NTSB Hearing To Put Spotlight on Metro

WASHINGTON - The National Transportation Safety Board has scheduled three days of hearings, next week, to examine a recent series of crashes and other mishaps that have plagued Metro, the nation's second-busiest subway system.

The incidents include a two-train crash in June that killed nine people and seriously injured dozens more, a collision in a rail yard in November, the deaths of two Metro workers in Rockville, and a downtown derailment last week.

"It's disturbing," responded NTSB member Robert Sumwalt when he was asked about the number of incidents at one transit agency under simultaneous federal investigation. "We intend to learn more about the oversight of WMATA (the Washington Area Transit Authority) through this public hearing."

The three days of hearings will be exhaustive, covering every topic including rail system hardware, electronics, safety procedures, and whether there's enough oversight of WMATA.

Most passengers we spoke with Friday afternoon applauded the planned hearing by the federal safety agency.

One young woman said, "I would appreciate some people sitting down and investing some thought in how they can make [Metro] safer."

The hearings start Tuesday morning.