Nearly 12 years after the Ufton Nervet disaster that claimed the lives of seven people, work has started to replace the notorious level crossing with a bridge.
When the Ufton Lane Bridge is completed in November, it will mark the end of a long campaign to replace the rural crossing.
On November 6 2004, chef Bryan Drysdale parked his car on the crossing between Reading and Newbury, intending to take his own life. A First Great Western High Speed Train hit the car at 100 miles an hour, and the vehicle jammed in points just beyond the crossing.
As the front of the train derailed and slowed down, the rear was still at full speed. The train jackknifed in the middle. The seven people who died included two children and the driver of the train, Stan Martin. Some 71 others were injured (RAIL 761).
Since the 2004 crash, there have been four further fatal incidents at the level crossing.
- For more on this story, see RAIL 799 on sale April 27.
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Andrewjgwilt1989 - 26/04/2016 13:12
About time that this level crossing needs to be replaced by a new bridge going over the railway line. Other level crossings may also need to be upgraded with new bridges such as the level crossing at Kelvedon, Essex where the church yard is with the road and railway line meets and there has been plans to build a new bridge by building a new road away from the church and over the railway line at Kelvedon.
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