27.09.18
RAIB launches probe into Jubilee Line incident of 11 wide-open doors on moving train
A freak incident on the Jubilee Line which saw 11 passenger doors remaining open whilst the train was moving was caused by a failure in the vehicle’s computerised control system, the RAIB has found.
A formal probe has now been launched by the investigator after a passenger filmed the London Underground train travelling with wide-open doors between Finchley Road and West Hampstead stations shortly after 9am on 1 September.
In an announcement, the RAIB noted that a fault had developed in the computerised train control system. When the train arrived at Finchley Road and the train operator used the cab control to open all doors adjacent to the platform, these doors would only open if passengers operated the local push-button located at each doorway.
Whilst attempting to open the closed doors, the train operator “mistakenly used a cut-out switch” that bypassed a circuit designed to prevent the train from being driven with any door open, the RAIB said. Having not found a solution to the issue of some doors remaining closed, the operator made a public announcement that he would attempt to remedy the issue at the next station.
“A short time later, the train left Finchley Road station with the train operator unaware that some doors were still open,” the RAIB said.
“When the train arrived at West Hampstead station, the train operator was contacted by a passenger on the train and told that the train had travelled from Finchley Road station with a door open. The train operator went to investigate and found ten other doors had also been open.”
The investigator added that the staff member reported the issue to control room staff and the train was taken out of passenger service at West Hampstead station.
The RAIB’s investigation will identify the nature and management of the fault affecting the train’s door control system; any factors influencing the actions of the train operator; the training, competency, and management of the train operator; and any other underlying management factors.
Top image: TheIntrepidTraveller
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