A train crash near Bedford, driver passed away many injured blamed on the signals failing....

[Pross]

The first post here seems an excellent example of Cunningham's Law!!!

Had to look that up - very true

 

[briantrumpet]

Had to look that up - very true

Ha, ditto. Yes, very good.

 

[First Aspect]

Me too, but in hindsight seems to be how the main forum works.

"Hi I'm a newbie, and I'm planning on putting the saddle on with the wide bit pointing forward, because that's the part I will sit on. Can someone tell me what angle of tilt I should use?"

 

[Bromptonaut]

So the news has extensively covered this accident and the many injured and the driver who sadly didn't make it out.
They now seem to blame it on failing signals, but how on earth on 2026?
How many accident do there need to happen before they start taking things seriously? if cars can have early automatic braking(or however it's called it can emergency brake before the driver even sees the issue/obstruction etc.) surely trains should be able to have a similar system installed?

Bit hasty there Dutchie. Fatal accidents in the UK railway are pretty rare. Collisions with trains, as opposed to road vehicles intruding on the line, are vanishingly rare.

The last accident involving a collision due to signalling problems was Clapham Junction; nearly 30 years ago.

It's reported that the train hit from behind had stopped because of a problem with the Automatic Warning System which uses a fairly crude set up with magnets to alert the driver to signals showing anything other 'proceed' (green) and to apply the brakes if the driver doesn't acknowledge the warning.

The following train would, if the system was working as intended have seen amber and red signals to protect the Nottingham train.

Investigators are on the scene now and I suspect we'll have an interim report pretty quickly

 

[Beebo]

The following train would, if the system was working as intended have seen amber and red signals to protect the Nottingham train.

Investigators are on the scene now and I suspect we'll have an interim report pretty quickly

And the only eye witness is unfortunately dead.
Unless there is CCTV footage?

 

[Bromptonaut]

And the only eye witness is unfortunately dead.
Unless there is CCTV footage?

I don't think the driver's death will leave too big an evidential gap.

There probably is CCTV, most RAIB reports in the last decade or so refer to it where it's relevant.

Both trains were of recent construction and will have airliner type black box kit.

 

[briantrumpet]

I don't think the driver's death will leave too big an evidential gap.

There probably is CCTV, most RAIB reports in the last decade or so refer to it where it's relevant.

Both trains were of recent construction and will have airliner type black box kit.

It's why I'm not bothering to speculate, as it seems unnecessary, as once the facts are known it'll come down to human error (that either is unavoidable or should be impossible), or equipment/system failure. And the reason UK railways are so safe is that each accident will be investigated properly and mitigations – where possible – enacted.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

It's reported that the train hit from behind had stopped because of a problem with the Automatic Warning System which uses a fairly crude set up with magnets to alert the driver to signals showing anything other 'proceed' (green) and to apply the brakes if the driver doesn't acknowledge the warning.

The driver does (or did) also get an audible warning when the signal is green.
I am not sure what the sound is now, but it used to be a bell (and probably still will be on older trains).

The following train would, if the system was working as intended have seen amber and red signals to protect the Nottingham train.

Sorry, but technically on the railways, it's 'yellow'. 'Amber' is the roads and I believe it is a slightly different colour anyway.

The usual full sequence is Green - Double Yellow - Single Yellow - Red.

Never 'amber'.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

The first post here seems an excellent example of Cunningham's Law!!!

Which surely only really works if you do it deliberately?

There is so much ignorance about the railways from the general public, so you never quite know.

 

[Bromptonaut]

The driver does (or did) also get an audible warning when the signal is green.
I am not sure what the sound is now, but it used to be a bell (and probably still will be on older trains).

Sorry, but technically on the railways, it's 'yellow'. 'Amber' is the roads and I believe it is a slightly different colour anyway.

The usual full sequence is Green - Double Yellow - Single Yellow - Red.

Never 'amber'.

Still a bell under AWS, or it was last time I was in earshot of the drivers cab, for a proceed signal. A horn for any other aspect.

I take the point about yellow/amber and the double yellow aspects. But it doesn't alter the fundamental point that the Corby trian should have seen increasingly restrictive aspects of which the last should have been red.

As already stated I suspect there will be an interim RAIB report outlining the facts known so far in short order.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

I take the point about yellow/amber and the double yellow aspects. But it doesn't alter the fundamental point that the Corby trian should have seen increasingly restrictive aspects of which the last should have been red.

As already stated I suspect there will be an interim RAIB report outlining the facts known so far in short order.

Indeed, I am just being a pedant 🤓😆

As it is, I wouldn't even want to venture a guess as to what actually happened. As others have said, I'd rather just wait.

 

[Mr Celine]

Still a bell under AWS, or it was last time I was in earshot of the drivers cab, for a proceed signal. A horn for any other aspect.

It's a ping for green and a beep for any other aspect. Can be heard if sitting near the front in the 158s and 170s used on the Borders line.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

It's a ping for green and a beep for any other aspect. Can be heard if sitting near the front in the 158s and 170s used on the Borders line.

I did think it was that 'BING' noise. The bell is a very dated sound now and I think I last heard it on a (now withdrawn) class 314.

As for the old AWS claxons? I doubt many will miss those on modern stock!
I have no doubt that many older locos (and some units) will still have it all though.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

I dislike intensely sitting at the front of a unit (or any train really), unless there is a reason, so I don't hear the sounds from the cab much these days. 😊

 

[Bromptonaut]

It's a ping for green and a beep for any other aspect. Can be heard if sitting near the front in the 158s and 170s used on the Borders line.

You're right. It's a ping on the 350 sets used by London North Western