Police determine GO Transit passenger fatality at Union Station accidental

by Cindy J. Smith
Editor/Publisher
ThisCrazyTrain.com

An investigation into the death of  31 year-old Daniel Panacci, who died after he was dragged by his backpack after it became entangled in a moving GO train locomotive on April 28, has been deemed accidental by Toronto Police Services.

Panacci, despite accusations written to the publisher of this website that he was pushed into the train by a crowd of people or passerby, remain unsubstantiated. An inquest into his death will not occur, said Metrolinx spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins in an email to thiscrazytrain.com.

Aikins also wrote, "GO Transit remains one of the safest ways to travel. Safety is always our first priority. GO Transit has an excellent safety record. We have transported over a billion customers in 48 years. This was our first fatality at Union Station and we are conducting a full review of the circumstances and immediately implementing additional measures to protect customers."

The publisher of this website asked Aikins to comment on emails where people have expressed concern overcrowding will contribute to a fatality.

Aikins responded, "Like all transportation systems, it is common to deal with congestion especially during peak hours. Measures are put in place to ensure customer safety and we are augmenting those efforts. Ultimately safety is a joint responsibility between GO (Transit) and our passengers."

Aikins continues, "Union Station was built many years ago and is undergoing major renovations. It has unique challenges. When completed in 2017, Union Station will have double the number of vertical stairs and elevators to (ensure) more safety (and) enable passengers to travel between the platform and concourse levels. Construction work is staged to minimize the overall impact to the station and service."

She also stressed that signage, station announcements, on-board announcements and other messaging, customer email/text alerts, social media alerts, web information and staff on site directing customer flows are all in place to help inform customers, and ensure the safe movement of customers at Union Station.

Aikins also pointed out that GO Transit staff and transit safety officers (TSOs) conduct a number of safety campaigns throughout the year specifically targeting platform safety. TSOs monitor compliance of safety rules such as staying behind the yellow line.

When asked about what other measures Metrolinx can undertake to address customers' concerns about platform crowding and being pushed into the path of a train, Aikins responded, "We are reviewing other measures such as platform barriers that would take more time to implement."