The lead car

昔、使ったことがある路線なので気になりました。

Train jumps tracks, 32 hurt at Chicago's O'Hare airport

A federal investigator said he's never seen a train climb an escalator like the one that jumped the tracks at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport early Monday.

The crash of the Chicago Transit Authority Blue Line train injured 32 people, although none seriously, according to Chicago Fire officials.

The eight-car train failed to stop at the end of the line when it arrived at the airport station at 2:52 a.m., a Chicago Fire official said. The lead car appeared to have climbed an escalator adjacent to the passenger platform."I've investigated many accidents and trains do different things," National Transportation Safety Board investigator Tim DePaepe told reporters. "It's all about kinetic force. I have not seen an accident like this personally."

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/03/24/us/chicago-ohare-train-derailment/

lead carは通常はマラソンやパレードなどの「先導車」を指しますが、ここは「先頭車両」の意味ですね。（UG）