Rail crash of Hatfield

The rail crash of Hatfield occurred the October 17th 2000 with Hatfield in the Hertfordshire (England). Although its gravity was relatively limited, this accident had important consequences for the management of the British Railway network .

Circumstances of the accident

A train Intercity of the company Great North Eastern Railway had just left the London King' S Cross at 12:10, local time, bound for Leeds and ran to approximately 180 km/h when it ran off the line suddenly in the south of the station of Hatfield, towards 12:24. The accident made four dead and 70 wounded.

Causes

An preliminary investigation determined that a Rail had broken in the passing of the train, and that the probable cause of this break was microscopic cracks of the rail. That led to measurements of speed limit on most of the British railway network, strongly disturbing many lines, while the rails were thoroughly controlled. One noted the presence of cracks similar to those which had caused the break of Hatfield, with a frequency particularly alarming, on the majority of the lines of the country.

Consequences

Consequently, Railtrack, the company owner and manager of the British railway network, started a campaign general, and expensive, of replacement of the defective rails. These facts reflect in obviousness the underinvestment from which the British network in spite of the benefit carried out by Railtrack had suffered. The spiral of the costs which engaged then involved a series of events which explain the final collapse of the company and its replacement by a non-profit-making company, Network Rail.

See too

List of the rail crashes in Great Britain

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