Yesterday the newsies were saying the Amtrak train was going 81 mph into a 79 mph curve. This morning NHPR is reporting the curve was posted for 30 mph. Either the curve did a lotta shrinking over night (unlikely) or yesterday's newsies got it wrong. If the Amtrak train was doing 80 mph thru a 30 mph curve, that pretty much explains how the train came off the track.
Some questions the newsies are too ignorant to ask.
The "new" line the train was operating on. How new? Most railroad right of ways had track laid on them back in the 1800's. Was this a brand new right of way, bulldozed out last year? Or was it an old line brought back into service? How many years ago was the track laid? What kind of ties were used? Prestressed concrete ( which lasts forever) or traditional cresoted wood (which rots out over the years)? Amtrak will run passenger trains over really crummy track. At White River Junction VT, the wooden ties are so soft and rotten that you can pluck the spikes out with your fingers, but Amtrak runs over it. What shape was the track in, really?
If the curve was really a 30 mph curve, how was the train crew supposed to know? Especially as this was the inaugural (very first) run. Were there trackside signs like on the highway. If so were the signs actually in place? If the crew was supposed to look in their time table, or look at some electronic device in the cab, how were they expected to know when they approached this tricky curve? It was dark, and this crew had never been over the line before.
It's been reported that $181 million was spent bringing this line into service. For $181 million I would expect them to straighten out sharp and dangerous curves. Just what was all that money spent on? Who was the contractor, and what kind of experience did they have in building railroad lines?
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