guard had intervened in this situation, and this excessive speed was found to be the direct cause of the accident. Training of train staff was also found to be a contributing factor in the accident. Train G7 did not re-enter service. It was scrapped in 2005 due to the damage sustained in the accident as all four cars were damaged beyond repair. These were the official findings of the NSW Ministry of Transport investigation of the accident. A report of the accident, managed by Commissioner Peter McInerney, was released in January 2004. Systemic causes and ignored technical problems It was reported that G7 was said to have been reported for technical problems "possibly half a dozen times" and had developed a reputation amongst the mechanical operations branch, saying the problems were "normal" for the set in question. During the six months leading up to the accident, three reports of technical problems were made. The inquiry found a number of flaws in the deadman's handle (which was not implicated in the accident) and related to the deadman's pedal: The dead weight of the unconscious and overweight driver appeared to be enough to defeat the deadman's pedal, of which 44% of Sydney train drivers' legs were of sufficient mass. The design of the deadman's pedal did not appear to be able to operate as intended with drivers above a certain weight. Marks near the deadman's pedal indicated some drivers were wedging a conveniently-sized red signalling flag to defeat the deadman's pedal to prevent their legs from cramping in the poorly-configured footwell and to give themselves freedom of movement in the cabin. Some of the technical problems reported for Tangaras generally, included brake failure and reported power surge problems. After the accident, they were often blamed by some for being the cause of the accident. Many of the survivors of the accident mentioned a large acceleration before the accident occurred. Furthermore, there was an understanding that the emergency brake should be seldom used because the train would accelerate between before the brake came into effect. It was noted that the G7 trainset was the only train in the Tangara fleet to use 3-phase induction motors, and that these are not able to "run-away". Furthermore, the majority of braking and traction system components were thoroughly examined and tested by experts from Australia and overseas, and found to be working normally. Those damaged in the