A recent article in the Washington Post summarizes the lack of urgency by WMATA to address and remedy safety concerns that continue with Metro operations and endanger passengers.
After the January, 2015 Metro smoke incident, which killed one passenger and left many others permanently injured, federal investigators identified serious safety violations. During its May, 2020 meeting, Washington Metro Safety Commission provided specific recommendations to address safety concerns. The commission noted a lack of urgency to adopt its recommendations, in spite of warnings that the December, 2015 tragedy could be repeated. For many of the problems cited in the 2015 investigation, little or no progress has been made to address the most important issues. Listed below some of the details from the findings:
In addition to the 2009 and 2015 Metro accidents that caused tragedy and death, Metro continues to have a number of near-miss incidents. Until there is real progress in adopting ongoing training, safety-rule certification and checklists for emergencies, passenger safety will continue to be a worry.
Author: Sal Zambri, Senior Partner and Founding Member of Regan Zambri Long PLLC. He can be reached at 202-822-1899 or [email protected]