An emergency order was issued by the Federal Railroad Administration on Friday which will require Metro-North railroad to take immediate steps in improving safety after Sunday's derailment in the Bronx killed four people, the Associated Press reported.
According to the order, "immediate steps to ensure its train crews do not exceed speed limitations" will "modify its existing signal system to ensure speed limits are obeyed and to provide two qualified railroad employees to operate trains where major speed restrictions are in place until the signal system is updated."
The Metro-North train was heading to Manhattan when it derailed after the driver William Rockefeller dozed off at the controls and the train hit a curve at 82 mph when the speed limit was 30, according to the AP.
Sunday's derailment is the second passenger train derailment in six months for Metro-North, but the company released a statement which said they will follow the FRA orders to ensure the safety of riders, the AP reported.
"Safety is our highest priority, and we must do everything we can to learn from this tragic crash and help prevent future derailments," U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a statement, according to the AP.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said federal investigators confirmed the actions of Rockefeller were the "initiating cause" of the accident, and that the high speeds of the train was the key factor, according to the AP.
At the location where Sunday's accident happened, there's no safety system in place to remind or alert the driver there is a curve, or spot, where speed needs to be reduced, the AP reported. Cuomo also told the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to place speed controls in areas which are vulnerable to crashes throughout the Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road commuter system.
"While we assist the National Transportation Safety Board in carrying out its investigation, this emergency order will help ensure that other Metro-North trains travel at appropriate, safe speeds," Foxx said, according to the AP.
The Governor of New York said he has plans of speeding up his efforts to ensure a technology called "positive train control" can be installed so a train can be stopped automatically if it exceeds a speed limit, according to the AP.
