Elizabeth line train speeding 20mph over limit due to 'dirty' sign left passengers shaken
Elizabeth line train speeding 20mph over limit due to 'dirty' sign left passengers shaken
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Travelling at almost double the speed limit caused the train to ‘jolt sideways’. A speeding Elizabeth line train caused passengers to “lose their footing” after the driver “became confused” about the rerouted train’s location, a report has revealed.
![[The ‘incorrectly placed, inconspicuous and dirty’ 25mph speed limit sign]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/29/8/23/Figure_2.jpeg)
According to the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB), the train was travelling at 45mph (72km/h), 20mph faster than the maximum speed for the junction, after being diverted because of a track circuit failure on 24 September 2024. At least one passenger “fell to the floor” on the Heathrow to Shenfield service as the train “jolted sideways” near Manor Park station, CCTV footage shows.
After being “routed off its booked route”, the driver became “confused about the train’s location” and failed to reduce the train’s speed to 25mph, the report found. A member of staff onboard reported the overspeed to MTR control as the driver “did not believe” that the jolt was “severe enough to report”.
RAIB’s investigation recommends that route risk assessments “identify the opportunities needed for drivers to effectively refresh their route knowledge, particularly where there are alternative routings available”. The RAIB added that an “incorrectly placed, inconspicuous and dirty” 25mph speed limit sign was partly to blame for the incident.
