NEW YORK — A misaligned switch — incorrectly shown to dispatchers as being correctly aligned for a straight-ahead move — was the cause of last week’s derailment of a Long Island Rail Road train at Hall Interlocking in Queens, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said today (Aug. 11).
Thirteen people were injured, two seriously, in the Aug. 3 derailment of eight-car train No. 722, a 10:43 a.m. departure from Grand Central Madison bound for Hempstead, N.Y. The train was traveling at 54 mph when it derailed just east of the Jamaica station at 11:12 a.m. [see “LIRR train derails …,” Trains News Wire, Aug. 3, 2023]. Fifty-five passengers were on board.
An MTA update on its investigation said that the LIRR had conducted a required monthly inspection of the switch prior to the derailment, believes the switch did not properly realign following that inspection, and that this was not detected “because of a previously unknown vulnerability in the switch’s wiring configuration, which resulted in the train dispatcher’s display showing that the route was properly aligned when it was, in fact, not.”
Catherine Rinaldi, interim president of the LIRR and president of the Metro-North Railroad, said the incident “has exposed a unique and previously unknown localized vulnerability that has been rectified. This incident has prompted us to enhance our switch inspection processes to improve the safety of the railroad going forward.”
The switch has been rebuilt and reconfigured to address the wiring issue, according to the MTA. The LIRR has subsequently assessed all 1,045 of its switches to determine the issue was unique to that specific location, as well as developing and implementing enhanced procedures for routine inspections.
The MTA, LIRR, and Federal Railroad Administration continue to investigate the incident.
“We’re continuing to work with federal partners on a comprehensive investigation to understand exactly what led to the issue with this particular switch, and we will take the necessary steps to ensure that it never happens again,” said Pat Warren, MTA chief safety and security officer.
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