Trolley Driver’s Alcohol Level Over Drunk Limit, Officials Say

A 20-year transit veteran who operated a Boston trolley that crashed into another rail car had an alcohol level above the Massachusetts drunk driving limit, transit officials said Saturday.

Investigators worked into the weekend to learn the circumstances of the Boston accident, which injured 33 people, and a New York subway fire, which injured 150 and claimed a second life Saturday. Both occurred underground Friday morning.

New York Mayor David N. Dinkins said he expected city workers to have a report on his desk by Monday afternoon.

Authorities blamed melting slush for short-circuiting a transformer, which exploded and caused a smoky fire that stopped a Manhattan-bound train.

One passenger apparently suffered a heart attack and was pronounced dead Friday. Another rider died early Saturday.

In Boston, transit officials said the trolley’s brakes and signals functioned properly, but the operator said he had trouble braking.

“There is no indication that we know of at this time that alcohol was used on the job,” said Peter Dimond, a spokesman for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. He said officials believe the operator drank before starting his shift.

Transit officials were trying to determine whether the operator involved in the crash was the one a passenger had called to complain about just a half hour earlier.

“We got a message that there was abusive language, that the driver was not behaving properly, but there was no indication that there was a safety risk,” Dimond said.

The Boston Herald reported that a rider telephoned transit police and told a fare collector that a driver was cursing and had sped through a curve, knocking passengers from their seats.