common sense misses the train

Posted on July 31, 2002

So this is what all the hubbub was about this morning on the commuter rail. I was wondering why the conductors were talking to some of the passengers about medical emergencies on the train. Apparently, a man suffered a heart attack on a commuter rail line yesterday and the train continued to make the scheduled stops before reaching Back Bay station where paramedics were waiting. The Globe reports today the man has since died and the train conductor has been suspended while the incident in under investigation.

What the Mad Genius wrote today about getting out of the way of ambulances applies here as well. Common sense would dictate either running the train without stop to where paramedics are waiting, or stop the train at the next station and wait for paramedics to arrive — whichever situation would have provided the quickest medical attention.

I also find it surprising that neither MBTA or Amtrak conductors are required to take basic CPR training. They certainly have their priorities screwed up. They’ve spent millions of dollars on trolleys that were pulled from operation because they derail and tens of thousands of dollars on LED scrolling status signs at commuter rails stations that are practically useless (I didn’t tell you my rant about my train that was an hour late a couple weeks ago and the new real-time status display wasn’t updated until 30 minutes after the train was scheduled to leave the station). Would it be too much to hope that this unfortunate incident spurs some contemplation on the fact that this system is responsible for the well-being of hundreds of thousands of commuters each day?

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