Elizabeth line service involved on overspeed incident after driver became 'confused about train's location'

An Elizabeth line train went over a set of points at nearly double the permissible maximum speed after the driver was confused about their location.

The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) has issued a Safety Digest after the overspeed east of Manor Park station on September 24, 2024, when the Class 345 unit on the 0645 Heathrow Terminal 5-Shenfield service traversed the points at 45mph instead of 25mph.

A track circuit failure on the Down Electric line led to the service being diverted onto the Down Main and Down Passenger Avoiding lines, before rejoining its usual route.

RAIB reported that after Manor Park station the first signal it approached was red before clearing to double yellow with the route indicator box displaying ‘DA’ (Down Passenger Avoiding), however the driver believed they were already on that line and “did not realise that there were points ahead for which the train’s speed would have to be 25mph”, and did not react.

“The incident happened because the driver became confused about the train’s location after being routed off its booked route. As a result, the driver did not reduce the train’s speed to the 25 mph (40 km/h) limit required over the points,” investigators concluded.

A member of staff travelling on board reported the incident to MTR control.

The driver later told RAIB they were “unfamiliar with the sequence of lines that the train had passed over and had not driven over the Down Passenger Avoiding line in the 5 years since they had completed initial driver training on the route”.

Investigators also found the lineside sign indicating the 25mph speed limit for the points was “neither in the position, nor of the design, specified in the approved installation documentation”.

“At the time of the incident, the sign was positioned under the bridge, and partially obscured by lineside equipment, which made it difficult to see. It was also covered in dirt, further reducing its conspicuity and legibility,” the digest added.

MTR is updating its route risk assessment as a result of the incident.