‘Signal fault’ may have caused Bedford train crash that killed driver and injured 100

Investigators are looking into whether a faulty signal led to a deadly train collision in Bedford.

A train driver was killed and dozens of others were seriously injured when two passenger trains collided just after 5pm on Friday.

Footage from the aftermath shows the incident involved two East Midlands Railway (EMR) services, with one smashing into the back of another, which had stopped on the same line.

One person died and around 100 people were injured, 11 ‘very seriously’ and 22 seriously, the East of England Ambulance Service said.

Investigators are now looking into the circumstances surrounding the crash. The driver of the stopped train from Nottingham had been reporting a fault to staff on the phone when the other train slammed into it.

It is thought the second train may then have failed to trigger its automatic warning system, which is normally used if a train passes a yellow or red signal without braking.

When that occurs, an alarm goes off in the driver’s cab. If that warning is also ignored, the train protection system automatically applies the brakes. It’s unclear if this malfunctioned and led to the deadly smash.

Dave Calfe, general secretary of the train drivers’ union Aslef, said: ‘Our thoughts tonight are with the family and friends of the driver who died in the crash near Bedford today and with the passengers who were injured in the accident.

‘We want to thank the emergency services who responded so quickly to help those on board, and are still at the scene.’

At least one train carriage derailed in the crash.

All patients with the most serious injuries were taken to hospital, as were some of the 56 people who suffered minor injuries. Others were treated at the scene.

Passenger Dr Pete Knapp said he heard people ‘crying’ and ‘screaming’.

The 40-year-old told the Press Association: ‘There was a moment of being flung into the chair in front, and then I saw smoke. People were crying, screaming, and people were so scared and confused.

‘I got up, and I saw a lot of people who were unable to speak, had broken legs, and then I managed to get out of the train, and because I’m quite thin, I was able to squeeze out through the gap in the doors.’

Dr Knapp said he saw ‘people with bandages’ and ‘people who couldn’t see straight’.

He said: ‘I’ve got blood all over my trousers and my back hurts like hell, but I’m all right.’

He said he had not felt the train slow down before the crash, but other passengers told him they had.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described the crash as ‘hugely concerning’ and said he is ‘grateful to the emergency services for their swift response to this tragic incident’.

Online train trackers show the rolling stock involved in the crash were a class 360 and a class 810, with the front of the former hitting the rear of the latter.

EMR began rolling out class 810s in December last year, while class 360s are at least 20 years old.

Rail journalist Tony Miles said the crash appears to have been a ‘relatively slow speed collision’.

A spokesperson for Network Rail, which manages Britain’s rail infrastructure, said: ‘We are supporting the efforts of emergency services on scene and our thoughts are with everyone involved.’

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