The Rail Accident Investigation Branch has said that they are to produce a safety digest after a train came into contact with a pram last month.
The passenger train, which was heading from Reading to York, entered Banbury station’s platform 2 at around 12:36 on the 8th June 2024.
The infant’s parent and a relative were waiting behind the yellow line at the station, but as the train approached, the parent momentarily let go of the pram, which then began to roll towards the platform edge.
The pram came into contact with the side of the train, which was travelling at around 35mph at the time of the incident.
The pram span and was tipped over in the incident, causing the infant to fall onto the platform and receive a minor head injury.
With a preliminary examination complete, the RAIB says that it will publish a safety digest into the incident.
Responses
An other example of idiots at large. Why would anyone leave a pram pointing at the platform edge with the brake off unattended even for a second is beyond me.
As a retired senior railway project manager I find this incident very disturbing. Having officiated over many station upgrades on the Great Eastern out of Liverpool Street I am surprised that a pram rolled towards the edge of the platform when the design requirements clearly state that platforms must slope away from the edge. I hope the RAIB have inspected the site to ensure that this is the case and if not placed a prohibition order on the use of the platform requiring continuous supervision until the necessary work has been undertaken to rectify the problem.
Nigel Davis, Banbury
Is this another example of ‘the people’ requiring
visual and announced instructions how to act in a responsible and safe manner?? The continuous and repetitive announcements ‘to be careful on the stairs’ at some stations can drive you to distraction. Swindon was a good example. I haven’t seen the RAIB safety digest but I do hope it doesn’t require operators to add to the plethora of irritating pre-recorded announcements we already have to suffer.
Point taken, but it is only obvious that the incedent was the fault of the irresponsible adult in charge of the pram and minor, if anything the authorities should bring into question the the reckless abandonment and don’t care attitude the adult displayed, there’s too many irresponsible adults in society and their errant abandonment continues to go unchecked whilst getting away with it, the authorities should hold these adults accountable, then maybe just maybe this lunacy could end