NETWORK RAIL STATEMENT: LADBROKE GROVE

Friday 30 Mar 2007

NETWORK RAIL STATEMENT: LADBROKE GROVE

Region & Route:: National

Network Rail is sorry for the failings of Railtrack some seven years ago that contributed to the tragedy at Ladbroke Grove. Network Rail accepts the fine imposed by the court today. The events of Ladbroke Grove will always be remembered and our thoughts must remain with the families and friends of the 31 people who lost their lives on that tragic day and with those who were injured. The railway has seen huge change since 1999. Network Rail took over from Railtrack in 2002 and completed the installation of an automatic train braking system that would have prevented the Ladbroke Grove tragedy. This system, called the Train Protection Warning System (TPWS and TPWS+), will automatically apply a train’s brakes if it passes a signal at red or approaches one too quickly. Since the implementation of TPWS and TPWS+ the risk of accidents caused by trains passing red signals has been reduced by 93% compared to 2001. The huge changes that have been made to the railway industry since Ladbroke Grove have led to the railways becoming the safest form of transport. It's our job to continue this work and strive for further safety improvements.

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We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies.

Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain's railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation's railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced - a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.

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