WASHINGTON, D.C. — CSX Corp. (CSX) Chief Executive Officer John Snow said on Wednesday the railroad operator may change the way it inspects its track following Monday’s Amtrak derailment that injured nearly 100 passengers outside the nation’s capital, a wire service reported.
“That’s the question we are looking at,” Snow told reporters after testifying on unrelated business before a Senate subcommittee. “And as we learn the lessons of that we will take whatever appropriate actions are called for” in track maintenance practices, he said.
Snow said CSX, which owns tracks that carry 17 percent of all Amtrak trains in the country, is closely looking at the relationship between heat and train derailments after the Chicago-to-Washington Capitol Limited train derailed.
Eight of the 13 cars on the train left the track and six rolled onto their side, severely injuring six people and sending scores more to area hospitals.
National Transportation Safety Board investigators said they were looking at the possibility temperatures approaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) may have caused the track to buckle.
NTSB Vice Chairman Carol Carmody said on Tuesday the Amtrak engineer saw the rails were not properly aligned, but she stopped short of saying what led to it.
The cause of the derailment will be known within eight to 10 months after the board examines a number of factors including track maintenance, Carmody said.
“We are taking a hard look at this incident and what the causes behind it were,” Snow said.
Snow defended CSX’s safety record, noting that even though it handles nearly 20 percent of all passenger traffic for Amtrak, it was involved in only 4 percent all derailments during the past decade.
CSX, the largest track operator in the eastern United States, inspects all mainland tracks at least once a week, Snow said.
Given the hot conditions throughout much of the country, CSX said passenger trains will be required to slow by 10 mph when temperatures are higher than 90 degrees (32 Celsius) for consecutive days, or when they change by 40 degrees (4 Celsius) or more within two days.
The maximum speed limit for Amtrak trains where the accident occurred was 70 mph.
Still, Snow cautioned even the most thorough inspection process may not be enough.
“No railroader can attest there won’t be future problems. You just can’t,” he said.
CSX shares closed down 39 cents to $34.57 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange.