Southbound Interstate 5 where Monday's Amtrak derailment sent train cars crashing down onto the freeway has re-opened. This comes as a big relief to drivers who endured hours-long detours or postponed travel between the Seattle-Tacoma area and points south.
It took two days for railroad and highway workers to clear all of the mangled train cars and one very heavy locomotive from southbound I-5. Then they had to fix gouged pavement and replace about 200 feet of destroyed guardrail.
Gov. Jay Inslee said Amtrak promised in a phone call Wednesday to cover the costs from the derailment, including the clean up and the expenses of those injured. The governor also said Amtrak’s CEO committed to activate an automated safety braking system called Positive Train Control on the Cascades line "as soon as possible." ?
Amtrak train 501 failed to slow down for a curve at a highway overpass in DuPont and then jumped the tracks.
