Cowden rail crash

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On 15 October 1994 a fatal train crash occurred around 350 yards from Cowden Station in the English county of Kent. There was a head-on collision between two trains in heavy fog after the driver of a northbound train ran past a red signal and entered a single line section.

Five people were killed and thirteen were injured. The guard of the northbound train, who had ambitions to become a driver, was in the driver's cab at the time of the collision, in defiance of the regulations. It is thought that his presence may have contributed to the accident and there were even suspicions that he may have been at the controls. This will never be known, however, as he and both drivers were killed in the collision, and the front ends of both trains were so badly damaged that it was not possible to ascertain the positions of the crew in the northbound train. Two passengers, a couple travelling in the leading coach of the northbound train, were also killed.

There were several other contributory factors; it was conjectured that the AWS may have been inoperative (though the official report considers this unlikely), the signal was dirty and the light intensity was low, and there were no trap points to prevent a train wrongly entering a section against the signal. The official report, however, placed the blame on the driver.

It was noted that the Oxted signalman, who was aware of the situation, had no direct means of alerting either driver to the danger. He apparently attempted to contact the down driver on the signal telephone (the up driver having passed the protecting signal - as noted at danger), but to no avail (presumably the driver never heard it above the noise of the huge engine immediately behind him). The signalman did alert the emergency services to the collision - while the trains were still one and a half kilometers apart. As a result of the inquiry, secure in-cab radio became standard equipment fit - eventually.

The accident was exacerbated by the age and design of the trains involved. The separate-chassis construction of the British Rail Class 205 stock, based on the much criticised BR Mk 1 design, led to overriding of one carriage by the next. The enormous mass of the engines did not help. These trains, unpopular with users of the line because of their antiquated nature, were replaced in 2004 by turbostars.

A plaque on the station buildings at Cowden commemorates the accident.

[edit] References

• Hall, Stanley (1999). Hidden Dangers. Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7137-1973-7. 
• Vaughan, Adrian (2000). Tracks to Disaster. Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-2731-5. 
• Official report from HM Railway Inspectorate (PDF download).