In the recent Metro North collision I was surprised to hear that, in addition   
   to the driver of the car involved,there were five people killed ON THE TRAIN.    
   Some questions:   
      
   1. In designing the iconic FT freight locomotive and E series passenger   
   locomotives, Electromotive put a hood-like structure on the front specifically   
   to give some protection to the engineer and fireman in the event of a   
   collision at a grade crossing,    
   and virtually all subsequent American locomotives have continued this   
   practice. Is there any requirement for grade-crossing protection on   
   self-propelled motor unit passenger cars?   
      
   2. In the accounts I've read, the lead unit on the Metro North train was set   
   on fire by gasoline from the fuel tank of the Mercedes Benz SUV. Barring the   
   few battery powered cars in service, every vehicle hit at a grade crossing has   
   a fuel tank; in the    
   case of a semi truck there might be as much as three hundred gallons of diesel   
   oil onboard. Does the design of a locomotive or motor unit incorporate any   
   protection from this?   
      
   3. In the accounts, the electrified third rail broke, came loose from the   
   track structure, and impaled the lead unit, whereupon arcing from the rail   
   ignited the gasoline from the SUV. With modern welded rail track, broken rails   
   are a known and feared    
   failure mode. Does a locomotive or motor unit incorporate specific protective   
   features against against being impaled by a broken rail, either a main rail or   
   a third rail?   
      
   thank you in advance for any replies,   
      
   Peter Wezeman   
   anti-social Darwinist   
      
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