22nd Fort Totten Metro crash, it has seemed as though Metro has had one incident after another.

Our formerly "safest transit system in the country", now seems to be in freefall. Fortunately, reports are that the injuries were not life-threatening, but concerns are that this crash is symptomatic of systemic problems.

This is seen against reports that MetroAccess drivers fired for using cell phones and texting while driving, have been hired back, despite Metro's zero-tolerance text and cell-phoning while driving policy. http://wtopnews.com/?nid=25&sid=1825660

The MetroAccess issue is a sticky one. The union contract doesn't make cell phone use a fireable offense and yet of course it is against the law in the District of Columbia while driving. At the same time the drivers are between a rock and a hard place. They have to use some means to communicate with their disabled patrons and their dispatchers.