BOSTON -- The company that operates the MBTA's commuter rail has changed safety rules in an effort to prevent the human error suspected of contributing to an accident in January that killed two members of a work crew.
The Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad crew did not install a required safety device on the tracks that warns oncoming trains of workers on the rails, according to a federal investigator.
New rules require dispatchers to verbally verify with the crew's foreman that the metal shunt has been attached to the tracks, officials said.
"I think we all believe that MBCR had in place some of the strongest procedures in the industry," said James F. O'Leary, MBCR's general manager. "But even with those strong procedures in place, there was room for improvement."
A draft National Transportation Safety Board report also confirms that a dispatcher allowed a Lowell-to-Boston train to go through the Woburn work site after hearing an "all clear" from a different work crew just before the train struck a track maintenance vehicle.
The railroad company now requires dispatchers to record in writing and electronically each work crew passing through a section of track. Work crews also are now being encouraged to activate signals at gated street crossings to alert oncoming trains to approach slowly.
The Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad consortium contracts with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to run the commuter rail.
Crew foreman Christopher Macaulay, 30, of Brentwood, N.H., and James Zipps, 54, of Lowell died in the Jan. 9 incident. Four other workers were hurt - two seriously - and 10 passengers suffered minor injuries.
15 Passenger Van Rollover
