Look at that diagram of the route with speed limits. Notice that just beyond the curve is an area where trains accelerate to 100 MPH. Could the engineer have become distracted (maybe from whatever struck the train) and mistakenly thought he was beyond the curve? He started to accelerate, then realizing his mistake, panicked and pulled on the brake?
Ive been so busyt looking at all the articles on this mess....that I havent given the map a good look yet
Thank you will do now.
Dispatch controls signals/train movements for a certain segment of trackage. The Amtrak Engineer would be controlled by those signals, showing him how he was to proceed. If he saw a clear signal(green) that allowed for him to proceed at max speed (100mph), towards the curve, then it would be an error by the dispatcher, giving him the wrong signal. I would think, however, since he was familiar with the route, that he would have been aware of his surroundings and realized it was to high of a speed for his location and contacted dispatch to verify the signal.
On the other hand, if the Amtrak Engineer read the signal wrong, then it would be an error on his part. Instead of the signal being for a clear(green) for max speed(100mph), it could have been a clear(green), for the slowest speed. Meaning he could proceed, not exceding the speed for that section of track(50mph), at the curve. Just like above, however, he should have known his surroundings and realized something was wrong, speed-wise.
If he was distracted or just complacent, any of the two scenarios above are plausible explanations for the acceleration then emergency braking at the curve.
apparently he’s been this life long train aficionado and had driven that route for 5 yrs.....”mistakenly thought he was beyond the curve”......not...buying....it....