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31/10/2006
Network Rail admits crash mistakes
Network Rail has admitted a series of health and safety errors which led to the 1999 rail crash at Ladbroke Grove.
The rail operator - formerly Railtrack - pleaded guilty to the charges at Blackfriars Crown Court in London on Tuesday.
However, the plea does not mean that the firm accepts responsibility for those who were killed or injured in the crash.
Thirty-one people were killed and around 400 people were injured in the crash, which happened when a Thames Trains collided with a First Great Western train.
One of the charges against Network Rail was that the signal was not clearly visible from a sufficient distance, because a large insulator obscured it.
In a statement, Network Rail said that lessons had been learned from the accident.
The statement said: "The rail industry has changed enormously for the better over the past seven years."
Network Rail said that the accident had happened before the introduction of the Train Protection and Warning System, which applies a train's brakes if it is approaching a red signal too quickly to stop.
The statement said that the introduction of the system had "greatly reduced the risk of an accident caused by a train passing a red light".
The case has been adjourned until December 18 when Network Rail will face an unlimited fine.
(KMcA/EF)
The rail operator - formerly Railtrack - pleaded guilty to the charges at Blackfriars Crown Court in London on Tuesday.
However, the plea does not mean that the firm accepts responsibility for those who were killed or injured in the crash.
Thirty-one people were killed and around 400 people were injured in the crash, which happened when a Thames Trains collided with a First Great Western train.
One of the charges against Network Rail was that the signal was not clearly visible from a sufficient distance, because a large insulator obscured it.
In a statement, Network Rail said that lessons had been learned from the accident.
The statement said: "The rail industry has changed enormously for the better over the past seven years."
Network Rail said that the accident had happened before the introduction of the Train Protection and Warning System, which applies a train's brakes if it is approaching a red signal too quickly to stop.
The statement said that the introduction of the system had "greatly reduced the risk of an accident caused by a train passing a red light".
The case has been adjourned until December 18 when Network Rail will face an unlimited fine.
(KMcA/EF)
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