<i>"only two of the nation’s eighteen state or local railways, Metro-North and the Long Island Rail Road, operate on a third-rail system powered by overhead lines"</i><p>For anybody else who was confused by this: the author is (I think) trying to say that Metro-North has some lines equipped with <i>both</i> third rail and overhead wires. Although the accident occurred because of a crash at a level crossing, and had nothing to do with electrification per se.<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metro-North_Railroad#Electric_Multiple_Units" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metro-North_Railroad#Electric_...</a>
Metro-North's signaling equipment is a nightmare. There was a scheduled upgrade that was supposed to have been in play by January 1st of this year, and the project is still not yet done. Proper monitoring of crossing combined with automatic breaking could have prevented this accident. But Metro-North has neither.
Our transportation infrastructure is being pushed to its limits. If you are a a business owner, please let employees telecommute. I know it's difficult to transition from working in an office to having a fully or partially remote workforce. But the cost savings, benefits to the environment, and impact on employee's morale are worth it. Plus, less chance of dying in a traffic accident.