The Office of Rail and Road are investigating an accident which saw a passenger train travelling on the Perth to Aberdeen line, strike a tree that had fallen onto the line from outside of the railway, at a location between Balmossie and Broughty Ferry.
The incident took place on the 27th of December, 2023 at 13:17hrs with the train travelling at 84mph at the time of the collision.
The train driver applied the emergency brake and took shelter behind the driver's seat immediately before impact.
The driver received minor injuries as a result of the collision, however, the train was damaged heavily leaving it in a disabled state with passengers having to be evacuated.
Wednesday the 27th of December saw storm Gerrit in full force bringing strong winds and heavy rain throughout Scotland and also in parts of the UK.
ORR will now carry out an independent investigation, separate from investigations by the rail industry or industry regulator, in order to ascertain the sequence of events which took place leading to the accident, including:
- The management of train operations in adverse weather conditions
- The arrangements in place to manage and control the risks of trees falling onto the railway
- How information received from members of the public relating to railway safety is handled
- The crashworthiness of the train
- Any underlying management factors.
Findings from the investigation will also include any safety improvement recommendations and will be available via The Office of Rail and Road's website.
I love the HST, but it is time for them to go and be banned from operating on the national network in any capacity. There can be no place on our railways for a train which offers no protection to the driver at all. Look at the state of it. This lack of safety was seen as okay in the 70’s, but cannot be accepted in the 2020’s. Removal of the HST must proceed immediately, and while this will leave Scotrail short, it is better than continuing to risk the lives of drivers.