After a bus collided with a train near Woodroffe Avenue and Fallowfield Road Sept. 18, an investigation by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) is now underway.
Six people died in the collision, including two Carleton students.
The stop is said to have the highest level of protection, according to Rob Johnston, lead TSB investigator.
The independent organization advances transportation safety by examining transit occurrences, but does not assign criminal or civil liability, according to its website.
According to Johnston, the Via Rail passenger train departed Ottawa Central Station at 8:32 a.m., proceeding westward towards Toronto. OC Transpo bus 8017 on route 76 departed Fallowfield Station at about 8:45 a.m. and proceeded northward.
Johnston said the bus collided with the train three minutes later, causing it to derail.
“There was no whistle sounded on the train’s approach,” Johnston said.
Normally, trains are required to sound a whistle a quarter of a mile before every crossing. However, with a municipal whistle ban in place for the city of Ottawa between 8 p.m. and noon, the train was not required to sound its whistle, according to Johnston.
“We determined the crossing lights, bells, and gates were activated 47 seconds prior to impact,” Johnston said. “The gates were fully horizontal for 25 seconds prior to impact.”
The train crew applied emergency brakes two seconds before the collision.
Johnston said the train was travelling 47 miles per hour, which is below the track speed of 100 miles per hour.
He said the investigators have not found any causal issues with the train’s operation or the track’s conditions.
“We also looked at the crossing and we found that this crossing has the highest level of protection,” Johnston said.
“We’ve got one download from the bus and we’re continually trying to evaluate what information we’ve got,” Johnston said.
The bus has been moved to a secure location in Ottawa for examination, Johnston said. The bus tires have been removed and are also being examined.
Going forward, Johnston said his team will focus on the examination of the bus, analyze all available recorded memory from modules within the bus, and review requirements for buses to stop at all railway crossings.
Johnston also said his team will assess factors that may have affected the driver’s performance, such as driver training.
He said they will also review the alignment of the crossing and roadway, the visibility of railway crossing protection from the roadway, and any potential obstacles.
“We’re going to continue with our interviews with the witnesses and survivors and the investigation will continue to go forward,” Johnston said.
