A report has been released today following a fatal accident at Stratford London Underground station on the 26th of December, 2023.

At around 13:57 on the day of the accident, a passenger was alighting from a Jubilee Line train at Stratford station. They then sat on a platform bench.

At around 14:45, the passenger stood up and stumbled forward before falling onto the track.

The passenger laid on the track undiscovered for around 5 minutes before being struck by the approaching train.

The passenger, who was fatally injured, remained unknown, and a further three trains entered the platform.

Unfortunately, the passenger fell at a time when there were no passengers or staff present on the platform.

The investigation found that the operator of the first train did not see the passenger on the track ahead, possibly due to the level of attention being reduced due to using automatic train operation.

The operator may have also been distracted by another operator, who was standing on the platform as the first train arrived.

The consequences were made more severe because the operator of the second train also didn’t see the passenger on the tracks. The operator of the third train did see something when they arrived at the station but did not recognise it as a person.

The fourth train was not stopped by an assistant, who was present on the platform and had recognised it as being a person on their train.

The driver of the fourth train also had recognised it as a person but again, didn’t stop their train.

Operators working on the outbound trains were not aware of the passenger, as they were underneath the trains as they departed.

The investigation concluded that the repetitive nature of operating a train under automatic train operation may lead to a state of underload, resulting in a diminishing amount of attention for the operator, increasing the likelihood of reduced alertness or distractions.

The RAIB also found that some operators were getting ready to leave their trains before it had stopped at its final station.

RAIB has made two recommendations, both addressed to London Underground Limited. The first relates to considering the use of technology that can detect if a passenger is in a dangerous position and intervene or warn as necessary to stop an approaching or departing train.

The second concerns reviewing the environmental, organisational and job factors related to operating trains in automatic train operation mode to understand how underload may affect train operators.

Additionally, a learning point has been identified reminding staff of the importance of using safety-critical communications when reporting and responding to incidents.