ARLINGTON, Va. — The National Transportation Safety Board on Thursday released its final report on a derailment of a Metro train in 2021. The new 57-page report determined the probable cause of the derailment for the first time.
On Oct. 12, 2021, a Blue Line train derailed in a tunnel while traveling from Rosslyn Station toward Arlington Cemetery Station. Nearly 200 passengers were onboard at the time. No one was hurt.
The NTSB's initial 1,400 page report released in March of 2023, found that the Metro train had actually derailed and then re-railed itself twice before the actual derailment. Over the course of an hour and 20 minutes, the Blue Line train derailed and re-railed here between Arlington Cemetery and Rosslyn stations. Then again, outside Largo Town Center station. It then derailed irreparably just after leaving Rosslyn on the way to Arlington Cemetery.
The train derailed and still went for about a third of a mile before stopping, the documents show. The operator said he didn't know what happened. He got on the radio and said he thought a brake had gotten stuck.
The March 2023 report features interview transcripts, pictures and other investigative materials, but stopped short of a probable cause. The final report identified the probable cause as, "an out-of-specification wheelset that caused a wheel to depart the rail at a turnout; the wheelset was out of specification because the wheelset’s design allowed the wheels to migrate outward and eventually exceed the maximum permitted back-to-back measurement."
The report also offers new safety recommendations for Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority and the Washington Metrorail Safety Commission.
The NTSB recommends WMATA implements processes and resources to expand the role of trend analysis in identifying and mitigating safety risks. The safety board says WMSC should develop and implement a program to support and monitor the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority's use of trend analysis within its safety management system.
Thursday's press briefing will also include an NTSB video animation of the derailment sequence. NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy and Investigator-in-Charge Joe Gordon are expected to speak at the 11 a.m. briefing.
The initial report pointed to one of the probable culprits for the derailment. The wheels had moved two inches apart on the train car's axle. WMATA says the process to repair and replace the wheels on the 7000 series cars could take years, and millions of dollars.
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