Invergowrie rail crash

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View of the accident site

The Invergowrie train crash happened at Invergowrie in Scotland on 22 October 1979. The accident killed 5 people and injured 51 others.

1 Accident
2 Investigation
3 References
4 See also

[edit] Accident

The 08:44 passenger service from Glasgow Queen Street to Dundee, despite running late and experiencing difficulties, left Invergowrie station without incident. However, the brake on the leading bogie of the locomotive was binding, although the driver carried on. As the train was running along Invergowrie bay an engine caught fire and the train was stopped.

The stationary train was run into at around 60 mph by the 09:35 express from Glasgow to Aberdeen. The impact threw the last two coaches of the Dundee train over the sea wall and into the Firth of Tay, though fortunately the tide was out. Both passengers in the rear carriage and the driver and second man of the Aberdeen train were killed instantly. A further person died later of injuries and a total of 51 people were injured.

[edit] Investigation

The signalman at Longforgan signal box stated that he put the mechanical Starting signal correctly back to Danger behind the Dundee train. Around ten minutes later, the Aberdeen train arrived at his box and drew up to the Home signal, which was then cleared for it. The train continued to draw down to the Starting signal but, after a few moments, began to accelerate. It passed the Starting signal which, as far as the signalman could see, was still at Danger. He went down onto the track and saw that the arm of the Starting signal was slightly raised; about 4°.

The guard of the Aberdeen train said that he had looked out of the window of the rear coach at Longforgan as the train picked up speed. He saw the Starting signal giving "a poor off", but he assumed that it had already been put back to Danger after the locomotive had passed it, and perhaps had not quite returned to the horizontal position. It is not clear if the guard could have seen the starting signal exactly as the driver would have seen it - perhaps curves were in the way. The subsequent public inquiry found that the guard was not to blame.

In addition, the signalling at Longforgan was basic, and lacking in many safety features. The Starting signal had no AWS which would have warned the driver of the Aberdeen train, nor was there an adjuster for the pull wire. There was also no repeater for the signal. A detonator placer if installed would not have helped as the train had already passed it.