The accident will also ignite debate around the federal mandate for the installation of "positive train control" technology. This safety device enables the train tracks to talk to the trains. It can not only warn of hazardous conditions ahead but can also take control if the operator fails to do so. It appears that if PTC had been installed in the stretch of track in Philadelphia, there's a good chance the accident could have been prevented or mitigated. The National Transportation Safety Board recently found that the system could have similarly prevented 25 fatal train accidents in the United States over the last decade.