May 11, 2015 network rail took the unprecedented step of suspending the operating licence for west coast railways wcr, effectively banning it from the track, until managers could prove they had beefed up. It follows the signal passed at danger spad on march 7, when a 100mph collision between a first great western high speed train and a steam excursion operated by wcr was missed by barely a minute. This prosecution has led to wcrc taking significant steps to improve its management of safety, with support from the regulator. West coast railways wikimili, the best wikipedia reader. A film about preventing spads based on a real event in 2006. Any spad rated at 20 or more leads to a mandatory investigation by the office of rail and road orr. Network rail is concerned over a recent spad signal passed at danger incident and the companys response to the problem.
The office of rail and road has made west coast railways aware of a problem with certain steam locomotives operating on the main line, said wcr managing director pat marshall. Distracted steam train driver at harry potter company. The incident affected a west coast railways charter from bristol to southend on the. Uks leading special trains operator west coast railways. Wcr and the driver involved in the wootton bassett spad are being prosecuted for breaking health and safety issues. Are there others who could step in at short notice to provide replacements. I think one of west coasts problems is the area over which they operate is pretty vast and there may be a tad too much conductor work involved. West coast railways scottish highlands 2020 all you need. How many other companies use west coast for their rolling stock. Network rail took the unprecedented step of suspending the operating licence for. As a result, network rail has revoked the suspension as of 1201 on may 8.
Apr 02, 2015 network rail has halted west coast railways wcr services after the most serious case of a train failing to stop at a signal so far this year. I have closed this page for the time being west coast railways company network rail working timetable. The driver on this train must have route knowledge and is subject to all the tests that ordinary drivers have, plus the steam loco test. West coast railway and driver to be prosecuted over spad. The reallife hogwarts express is owned by west coast railways. Network rail revokes west coast railways suspension. West coast railways scottish highlands 2020 all you. Independent train operating company along some of the uks most famous and beautiful routes inc, the jacobite the greatest railway journey in the world. Orr prosecutes west coast railway company and train driver. Introducing an effective, riskbased driver monitoring regime. I booked a trip on this steam train as a treat for myself, my husband and our son whilst on our holiday in the highlands in october. I think one of west coast s problems is the area over which they operate is pretty vast and there may be a tad too much conductor work involved.
Using buildings and other facilities previously owned by the steamtown carnforth visitor attraction, in june 1998 the company became the first privately owned company to be given a licence as a train operating company. West coast railways wcr, is a railway spothire company and charter train operator based at carnforth mpd in lancashire. Network rail has halted west coast railways wcr services after the most serious case of a train failing to stop at a signal so far this year. According to the raib, the spad was caused by driver error, after the.
West coast railways had its safety certificate restored and the ban lifted after it gave the office of rail regulation assurances that safety improvements would be made. Wcr is also set to begin operating more widely in scotland in partnership with the new scotrail franchisee abellio, which plans to run special trains on scenic routes. Annual west coast railway company social event marks the retirement of two steam stalwarts. Network rail has served west coast railways with a suspension notice effective from midnight on april 3. Most mainline steam drivers actually work for all the other operators and are hired. West coast railways,1 is a railway spothire company and charter train operator. West coast railway companys ineffective management led to their train driver deliberately misusing a key safety system on a train travelling between bristol and southall. The office of rail and road orr has decided to press charges against train operator west coast railway company ltd wcrc and one of its drivers after an extremely serious health and safety braches on a busy junction of the great western main. Train operating companies and their drivers hold positions of great responsibility, with a duty. Network rail described the incident as the most serious signal passed at danger spad that has taken place this year and suspended wcr s licence for a minimum of eight weeks from april 3 while the department for transport investigates. However, there have been a number of incidents over the past year involving west coast railway company limited trains. Jun 28, 2016 west coast railways prosecution delayed west coast ban after serious spad near swindon the driver of a steamhauled charter train who turned off a safety system and almost caused a major collision with a high speed intercity train has been given a jail sentence by swindon crown court. We are closely monitoring the crisis and our first priority is the health and wellbeing of our staff, volunteers, partners and guests. Annual west coast railway company social event marks the.
West coast ban after serious spad near swindon railnews. Apr 08, 20 a film about preventing spads based on a real event in 2006. Using buildings and other facilities previously owned by the steamtown carnforth visitor attraction, in june 1998 the company became the first privately owned company to be give. Railways in june 2014, on a steam locomotive hauling a train.
If tangmeres driver didnt sign that road, there would have been a pilot on footplate, a driver not necessarily a steam driver who did sign that road. Network rail is now satisfied that west coast railways have addressed all of the actions set out in the suspension notice issued on friday april 3. Apr 03, 2015 west coast railways is the operator of the jacobite scheduled steamhauled service between mallaig and fort william, which is due to start its season on 11 may. Apr 02, 2015 network rail described the incident as the most serious signal passed at danger spad that has taken place this year and suspended wcr s licence for a minimum of eight weeks from april 3 while the department for transport investigates. Pprune forums spad at wootton bassett one for the rail. The incident was rated the most serious spad since december 2010, rating 25 out of 28 on network rails scale. It emerged in the report that the driver had been involved in one. West coast railways banned again from uk rail network. The west coast wilderness railway, tasmania is a reconstruction of the mount lyell mining and railway company railway between queenstown and regatta point. There a new driver was supplied by west coast railway company wcrc who drove the train to southall, where the train was terminated. May 07, 2016 the driver of the tangmere, the west coast railways steam train travelling from southend to bristol temple meads, missed the signal at the junction as he was distracted in the cab.
Steam train spad wootton bassett page 1 boats, planes. West coast railways suspended now reinstated discussion in uk. Ian prosser, hm chief inspector of railways at orr said. Apr 06, 2015 network rail suspends west coast railway trains steam trains operating across picturesque northern routes have been suspended over fears they are a threat to the safe operation of the railway. Main website west coast railways trips throughout the uk, including the jacobite from fort william to mallaig, the scarborough spa express steam trips, the. The annual west coast railway company social evening was held in wakefield on january 22 with a high proportion of the 110 operations staff present, along with the chairman and managing director who hosted the evening. Apr 02, 2015 the full details surrounding the spad are not yet available so its not the case of simply putting it all on the driver though he will be culpable to a degree especially if there is fault with any of wcrs operations and training policies. The office of rail and road orr has decided to press charges against train operator west coast railway company ltd wcrc and one of its drivers after an extremely serious health and safety braches on a busy junction of the great western main line. We welcome the commitment west coast railways has made to. Pprune forums spad at wootton bassett one for the rail buffs.
Perfect example is in the list in a post above in regards to vline vs west coast railway. Although steam locomotives were withdrawn from normal railway service in great britain in 1968, due to sustained public interest including a locomotive preservation movement, steam hauled passenger trains can still be seen on the mainline railway i. West coast railways is back on track west coast ban after serious spad near swindon the prosecution of charter operator west coast railways and one of its drivers in connection with a signal passed at danger near swindon last march is now to be dealt with by a crown court judge. The office of rail and road orr has today started criminal proceedings against train operator west coast railway company limited wcrc and one of its drivers. Train 1z67 was operated by west coast railways and consisted of the. West coast railways also operates the jacobite steam train, which doubles as the hogwarts express in the harry potter films. Raib published reports on two dangerous occurrences. Although no one was injured in any way, west coast railways. Network rail suspends west coast railway trains bbc news. Nov 26, 2015 the office of rail and road has made west coast railways aware of a problem with certain steam locomotives operating on the main line, said wcr managing director pat marshall. West coast railways should work hard to obey the rules, driver was slow cancelling the aws warning at a double yellow as the brake started to apply one of. Network rail said the response from west coast railways was. It also makes a strong case for aws and or tpws that cannot be overridden by the driver.
Network rail owned tracks as opposed to heritage railways in the present day. West coast railways suspended now reinstated railuk forums. Jail sentence for west coast spad driver railnews todays. In euphemistic railway speak, it was ranked as a 25 spad at sn45. West coast railways prosecution delayed west coast ban after serious spad near swindon the driver of a steamhauled charter train who turned off a safety system and almost caused a major collision with a high speed intercity train has been given a jail sentence by swindon crown court. West coast prosecution moves to crown court railnews. I seem to recall that the spad like me youll remember that we used to call them run bys at stafford was by a devon and cornwall train driver who went a fair distance past a stop signal. A close look at the uks most prominent train hire company, which since 1998 has specialised in operating charter trains, both in its own right and on behalf of tour operators, along some of the uks most famous and scenic routes and to many beautiful destinations. Whatever, it was an unprofessional and potentially very dangerous bit of train driving that reflects badly on west coast railways the operator. Most mainline steam drivers actually work for all the other operators and are hired in because of their expertise. West coast railways is the operator of the jacobite scheduled steamhauled service between mallaig and fort william, which is due to start its season on 11 may. West coast railways should work hard to obey the rules, driver was slow cancelling the aws warning at a double yellow as the brake started to apply one of two firemen on the footplate isolated the.
Feb 27, 2020 i booked a trip on this steam train as a treat for myself, my husband and our son whilst on our holiday in the highlands in october. It is rare that the regulator launches criminal proceedings against a train driver or their. West coast railways had its safety certificate removed and ban imposed previously last year when one of their steam heritage tours passed a signal at danger spad on the great western mainline at wootton bassett near swindon. At west wickham station, train drivers are responsible for checking that it is. Enter your details below to receive information about our latest tours, offers and availability. In the australian state of victoria west coast railway operated the franchised passenger service between melbourne spencer street and the coastal town of warrnambool. Raib has today released its report into a signal passed at danger on the approach to wootton bassett junction, wiltshire, 7 march 2015. West coast railways prosecution delayed 12 january 2016. West coast railways suspended now reinstated page 6. The safety of staff, volunteers, passengers and members of the public is our absolute priority.
This was a long time ago when i was young, so my memory isnt precise. Spad at wootton bassett one for the rail buffs page 2. West coast railway and driver to be prosecuted over spad the office of rail and road orr has decided to press charges against train operator west coast railway company ltd wcrc and one of its drivers after an extremely serious health and safety braches on a busy junction of the great western main line. The company and the driver are still waiting to face criminal charges in the high court for the wootton bassett spad but it seems that things still have not improved in regards. The charges relate to breaches of health and safety law which led to a train passing a signal warning at danger on 7 march 2015.
The driver of the tangmere, the west coast railways steam train travelling from southend to bristol temple meads, missed the signal at the junction as he was distracted in the cab. Train company that owns reallife hogwarts express suspended from railways over safety concerns west coast railways, which owns and operates. The full details surrounding the spad are not yet available so its not the case of simply putting it all on the driver though. West coast customer service terrible west coast railways. Main website west coast railways trips throughout the uk, including the jacobite from fort william to mallaig, the scarborough spa express steam trips, the dalesman steam trips and trips by luxury train.