It traveled several stops northbound toward Boston without an operator until it was finally brought to a stop when officials cut off power to the third rail.
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“We are confident that this was an isolated incident where a single individual appears to have made multiple errors”, Baker said.
She would not confirm multiple reports, based on unidentified sources, that the operator had tied down the throttle, which also acts as a break when not in use, with a cord.
“My only concern was people trying to open the train when we don’t know what’s going on”, she said.
Pollack did say the train’s second emergency brake was not engaged, and she added: “One error would not allow something like this to happen”.
The incident was an “unacceptable breech of our responsibility to keep our riders safe”, Pollack said at a late afternoon news conference.
“We all understand the fear, the shock, surprise, that those 50 passengers must have experienced”, Baker said.
Secretary of Transportation Stephanie Pollack also said Wednesday that the possibility of scrapping the multi-billion dollar project altogether remains on the table.
Red Line trains previously had two operators on each train.
Fernanda Daly, one of the passengers, said that everything felt like a normal train ride until the lights went on and the train slowed down.
The train operator must press down the lever before turning it to accelerate or decelerate and continue to press down while operating the train; if the operator releases pressure, the lever should pop up, stopping the train automatically. The control needs to have constant pressure applied to set the train in forward motion.
Vazquez was placed on administrative leave.
Transit officials say the train began to move after the operator stepped out to engage a “bypass” switch to override a signal problem.
Among the questions officials are hoping to answer through the investigation is whether the operator’s area of the vehicle was in correct condition, said Pollack, who said, “Operator error is the current focus of the investigation”.
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Boston.com has confirmed that the operator was David Vazquez, a 28-year veteran of the MBTA from Canton. That employee suffered a minor injury. Safety has always been the top priority of the Carmen’s Union. MBTA operations employees disabled the train and brought it to a stop by gradually cutting off power to the electrified third rail.
