WASHINGTON (AP) — The investigation into a New Jersey commuter train that hurtled into a station building Thursday raises many familiar issues from other crashes, including whether the tragedy could have been prevented or mitigated if a key safety technology had been in place.

The National Transportation Safety Board, which is leading the investigation, has been calling on railroads to start using the safety technology, called positive train control, or PTC, for nearly four decades. New Jersey Transit is in the process of installing the technology, but it was not in operation yet on any of the agency's trains or tracks.

Govs. Chris Christie of New Jersey and Andrew Cuomo of New York cautioned at a news conference that not enough is known yet about the circumstances of the crash at the Hoboken station to say if PTC could have made a difference.

"Let's find out the facts first, and then let's follow the facts," Cuomo said.

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WHAT INVESTIGATORS WILL WANT TO KNOW

"Everything is on the table," said Bob Chipkevich, who formerly headed the NTSB train crash investigations section.

Investigators will look for any mechanical problems with the train or signals, whether the brakes were working and at the condition of the track. They'll also examine what the train engineer was doing at the time of the crash, his overall health and whether he was well-rested or fatigued.

Operator fatigue has been one of the...read more at US News