No, the "legacy" system was, and is, PTC. That system was mandated to have been installed, I believe, in 2015 on passenger routes; the "management", not the crew, should be held accountable. The NTSB can only recommend, but AMTRAK could have, and should have, insisted that PTC be installed, AND OPERATIONAL, on ALL new routes, especially after the crash in Philly, or Operations would be delayed until it IS operational. As I previously said, similar warning systems have been in use in the UK since 1910, and in the States since the 20's and 30's, on the Pennsylvania, among others. The crew will be punished; the higher the "management", the less the accountability. The CEO Richard Anderson should go to jail. He won't. Screwed up world. Sam
Amtrak is in no position to insist upon anything.
As of the date of this incident, none of their off corridor locomotives were equipped to use PTC. After this derailment, Amtrak trains went back to the original route which is PTC equipped. The BNSF and UP freight engines are PTC equipped, but sadly Amtrak locomotives are not, which means they cannot take advantage of the system installed by the railroads. Yet.
As to the date of the system being mandated, it is the end of 2018.
PTC is hardly a legacy system. It is and has been a work in progress.
Where I will agree with you is the fact there have been systems, like TPWS, that have been available for decades. The Chatsworth collision in 2008 was caused by an engineer who was texting on his phone and passed a signal at danger. He was employed by the commuter authority, Metrolink, and collided head on with a Union Pacific freight train operating on a clear signal indication.
In a matter of weeks, Congress in its rush to appear to be doing something, decided to mandate PTC which was a developing concept rather than an off the shelf system. Alternate systems, though not as supposedly all encompassing as PTC, would have prevented every accident I can recall since then (save low speed terminal over runs which PTC will not either!). The classic example of perfect being the enemy of good.
As to the derailment in Philadelphia, yes the Pennsylvania Railroad legacy system installed in the 50's would have prevented that accident had in not been deactivated on the eastbound mains - by Amtrak.
Before you send Mr. Anderson off to jail, I would point out he has only been at Amtrak a few months. Someone made the decision to start service on the new routing before PTC was operational and I sincerely doubt it was Anderson, but that is probably the one item we will never know.