It was not an Amtrak train, it was a Metrorail train. These are run by the Metropolitan Rapid Transit District of LA, and have little to do (I know we got some federal transportation dollars for the project) with the feds.

In collisions, trains can also rear-end other trains (like freeway fender-benders), so whether the collision was head-on or not is an important distinction.

This particular accident was only nominally a head-on'er since the Metrolink train had come to a stop. This is a very good thing, because these trains whiz by at 50 mph sometimes. This one could have been a bloodbath.