Editorial: Terror on the Metro affects us all

What is more indicative of life in our area than Metro?

The snaky lines of cars carry many of us to and from work. They allow others to venture into Washington, D.C., for culture and entertainment. They provide some relief for those sick of driving and give easy access to those without vehicles.

We take the operation and safety of Metro for granted, but every once in a while, something happens that reminds us that Metro is a human-run, error-prone, mechanical system of transportation, and while accidents are few and far between, they are not unheard of.

The Metro system has existed for about 33 years, and in that time, deaths from an accident occurred just once: on Jan. 13, 1982. Three people died and 25 people were injured because of a Metro derailment.

That was the only time, that is, until now.

Monday, at least nine people were killed and many others injured when one Metro train crashed into the back of another.

It doesn't look like terrorism. It looks like an accident. And the hearts and thoughts of our staff go out to the family and friends of the departed and to all of those who survived the crash.

Many people will not be able to look at Metro again in the same way, at least not for a while. Every bump and shake will put them a little more on edge. Every successful trip will be met with a little more relief than usual.

As Metro goes forward and tries to understand what happened Monday, it is important that the public be kept fully informed of progress and findings.

Many of us depend on Metro. We need our confidence restored. We need our anxieties quieted. We need to be told what happened, and why it won't happen again.

And, of course, an accident will happen again — one day. But we need to know that Monday's accident taught Metro system officials something.

We need to know that out of this calamity, our future safety may be better ensured because those in charge of Metro learned how to prevent a similar situation from happening again. The lesson won't be gratifying, but it could save lives in the future.

Stafford County Sun editorials represent the opinion of the managing editor. Other columns, letters and cartoons on his page express the opinions of the authors and not necessarily the Stafford County Sun.