皇冠体育app

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Summary

On Saturday 18 February 2023 at around 15:50 hrs, a passenger became trapped in the door of a Northern line train at Archway station. 皇冠体育app passenger was exiting the train using a single leaf door at the rear of the fifth car when the door began to close on them, and their coat became trapped. 皇冠体育app train departed and the passenger was dragged for approximately 2 metres along the platform before falling to the ground and the coat became free of the door. 皇冠体育app passenger鈥檚 companion, who was holding on to them at the time, also fell to the ground. 皇冠体育app train travelled approximately 20 metres until it stopped after the train operator became aware of the passenger being dragged and applied the brakes. 皇冠体育app passenger sustained serious injuries and their companion was uninjured.

皇冠体育app accident occurred because the passenger鈥檚 coat had become trapped in the door as the passenger alighted, and because the train鈥檚 door control system did not detect the presence of the coat trapped in the door. Although the train operator was aware of the passenger and their companion, they were not aware that the passenger鈥檚 coat was trapped before they initiated the train鈥檚 departure. 皇冠体育app train operator was not aware that the pilot light, which indicates that the train鈥檚 doors are closed, could still illuminate with something trapped in closed doors.

On Thursday 20 April 2023 at around 23:03 hrs, a passenger鈥檚 coat became trapped in the doors of a Northern line service at Chalk Farm station. 皇冠体育app passenger had attempted to board the train but stopped as the doors began to close. 皇冠体育app doors closed while the passenger was still close to the train, trapping their coat. 皇冠体育app train then departed, dragging them along the platform. 皇冠体育app train travelled for approximately 20 metres until the coat became free and the passenger fell to the ground. 皇冠体育app train operator was unaware of the accident and continued the journey. 皇冠体育app passenger sustained minor physical injuries to their left elbow and both knees and psychological distress.

This accident also occurred because the passenger鈥檚 coat became trapped in the train doors as they boarded the train and because the train鈥檚 door control system did not detect the presence of the trapped coat. However, in this accident, the train operator was not aware of the passenger nor that their coat was trapped in the doors before initiating the train鈥檚 departure. 皇冠体育appy were also unaware that the passenger was subsequently being dragged along by the train.

皇冠体育app investigation identified underlying factors associated with both accidents. It is possible that the train operators鈥� actions may have been affected by the automatic train operation system in use on the Northern line. Also, the methods for managing the safety of the platform-train interface were not sufficiently effective at controlling the risks to passengers by getting their clothing trapped in closing doors.

Recommendations

RAIB has made four recommendations addressed to London Underground Limited and made three learning points. 皇冠体育app recommendations concern the understanding of risk arising from trap and drag events, the risk mitigation options, the minimum station dwell times and how the design of the task and the cab environment can influence train operators鈥� attention and awareness.

皇冠体育app first learning point concerns the importance of documenting action plans in accordance with company procedures and recording when safety briefings have been undertaken. 皇冠体育app second learning point concerns the importance of promptly reporting notifiable accidents to RAIB. 皇冠体育app third concerns the importance of trainers and managers ensuring the risks of relying on the pilot light when deciding whether it is safe to start the train from platforms are completely understood by train operators.

Notes to editors

1. 皇冠体育app sole purpose of RAIB investigations is to prevent future accidents and incidents and improve railway safety. RAIB does not establish blame, liability or carry out prosecutions.

2. RAIB operates, as far as possible, in an open and transparent manner. While our investigations are completely independent of the railway industry, we do maintain close liaison with railway companies and if we discover matters that may affect the safety of the railway, we make sure that information about them is circulated to the right people as soon as possible, and certainly long before publication of our final report.

3. For media enquiries, please call 01932 440015.

Newsdate: 27 June 2024