DC Metro Area Personal Injury Law Blog

Making matters worse, a National Transportation Safety Board spokesperson confirmed that the train did not have data recorders, which would have detailed the movements of the train prior to the violent collision.

The Post report also commented that "a federal official said that the car was an older model, of a kind that Metro had been advised to replace because of concerns about how it would stand up in a collision. Metro did not do so, its leaders said, because they believed it would be too costly and complicated. Instead, they made some improvements to the trains' braking systems and emergency exits."

It seems that WMATA was putting profits over people in failing to do what was both needed and recommended.  Although the cause of the crash is still officially under investigation, it is clear that driver error and system failures are the likely causes.