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Health & Safety Executive Basic Description of Train Protection Systems Her Majesty's Railway Inspectorate
Safety Report reveals positive trends on Britain's railways 13 Aug 99
Seven days . . . . . . web focus on rail safety and accidents in the last week |
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London Bridge collision train passed red light: Wednesday, October 27, 1999A train passed a red signal before colliding with another train near London Bridge station according to a
The accident occurred on 08 January 1999 when the 15.51 Connex South Eastern service from Dover Priory to Charing Cross and the 16.22 Thameslink train from Brighton to Bedford were running on separate lines before colliding side-on at a junction. Four carriages from the Connex train and 5 from the Thameslink train were derailed. Three hundred passengers rescued from both trains were led along the railway line to safety. There were no serious injuries although traffic on the line was severely disrupted. Data from the Connex train's "black box" recorder revealed that the train had passed several yellow signals before passing the red. The Health & Safety inquiry report says "The Connex train, which had run past a series of 'caution' signals, approached the junction but its driver failed to stop at the protecting signal which is some 309 yards away from where the two lines converge". The driver has been permantly removed from driving duties.
The Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS) currently due to be installed on the line and on trains by 2003 would have prevented the accident. The system would have applied the train's brakes automatically as it passed the red signal.
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Connex
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This file last updated: Wednesday, 27-Oct-1999 21:51:42 EDT