CHICAGO — The operator of a Chicago Transit Authority Yellow Line train that collided with snow-removal equipment last year had alcohol in his system, but federal investigators do not consider that a factor in the incident, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
The Nov. 16, 2023, collision saw 23 people taken to hospitals while another 15 refused treatment after the Yellow Line train struck the snow removal machine near the Howard Station on the city’s North Side. The National Transportation Safety Board’s preliminary investigation report said the train was in emergency braking, traveling at 27 mph, at the time of impact [see “CTA train was in emergency …,” Trains News Wire, Dec. 12, 2023].
The operator had a blood-alcohol level of 0.06 in a hospital test conducted an hour after the crash, and 0.048 in a second test of the sample conducted by federal investigators. A level of 0.05 is considered enough to impair judgment, functions, and alertness.
The NTSB, noting that its investigation is ongoing, said in a statement to the Sun-Times that “at this time investigators have not found that the operator’s actions contributed to the accident.” The NTSB has previously indicated it was looking at design and performance of the railcar’s brakes, the CTA signal system, and the possibility that material on the rails may have contributed to the incident.
The information on the blood-alcohol level is only now being reported although it was included in the docket of technical reports and other information gathered for the investigation released by the NTSB in August. The 69-item docket includes more than 2,500 pages of material.
It could still be another year before the STB’s final investigation report is released.
The text shows alcohol was 0.06 in one test and 0.048 in another. It does not show if there is any legal limit for a CTA L operator in Illinois.
A motor vehicle operator using a CDL on the highway has a limit of 0.04.
Similar to railroads, transit agencies also have federally required drug & alcohol programs.
Understanding it’s a Federal Law, curious if Rule G is a safety protocol on the CTA?
NTSB is involved in the investigation so perhaps there is some Federal jurisdiction.