Railway signalling (BE), or railroad signaling (AE), is a system used to control the movement of railway traffic. Trains move on fixed rails, making them uniquely susceptible to collision. This susceptibility is exacerbated by the enormous weight and inertia of a train, which makes it difficult to quickly stop when encountering an obstacle. In the UK, the Regulation of Railways Act 1889 introduced a series of requirements on matters such as the implementation of interlocked block signalling and other safety measures as a direct result of the Armagh rail disaster in that year.
The Train Protection & Warning System (TPWS) is a train protection system used throughout the British passenger main-line railway network, and in Victoria, Australia.
The British Rail Class 205 (3H) diesel-electric multiple units were built by BR at Eastleigh from 1957 to 1962, and in service for 47 years from BR Southern Region to Connex South Central and finally to the Southern franchise. They were eventually replaced by Class 171 Turbostar units.
The British Rail Class 207 (3D) diesel-electric multiple units were built by BR at Eastleigh in 1962. The fleet had a lifespan of 42 years. The Southern Region class 201 to 207 DEMUs are nicknamed 'Thumpers' due to the distinctive sound of their engines.
A signal passed at danger (SPAD) is an event on a railway where a train passes a stop signal without authority. This is also known as running a red, in the United States as a stop signal overrun (SSO) and in Canada as passing a stop signal. SPAD is defined by Directive 2014/88/EU as any occasion when any part of a train proceeds beyond its authorised movement. Unauthorised movement means to pass:
The Southall rail crash occurred on 19 September 1997, on the Great Western Main Line at Southall, West London. An InterCity 125 high speed passenger train (HST) failed to slow down in response to warning signals and collided with a freight train crossing its path, causing seven deaths and 139 injuries.
Automatic Warning System (AWS) is a railway safety system invented and predominantly used in the United Kingdom. It provides a train driver with an audible indication of whether the next signal they are approaching is clear or at caution. Depending on the upcoming signal state, the AWS will either produce a 'horn' sound, or a 'bell' sound. If the train driver fails to acknowledge a warning indication, an emergency brake application is initiated by the AWS. However if the driver correctly acknowledges the warning indication by pressing an acknowledgement button, then a visual 'sunflower' is displayed to the driver, as a reminder of the warning.
The Colwich rail crash occurred on the evening of Friday 19 September 1986 at Colwich Junction, Staffordshire, England. It was significant in that it was a high speed collision between two packed express trains. One driver was killed, but no passengers died because of the great strength of the rolling stock involved, which included examples of Mk1, Mk2 and Mk3 coaches.
The Oxted line is a railway in southern England and part of the Southern franchise. The railway splits into two branches towards the south and has direct trains throughout to London termini.
Radio Electronic Token Block is a system of railway signalling used in the United Kingdom. It is a development of the physical token system for controlling traffic on single lines. The system is slightly similar to North American direct traffic control, which unlike RETB does not have a cab display unit.
Uckfield railway station is the southern terminus of a branch of the Oxted Line in England, serving the town of Uckfield, East Sussex. It is 46 miles 8 chains (74.2 km) from London Bridge.
Hever railway station is on the Uckfield branch of the Oxted line in southern England and serves Hever in Kent. It is 27 miles 27 chains from London Bridge. The station is managed by Southern.
The Harrow and Wealdstone rail crash was a three-train collision at Harrow and Wealdstone station in Wealdstone, Middlesex during the morning rush hour of 8 October 1952. The crash resulted in 112 deaths and 340 injuries, 88 of these being detained in hospital. It remains the worst peacetime rail crash in British history and the second deadliest overall after the Quintinshill rail disaster of 1915.
The railway signalling system used across the majority of the United Kingdom rail network uses lineside signals to control the movement and speed of trains.
Rule 55 was an operating rule which applied on British railways in the 19th and 20th centuries. It was superseded by the modular rulebook following re-privatisation of the railways. It survives, very differently named: the driver of a train waiting at a signal on a running line must remind the signaller of its presence.
The Spa Road Junction rail crash was an accident on the British railway system which occurred during the peak evening rush hour of 8 January 1999 at Spa Road Junction in Bermondsey, in South East London.
Groombridge railway station is a station on the Spa Valley Railway (SVR) in Groombridge, East Sussex, England. Once a busy station serving four directions, it closed in 1985 to British Rail services. A new station the other side of Station Road bridge was opened by the SVR in 1997 as part of a standard gauge heritage railway to Tunbridge Wells West.
The Marden rail crash occurred on 4 January 1969 near Marden, Kent, United Kingdom, when a passenger train ran into the rear of a parcels train, having passed two signals at danger. Four people were killed and 11 were injured. One person was awarded the British Empire Medal for his part in the aftermath of the collision.
On 7 March 2015, a steam-hauled charter train passed a signal at danger and subsequently came to a stand across a high-speed mainline junction near Wootton Bassett Junction, Wiltshire, England. Another train, which had right of way, had passed through the junction 44 seconds earlier and no collision occurred nor was any damage done.
Automatic Train Protection (ATP) is a method of beacon based railway cab signalling developed by British Rail. The system is only installed on the Great Western Main Line between London Paddington and Bristol Temple Meads, and the Chiltern Main Line from London Marylebone to High Wycombe and Aylesbury.
