RAILROAD ACCIDENT REPORT: REAR END COLLISION OF TWO GREATER CLEVELAND REGIONAL TRANSIT AUTHORITY TRAINS, CLEVELAND, OHIO, AUGUST 18, 1976

About 11:35 a.m., on August 18, 1976, Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority train No. 461 struck the rear of train No. 409 which was standing near the East 79th Street Station in Cleveland, Ohio. Twenty persons were injured and property damage was estimated to be $61,000. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the accident was the failure of the operator of train No. 461 to comply with the mandatory stop signal indication and to apply the brakes in emergency promptly after the train ahead had been sighted, and operation of the train at an excessive speed. Contributing to the probable cause was the lack of an effective operator training program and the ineffectiveness of the protective devices and procedures to prevent a following train from entering an occupied block. As a result of its investigation of the accident, the National Transportation Safety Board made four recommendations to the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority concerning the operation of the system, and one to the Federal Railroad Administration.

• Corporate Authors:

  National Transportation Safety Board

  Bureau of Accident Investigation, 800 Independence Avenue, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20594
• Publication Date: 1977-8-4

Media Info

• Features: Figures;
• Pagination: 20 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automatic train control; Automatic train stop system; Block signal systems; Cab signals; Crash investigation; Crashes; Locomotive operations; Operating rules; Rapid transit cars; Rear end crashes; Safety; Signaling; Speed limits; Traffic signal control systems; Training
• Identifier Terms: Cleveland Transit System
• Old TRIS Terms: Block systems; Deadman control; Signal recognition; Signal systems
• Subject Areas: Education and Training; Public Transportation; Railroads; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00170073
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Transportation Safety Board
• Report/Paper Numbers: NTSB-RAR-77-5
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jan 30 1981 12:00AM