Milton rail crash
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In the Milton rail crash a passenger train took a crossover too fast and derailed.
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[edit] Overview
This occurred at Milton, just west of Didcot on the line to Swindon on 20 November 1955 on the Western Region of British Railways. The train failed to slow down for a low speed crossover.
11 were killed, and 157 were injured.
The engine and several carriages rolled down an embankment, which exacerbated the severity of the accident.
[edit] Contributing Factors
The signals were on the right hand side of the track, but the driving position on the engine was on the left hand side, which hampered visibility
There was a berth track circuit approaching the crossover but it was much longer than the train, making it hard for the signalman to estimate the speed of the train.
[edit] Aftermath
The signals were later modify to prevent a driver seeing a go signal for the crossover too soon, which would tend to check the trains speed.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
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