New Jersey Transit was under probe before last week's crash

New York

THE US Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) began investigating safety problems at New Jersey Transit before the recent fatal train crash, a federal rail official confirmed on Saturday.

Federal officials began an audit in June of New Jersey Transit, the nation's third-busiest commuter railroad, after noticing an increase in safety violations and a leadership vacuum at the top of the agency, said the official, who was briefed on the investigation but was not authorised to discuss it publicly. After completing the audit, the federal agency issued a series of violations to the railroad, the official said.