Derailment

Ironically, in a November 30 post I pontificated with enthusiasm about Amtrak's new Tacoma bypass, while also expressing regret that I wouldn't have one last chance on Friday to travel the old Point Defiance route, which follows the Sound and goes under the Tacoma Narrows bridge.

Needless to say, things haven't worked out as planned.  Yesterday's derailment of the very first scheduled passenger train to take the new route -- a 6 a.m. Cascade from Seattle to Portland -- jumped the tracks on an overpass over I-5, with the loss of at least three lives, and possibly more.  The train entered a tight curve shortly before the derailment, traveling 80 mph in a 30 mph zone.  Engineers on test runs had complained about the difficulty in reducing speed at that point.

Everyone has a point to make, of course.  Trump pushes his infrastructure bill (even though the track had just been rebuilt where the accident occurred), and as an afterthought expresses condolences for the casualties.  A long series of online comments on the story -- written by writers who knew nothing of the cause of the accident, which is still being studied -- heap scorn on Sound Transit which had constructed the track, on Amtrak for being Amtrak, and on the government for not enforcing various safety rules.

An underlying theme of many comments is that the Good Lord gave us automobiles with internal combustion motors, and we have been inviting his wrath by ignoring his wishes with our trains, subways, streetcars, bikes and bike lanes, and who knows what other sorts of foolishness.

My trip south to Oxnard on the Coast Starlight remains scheduled for Friday.  The Amtrak website indicates that today's Coast Starlight is leaving on schedule.  The track in the area of yesterday's accident still needs to be cleared (as do the southbound lanes of I-5), and undoubtedly has been damaged by the derailment.

I guess I'll get my one last look at the Point Defiance route.