NTSB Says Commuter Train Was Speeding

CHICAGO – A commuter train was going almost 60 mph above the speed limit just before it derailed, killing two people and injuring dozens, the acting chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board said Sunday.

Mark Rosenker said the Metra train was traveling at 69 mph and should not have been going faster than 10 mph when it switched tracks at a crossover just before jumping the tracks Saturday.

“Sixty-nine miles an hour is very, very fast when you’re dealing with a 10-mile-an-hour restriction,” Rosenker said.

The NTSB will examine several factors to determine why the train was going at that speed, including the train’s three data recorders, records of the track signals and toxicology reports on the crew, he said.

Investigators already have determined that nothing was abnormal with the tracks, which had just been inspected on Friday, Rosenker said.