The Rail Accident Investigation Branch has announced that they will be investigating an incident after a train passed through a red signal near Loughborough.

At around 10:57 on 20 March 2020, a northbound train passed a red signal without authority, about 0.75 miles south of Loughborough station.

The train passed the signal, LR507, by around 200 metres. This signal applies to the down slow line and was protecting the crossover south of Loughborough station which was set to be used by a southbound train which was calling at Platform 3.

The train was formed of an empty four-car class 710 unit and two class 57 locomotives. The movement was operated by Rail Operations Group. The Class 710 train was being moved from Old Dalby to Worksop. During this type of move, the Class 710 does not run with brakes; instead, braking is provided by the two locomotives, with a brake pipe passing through the unit.

The signal on the approach to LR507, LR503, was displaying a single yellow aspect as would be expected. The driver applied the brakes before reaching signal LR507, but the braking was not sufficient to stop the train from the speed at which it was travelling before it passed the red signal.

There were no injuries or damage as a result of this incident; however, the passenger train was delayed by 24 minutes.

The RAIB’s investigation will establish the sequence of events, including where the train’s brake was applied and at what speed. It will also look to:

• understand the actions of the people involved
• establish the braking capability of the train, and whether it was affected by the way the train was formed, prepared and driven
• review ROG’s processes for producing train timing schedules
• review the industry’s processes for managing the risk of hauling un-braked units
• explore ROG’s arrangements for managing driver competence and fitness and any underlying management factors
• review previous similar accidents and incidents investigated by RAIB and consider the response to recommendations made following those incidents
• make recommendations to prevent a recurrence

The findings of the investigation will be published in due course.

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