57 die as ‘speeding’ commuter train derails

A PACKED commuter train, which was behind schedule and may have been speeding, jumped the tracks yesterday, killing 57 people and injuring 440 in Japan’s worst rail accident in 40 years.

Investigators focused on whether excessive speed or the actions of the inexperienced 23-year-old driver caused the crash in an urban area near Amagasaki, about 250 miles west of Tokyo.

The driver overshot the last station before the wreck, and a crew member and several passengers speculated the train was speeding to make up time.