Tagged: Transportation

Federal officials have estimated damage caused by a train derailment and explosion in central Ohio this month to be about $1.2 million.

The estimated cost was part of a brief preliminary report released Wednesday by the National Transportation Safety Board. The agency is looking into what caused the July 11 derailment on Norfolk Southern Corp. tracks north of downtown Columbus.

The accident derailed 17 cars and caused a fire that burned for hours. Two people suffered minor injuries.

The National Transportation Safety Board continues to investigate the train derailment in Columbus yesterday. Most of the people who were evacuated yesterday have returned to their homes.

National Transportation Safety Board Member Earl Waynur says the train appeared to have a clear signal when it went into the area where cars derailed.  And Waynur says preliminary reports show speed was not a factor.

The State Highway Patrol says the number of crashes reported along the Ohio Turnpike increased about 5 percent during the first year of its higher 70 mph speed limit compared with the previous year.

The speed limit for the 241-mile toll road increased from 65 mph to 70 mph in April 2011.

There were 2,539 crashes from April 2011 to March 2012. That's 134 more crashes than the number reported from April 2010 to March 2011.