QUESTIONS are mounting over the Bedford train crash that killed one of the drivers and left 100 people injured in one of the UK’s worst rail disasters in the past two decades.
The rush-hour collision took place just outside the town on Friday at around 5.15pm, when a Luton Airport Express service rammed into the back of a stationary East Midlands Railways train.
The service from Corby rear-ended the train from Nottingham just minutes after they both passed through Bedford on the way to London St Pancras.
The Rail Accident Investigation Branch launched a full-scale probe shortly after the collision – but many questions remain unanswered, with one expert describing the crash as “mystifying”.
Why did the first train stop?
Passengers reported that the first train – the 3.50pm from Nottingham -stopped on the tracks near Elstow minutes after passing through Bedford.
It did not stop in the town but is reported to have braked “really hard” on the outskirts.
It is understood that the driver of the train was reporting the stoppage and a fault to maintenance staff by phone at the time on the impact.
Regular passengers have said the stop was “unusual”.
So why did the first of the trains stop on the fast line – placing it in the path of the oncoming Luton Airport Express?
But why didn’t the second train also stop?
The next question is why didn’t the following train stop when the line was blocked.
The Luton Airport Express had stopped at Bedford, and then moved onto the fast line – coming up behind the stopped service – around a minute before the crash.
British rail operators have numerous protection measures in place to prevent crashes between two trains that end up on the same line.
Investigators will be probing if the driver received the correct signal information, whether they had sufficient warning, the state of the train’s brakes, and the effectiveness of the safety mechanisms.
Was there a signal failure?
The possibility of a signal failure will also be probed – which could explain why the train didn’t stop.
Experts are questioning why the driver of the Corby service was not alerted to the stationary train ahead.
Drivers should be alerted in the cab with the sound of a bell if a train passes a red or yellow signal without stopping – known as the Automatic Warning System.
So was there the correct signal showing on the line?
Tony Miles, a rail jounalist, said on Sky News: “Were the signals showing red and the train went past them?
“Or were the signals showing that the line was clear, and if so, how were they able to know when the train in front was stopped?”
Did the safety systems fail?
Another question that will need to be answered is if there was a faulty safety mechanism.
Expert Phil Haigh said that train protection systems in the UK are typically very robust and alert drivers if they pass signals or fail to press a pedal.
The protection system – dubbed the “dead man’s pedal” – will automatically stop the train if it suspects the driver is either not conscious or has made an error.
The former RAIL magazine editor told the Telegraph: “I am mystified, really, as to how the [train] at the back got to where it got.
“Unless there was a fault with the signalling system, or unless the driver passed a red signal.”
The retrieval of the airline-style “black box” will confirm whether either or both of these two systems were functioning properly.
Could human error have played a part?
Human error will also be probed as a possiblity – but right now there is no public evidence suggesting this.
Investigators will study communication between the driver and the signaller.
The team will also likely examine the role employee fatigue played in the crash, workload concerns, and insufficient training.
Miles said: “The question has to be how has that train that’s in the rear got into contact with the train that it was following, and obviously it’s either gone past the signal that was telling it it should stop, or the signal was faulty, or the driver’s made a mistake in some way, or didn’t read the signal, or something.”
Simon Calder also said the train in front could have stopped “because of a problem with the automatic warning system which warns train drivers if there is a red signal ahead.”
He added that: “The pictures we are seeing are just shocking for the train to have struck with such force that we had a derailment is really worrying.”
Shocking footage of the aftermath shows shell-shocked passengers covered in blood and screaming for help.
Witnesses reported seeing people with broken limbs and “spitting blood” as they staggered out of the carriages.
It is the worst such disaster to hit the UK since the Grayrigg derailment in February 2007, which killed the driver and left 30 passengers with severe injuries.
Network Rail said it would provide updates when it had a clearer understanding of the recovery work required and when services can safely reopen.
It added that passengers should check with their train operator for the latest travel advice.
