HOBOKEN, N.J. — A disastrous crash that killed at least 3 and injured at least 100 in Hoboken on Thursday morning is likely to bring fresh scrutiny to NJ Transit and its safety procedures.
Early reports suggest the Pascack Valley commuter train wreck resulted from operator error. The National Transportation Safety Board is already try to rule out mechanical errors.
If either causation is ultimately confirmed by the ongoing investigation, Save Jerseyans, then state and federal officials will likely have their hands full in figuring out how to best move forward.
Was the writing on the wall?
Last June, The Record newspaper obtained an internal safety report through the Open Public Records Act that concluded “[s]taffing level of safety organization is inadequate for currently assigned responsibilities.”
“The safety department is still grossly understaffed,” an NJ Transit employee who monitored train movements said at the time. “They should have twice the number of people.”
Then, as recently as September of this year, it was reported that the Federal Railroad Administration vehemently criticized NJ Transit for failing to implement life-saving new GPS technologies to decrease the risk of derailments and similar calamities.
Demanding answers becomes our top priority once the wounded are secured and treated. Addressing the investigation’s findings needs to be our politician’s chief priority until everything is as it should be for New Jersey’s legions of daily commuters.
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