Posted 7 years ago
pajrr
(102 items)
This is a 1937 brochure from the PRR Red Arrow, a Detroit - New York express train. 10 years later, on Feb 14, 1947, the Red Arrow was involved in one of the worst train wrecks in American history. The full story of this heartbreaking event can be read here:
http://jaredfrederick.blogspot.com.au/2012/03/death-in-alleghenies.html
I am not sure if I am missing somethin g but the death toll was 22. While tragic it does not seem like that would cause a decline in rail travel as I read in some articles. In fact it shows how safe those heavyweight cars were. There have been bus accidents that were worse and buses carry far fewer persons. As for it causing a decline in rail travel and people switched to air travel perhaps some numbers. When an airliner goes down it tends to be much worse. In India it is another story. Anyway I don't know many people with a fear of train travel.
Not saying you said anything on this subject but commenting on articles I read.
Hi fortapache, you know the way press always sensationalizes things, especially train wrecks. You don't interview the millions that ride the NY Subway everyday without incident. You interview the one that gets mugged. Amtrak runs hundreds of trains each day with no problems. You go after the one that derails. As long as there is press involved you will rarely get both sides of a story. It has always been that way through history. Blood sells headlines, not smiles.