Railway safety and crime

Investigation launched after train missed track workers by just 2 seconds

11.04.18: The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) has launched an investigation into a near-miss at Primrose Hill which left several people “very distressed.” The incident occurred last month between South Hampstead station and Primrose Hill tunnel...

RSSB yearlong business plan focuses on six key deliverables

09.04.18: The RSSB’s 2018-19 business plan, published today, sets out how it will work over the next year to ensure that railways remain safe. The plan lays out five key areas the industry will prioritise, including safety, health and wellbeing...

RAIB issues safety advice after Inverness passenger train collides with unattached rail

19.03.18: The RAIB has issued urgent safety advice after an incident in February that saw a passenger service run into an unattached 130 metre length of rail near Inverness. Investigators said the train was travelling at around 53mph when it collided...

NR slapped with £730,000 fine for Gloucester freight derailment

16.03.18: Network Rail has been ordered to pay £733,000 fines after a court found that its failure to adequately maintain track had caused a freight train to derail near Gloucester station. The incident, which occurred in October 2013, saw the...

RAIB to investigate after train stranded in sub-zero conditions

15.03.18: The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) has announced its intention to investigate incidents earlier this month which saw trains stranded in freezing conditions in London. One such incident occurred on 2 March when a Southeastern trai...

RAIB to investigate Cambrian line ERTMS failure

22.02.18: The RAIB has launched an investigation into the loss of speed restriction data to trains during an incident on 20 October on the Cambrian coast line. A driver travelling on the line in North Wales reported that longstanding temporary speed res...

RAIB to look into accident which saw an elderly woman dragged into tunnel after being trapped by train door

21.02.18: The RAIB has launched an investigation into an incident on 31 January that saw a 78-year-old passenger dragged into a tunnel on the London Underground after her bag became trapped between the doors of a train, leaving her “seriously injured....

RAIB: Runaway trailer separated from train due to deliberately disabled brakes

19.02.18: The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) has released its report into a runaway trailer in Hope, Derbyshire. The incident occurred on Sunday 28 May 2017 when a trailer, which was being propelled by a small rail tractor, became detached bet...

Union hits out at controversial plans to merge BTP into Police Scotland

09.02.18: Officials from the TSSA union have today lashed out at the Scottish Government for the continuation of plans that would see transport policing transferred into the hands of regular police forces. Ministers have pursued the move for some tim...

Rochdale fire: Northern cancels services as 100 firefighters attend trackside blaze

08.02.18: A huge fire at a trackside industrial unit in Greater Manchester has caused mass delays on Northern Rail’s Leeds to Manchester services. Around 100 firefighters and 12 pumps were called to the scene in the early hours of this morning...

Track boundary confusion between NR and LU caused Wimbledon derailment

07.02.18: Confusion over which body should be responsible for a section of track near Wimbledon station contributed to a derailment in November last year which forced 300 people to be evacuated. Investigators from the RAIB said the problem came becau...

RAIB to investigate Scottish train which derailed following major landslip

07.02.18: The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) has launched an investigation into a train derailment that occurred last month. The incident happened at 06:47am on Monday 22 January 2018, when a passenger train traveling between Mallaig and Glasg...

Child faced with ‘life-threatening’ danger after nearly falling through toilet floor

31.01.18: An incident in June 2017 which saw a child nearly fall through the missing floor of a train toilet could have been life-threatening, says the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB). The accident occurred on a South Devon Railway (SDR) tr...

Making the railway safer with big data

30.01.18: Peter Hughes, principal research fellow at the Institute for Railway Research, argues big data is revolutionising close call reporting on our railways. Close call reporting systems are an important part of the GB railways safety management...

Croydon tram crash driver likely lost awareness due to a ‘microsleep’

07.12.17: The driver of a tram which derailed in Croydon last year had a “temporary loss of awareness” probably caused by a “microsleep.” The crash caused the death of seven people, while 61 others were injured in the inc...