I am not so sure how easily this accident could have been prevented.

My guess, if I might take a stab at armchair quarterbacking, is that they were in a rush to takeoff... I wonder if that is where the "cowboy" comments she quotes of one NTSB investigator come from? We all do it, after all. We all look up to the Southwest dudes who taxi at rotation speed. Heck, how many times have you been breathing down the apu pipe of an aircraft in front, jockying for takeoff? How many times have you been the CA pressing your FO to finish the danmed checklist... or on the other side of that process of being rushed?

I was an FO paired with a "Hat-Captain" on a trip through LAS. The airport was turned around for RWYs 7 and 1 which is very rare. You know what I mean if you fly through there. Well, taxiway indications are sketchy at best, and we had to taxi on unfamiliar routes. The CA was doing his SWA taxi, and we saw the hold-short bars for RWY 7L at the last second. He had to plant the brakes. We ALMOST had an incursion.

I used to rush as a CA until a SNAFU at Littlerock. A Herc was on short final and we were cleared for TO. I took the bait, and the Herc had to go around. It ended up to be no big deal, but I filed a NASA form anyhow. Now I taxi like grandma, and I bet I **** off everyone at ATL. Too bad, so sad; but, I am not going to be "that guy". Call me what you want- I can take that hit. The hit I can't take is "Responsible for 51 deaths".

For good reading on this topic, or just a method to overcome insomnia:
Tony Kern, Redefining Airmanship
or his other book Flight Discipline