Amtrak service will not return to new bypass route until PTC in place

DUPONT, Wash. — KIRO 7 reports that the Ron Pate, director of the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) told the news outlet that the Amtrak Cascades run will not return to the Point Defiance Bypass until a Positive Train Control system is in place.

Work to PTC isn't expected to be completed until next spring on the newly opened 15-mile span where the train derailed, according to Sound Transit, the public agency that owns the tracks.

The train involved in the crash was going 80 mph in a 30 mph zone when it raced off the rails as they curved toward a bridge, hurtling train cars onto a highway below, investigators said. Three people were killed, and dozens were injured. Federal investigators say they are looking into whether the engineer was distracted. For the full story, click here.