With a horrific train crash still fresh in the memories of Philly commuters, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority officials are racing down the tracks to make SEPTA the first major railroad system on the East Coast to run on GPS-based positive-train control.

SEPTA, the nation’s fifth-busiest railroad with 134,000 riders per day, is already the “only Northeast commuter railroad nearing full implementation,” according to an article in The Lansdale Reporter by Michael Sisak.

The lack of positive-train control is being blamed for the deaths of eight people in Philadelphia last year when an Amtrak train careened around a curve at twice the speed limit.

Once implemented, the technology maximizes efficiencies and provides a safety override in dangerous situations.

SEPTA has equipped all but one stretch of track and all locomotives with PTC tech, and it has trained all employees on it. Amtrak also now has the technology on most of its track between Washington, D.C., and Boston.

Read more about SEPTA’s and other railroads’ progress on PTC technology in The Lansdale Reporter here.