Ufton Nervet level crossing: incidents and discussions (merged topics)

[whole diary]

[Btline]

Very sad.

[amiddl]

From Newbury Today

Reports of a fatality at the notorious level crossing - 26 January 2010
 
A person has died this morning (Tuesday) at the Ufton Nervet level crossing.
All trains between Westbury and London Paddington have been cancelled due to the incident at 6.07am although there is a shuttle servive running between Bedwyn and Newbury.

There is also a limited bus shuttle service in operation between Newbury and Didcot Parkway.

Ufton Lane is also closed between the A4 and Ufton Green.

First Great Western say it is too early to say exactly what happened although reports suggest a person was hit by a train at the level crossing.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Man hit by train on level crossing in Berkshire dies

A man died when he was hit by a train at a level crossing in Berkshire.
Emergency crews were called to Ufton Nervet, near Reading, at about 0610 GMT and services on the busy commuter route were suspended.
A British Transport Police spokesman said the death was being treated as "unexplained" and that a file would be prepared for the coroner.
First Great Western said the line from Reading to Westbury reopened at 1230 GMT, but delays were still expected.
Passengers have been advised to contact rail companies concerning the impact to their journeys.
A shuttle bus had been put in place earlier, between Theale and Reading and Newbury and Bedwyn, for passengers.
The train involved in the incident was the 0521 service from Reading to Bedwyn.
A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said they had yet to identify the dead man.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Reading Post:

Third fatal incident at Ufton Nervet level crossing

Train services between Reading and Newbury have been disrupted after a train hit a person near Ufton Nervet level crossing this morning.

The dead person is reported to be male.

British Transport Police said the incident happened around 5.40am about 50 to 100 yards from the crossing.

The death is being treated as unexplained.

Rail services between Reading and Westbury were facing cancellations and delays of up to one hour this mornign but are now back to normal.

The incident happened near the spot where seven people died in November 2004 after  the train they were travelling on hit a car driven onto the level crossing by Newtown chef Bryan Drysdale who committed suicide .

In June, last year, East Reading man Thomas Porter was killed when he was struck by a train at the level crossing. At an inquest into his death last Wednesday, a coroner at Newbury Town Hall recorded a verdict of suicide.

From the Reading Chronicle:

Police strive to identify rail death victim

A MAN who died when he was hit by a passing train in Ufton Nervet today is believed to have been in his late 40s or early 50s.
British Transport Police are officially treating the death as "unexplained" and spokeswoman Emma Wiggins said tonight officers are still trying to identify the man so that they can contact his family.
The incident took place at the unmanned level crossing in the village where seven people died in November 2004 when an express train hit a car deliberately driven onto the tracks. Police are working on the theory that the victim did not fall or slip and may have walked onto the tracks.
Ms Wiggins said: "The body of a man, believed to be in his late 40s or early 50s, has been recovered from the line and officers are investigating. The train involved was the 05.29am service from Reading to Bedwyn, the driver of which reported striking an object on the line."
The rail line was reopened at 11.45am and services have since returned to normal. Can you help the British Transport Police? Call them on 0800 40 50 40.

[paul7575]

Reluctant to say this, but has it occured to anyone else that last weeks publicity about the earlier death at Ufton Nervet had a higher profile than normal due to the terrible HST^▸ (High Speed Train) accident, and this may have set off this week's unfortunate events.

Do we really need the news coverage at all?  (I accept that the 2004 incident was newsworthy at the time.)

Paul 

[Chris from Nailsea]

An interesting point, Paul.

From Newbury Today:

Network Rail spokesman Russel Spink confirmed that a train driver reported striking something on the line and the tragedy was confirmed by a second train driver following a few minutes behind.

However, he added, "This incident did not happen at the level crossing but between 50 and 100 yards along the line. Questions of crossing safety are therefore not relevant. It is just a tragic co-incidence that it happened so close to Ufton Nervet crossing."

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Reading Post:

Man hit by train at Ufton Nervet was from Fareham

A man who died after being struck by a train near Ufton Nervet level crossing yesterday morning is a 49-year-old from Fareham in Hampshire.

He died after he was hit by the 5.21am Reading to Bedwyn service at around 5.40am.

His body was found 50 to 100 yards from the level crossing in the Newbury direction.

British Transport Police confirmed the 49-year-old was believed to be from the Fareham area and that his death is now being treated as non-suspicious.

Formal identification is due to take place tomorrow.

[ChrisB]

The RAIB^▸ (Rail Accident Investigation Branch) is making this investigation

The RAIB is carrying out an investigation into an incident which occurred at Ufton level crossing, Berkshire, between Theale and Aldermaston stations, on 4 September 2011.
The double track main line between Reading (Southcote Junction) and Westbury had been closed for engineering work overnight on Friday/Saturday 3/4 September. One of the two lines was re-opened at about midday, after which it was used to carry trains in both directions until the engineering works were completed in the late afternoon.

At about 12:29 hrs, the 11:13 hrs train from London Paddington to Bedwyn (train 1K54), which was the first train over the line following re-opening, passed over the automatic half barrier level crossing at Ufton at about 60 mph (100 km/h) while the barriers were in the raised position and the road traffic warning lights were not showing. A car, which was approaching from the south on Ufton Lane, the unclassified road which runs over the level crossing, had to stop suddenly to avoid colliding with the train.

The RAIB^s preliminary examination found that the level crossing was being controlled locally at the time of the incident. The person controlling the crossing had not received any instruction to lower the barriers before the train arrived.
The RAIB investigation will include an examination of the arrangements for re-opening the railway to normal train services, particularly the workload on signallers and the arrangements for operating trains in both directions on the same line. It will also examine staff competence and fitness.

The RAIB^s investigation is independent of any investigations by the British Transport Police and the safety authority (the Office of Rail Regulation).

The RAIB will publish a report, including any recommendations to improve safety, at the conclusion of its investigation. This report will be available on the RAIB website.

Looks as though someone's getting the high-jump....

[bobm]

..and, as far as the media will be concerned, bearing in mind the location it could not have happened at a worse place.

[JayMac]

From the Daily Mail:

Railway staff blunder almost repeats one of Britain's worst ever train crashes

A blunder by railway staff almost resulted in a repeat of one of Britain's worst train crashes in recent years, investigators revealed last night.

But the quick reactions of a driver meant he narrowly averted a catastrophic accident between his car and an intercity service at the spot where seven people died in 2004.

Railway accident investigators have begun a probe into the near miss which happened earlier this month.

The situation arose after engineering works on the stretch of line, when a communication error meant a level crossing was left open after train services resumed.

A spokesman for the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB^▸ (Rail Accident Investigation Branch)) said: ^The RAIB is carrying out an investigation into an incident which occurred at Ufton level crossing, Berkshire, between Theale and Aldermaston stations, on September 4, 2011.^

The track between Reading's Southcote Junction and Westbury had been closed overnight between Friday, September 3 and Saturday, September 4, to allow work teams to access the line. One of the two lines was re-opened around midday on Saturday to carry trains in both directions until the engineering works were completed late that afternoon.

The RAIB spokesman said: ^At about 12:29pm, the 11:13am train from London Paddington to Bedwyn, the first train over the line following re-opening, passed over the automatic half barrier level crossing at Ufton at about 60 mph while the barriers were in the raised position and the road traffic warning lights were not showing. A car, which was approaching from the south on Ufton Lane, the unclassified road which runs over the level crossing, had to stop suddenly to avoid colliding with the train.^

On November 6, 2004, chef Bryan Drysdale drove his car onto the very same level crossing, leading to his death. The vehicle was hit by the First Great Western London Paddington to Plymouth service, all eight carriages of which were derailed. The driver, five passengers - including two girls aged nine and 14 years - and Drysdale died in the collision.

In the latest incident the RAIB's preliminary examination found that the level crossing was being controlled locally at the time of the incident.

^The person controlling the crossing had not received any instruction to lower the barriers before the train arrived,^ said the investigators.

For the full report the organisation will examine the arrangements for re-opening the railway, the workload on signallers and the arrangements for operating trains in both directions on the same line, as well as staff competence and fitness.

A spokesman for Network Rail, which maintains the national rail infrastructure, said: ^We are cooperating fully with the Rail Accident Investigation Branch, which is carrying out an investigation into the circumstances surrounding this incident.^

I do love the way the Daily Mail gives the impression they've talked with a RAIB 'spokesman' when all the reporter has actually done is copy and pasted text from the RAIB bulletin. 

[inspector_blakey]

Without wishing to belittle the seriousness of the Ufton Nervet crash one bit, I think someone at the Daily Fail would do well to have a quick look through the annals of railway history before branding it as 'one of Britain's worst ever train crashes'.

[bobm]

In normal operation are those types of crossings directly linked to the signalling or do they just operate independently on the approach of a train and adjacent signals can be green regardless of the position of the barriers. I appreciate in this case it appears they were under local control but I wondered what the normal rules are.

[paul7575]

A train approaching an automatic half barrier does not see rail signals associated with the crossing, the barriers are operated by the trains progression along the line being detected by treadles.

A fault with the crossing will cause an alarm in the controlling signalbox, but AIUI^▸ (as I understand it) if a train has passed the last controlled signal before the crossing the signaller would be reliant on radio to stop a train.

PS - I should add that various faults will cause the barriers to drop - I believe this is the main safety feature if there is a power failure

Paul

[JayMac]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Ufton Nervet crash father's anger over fresh incident

A man whose daughter died in a rail crash in 2004 has said it is "mind-blowingly incompetent" that another crash nearly happened at the same site.

An investigation is under way into a near collision between a car and a train at the Ufton crossing after the barriers were left up on 4 September.

The road traffic warning lights were not showing, although a 60mph (100 km/h) train was approaching.

Seven people died in the accident at the same crossing in November 2004.

The Ufton crossing is located between Theale and Aldermaston stations in Berkshire.

Peter Webster's daughter, Emily, was one of those who died in the collision seven years ago.

'Potential for danger'

He said in some countries the type of barrier in place at Ufton Nervet were banned because they are considered "unsafe".

"There are always people who will panic or gamble they can get through the barrier and away before the train comes," he said. "The potential for danger is so great."

The union of Rail, Maritime and Transport workers (RMT^▸ (National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers)) said level crossings on high speed train lines should be banned and replaced with bridges and underpasses.

RMT spokesman Alex Gordon said: "We warned in 2004, when that terrible accident took seven lives at Ufton Nervet crossing, they would be foolish not to expect another accident to happen again at other level crossings or the same level crossing.

"In France you will not find a high speed rail line with a level crossing on it."

Network Rail and First Great Western both said they were working with the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB^▸ (Rail Accident Investigation Branch)), which is carrying out an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the latest incident.

[bobm]

I don't see either of these quotes are comparing like with like.  The 2004 accident was caused by a car blocking the crossing while the gates were operational and thus not the direct fault of the railway.  This latest incident appears to have arisen due to failure within the railway's control.