I have heard of a situation where a train was supposed to wait for another one to pass on a side track before entering a single track section, but didn’t, resulting in the two colliding.
But if it was all double tracked? Don’t know, unless one of the sides had been temporarily shut down, requiring one train to enter a siding to permit the other to pass.
It's double-tracked from Clovis (NM) to Waynoka (OK).
So, presumably, one track was shut down for maintenance. But isn't that situation usually a reason for heightened awareness on the part of dispatcher and crew?
Moreover, the 60-mile stretch from Pampa to Amarillo (Panhandle is about midway) is straight as a string. And it's mostly flat as a pancake.
The only way they couldn't have seen each other coming is if they met at the top of a slight rise in elevation.
Somebody really had to work at making this one happen...