Date: 12/05/2015

There has not been much about it in the media, but at the beginning of March Britain was less than a minute away from what might have been one of the country's worst train crashes. In euphemistic railway speak, it was ranked as a 25 SPAD at SN45. To you and me, a charter steam train carrying hundreds of leisure passengers ran through a red light approaching a junction on a main line, about a minute after an express train had gone through at about 70mph.

External links

What caused rail's latest near miss?

BBC News

In early March two trains were less than a minute away from what could have been one of Britain's worst rail crashes, as Richard Westcott explains.

Related images

Bulleid unrebuilt 'Battle of Britain' Pacific no 34067 'Tangmere' passing Avoncliff Station on the Bath to Westbury line on 19 August 2012 with 'The Weymouth Seaside Express'.
Location: Avoncliff
Company: Bradford Line (Frome, Yeovil and Weymouth Railway)
19/08/2012 Peter Todd

Heading west and with the evening sun illuminating the smokebox, ex Southern Railway Bulleid 'Battle of Britain' class pacific No. 34067 Tangmere makes a fine sight passing through Pleasington station at speed on 12 April 2012 on the return leg of the 'Cumbrian Mountain Express'.
Location: Pleasington
Company: Blackburn and Preston Railway
12/04/2012 John McIntyre

Bulleid Battle of Britain Pacific no 34067 Tangmere waits to depart from Gloucester for Cardiff on 21 April 2013 - day 2 of the Great Britain VI 9 day mega tour.
Location: Gloucester
Company: Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway (Great Western Railway)
21/04/2013 Michael Gibb

Related news items

Tags: x Crash