A Chicago woman and the railroad Metra have settled her personal injury lawsuit against the rail line for $1.8 million. Kathryn Kuk, age 54, was riding on a commuter train in Chicago’s South Side when it derailed on October 12, 2003. Her multiple injuries from the crash have necessitated two lower-back surgeries, according to her attorney. Kuk’s husband Steven, who was on the train with her and their daughter Megan, told reporters that she continues to suffer debilitating pain.
The Kuks had boarded the Metra train only a few minutes before it derailed two locomotives and five passenger cars at a crossover. The maximum allowed speed for the crossover was 10 mph; the train, carrying 200 passengers, was traveling at around 68 mph. According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), about 47 people, including all three Kuks, were injured in the crash.
Although Steven and Megan experienced only minor injuries, Kathryn, who had a previous spinal condition, was thrown across the car. The resulting aggravation of her spine necessitated ongoing surgeries for pain relief. Steven Kuk told the Southtown (Chicago) Star that their lives had been drastically changed by Kathryn’s injuries, no longer allowing her to be active as she had been before. Her back pain remains so intense, he said, that she cannot even sit through a movie.
In 2005, the NTSB issued a report blaming the train’s engineer for being distracted while coming into the fatal crossing. Furthermore, the report concluded that Metra could have prevented the accident had they installed a technology called “positive train control,” a computerized system that tracks the location of trains using global positioning devices and can override engineers to ensure that trains follow signals and avoid crashes. Another crash involving a Metra train occurred at the same location in 2005, and was followed by another NTSB report identifying the same root causes and again recommending positive train control.
Although Metra claims to be actively pursuing the installation of positive train control—especially in the face of federally-mandated installation for all railroads by 2015—they have yet to implement the technology. Metra told the Chicago Tribune that the technology would be both extremely complex to install in Chicago and very expensive, costing around $150 to $200 million. Cavanagh challenged Metra’s commitment to the technology, however, telling the Star that both the technology and the money had long been in place for Metra to put in positive train control.
In Kuk’s lawsuit, the railroad admitted liability, but disputed the extent of her injuries. The $1.8 million dollar settlement was approved by the Metra board last month following five days in Cook County Circuit Court. It was the final settlement from the 2003 crash. Although the Kuks won the settlement, Steven told the Sun that the victory was bittersweet, knowing that their suffering could have been prevented had Metra taken the necessary steps to protect their safety.
