2012 Burlington Via derailment

Derailment

On February 26, 2012, Via Rail train 92, led by Via Rail F40PH-2D 6444, an eastbound passenger train travelling the Corridor route from Niagara Falls, Ontario to Toronto, derailed in an industrial area east of King Road, north of Enfield Road in the Aldershot neighbourhood of Burlington, Ontario.

Rescue

At the time of the derailment, there were 70 passengers, three locomotive engineers, and one service crew member on board the train.

Investigation

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) is the federal agency responsible for investigating incidents that occur with rail transportation, officials launched an investigation immediately after the accident. The main investigator-in-charge was Tom Griffith, who had been a senior investigator with the TSB since 1990. He has led 28 other rail investigations in his career.

On March 1, 2012, the Transportation Safety Board issued a statement demonstrating that in the immediate seconds surrounding the derailment, train 92 was executing a crossover from track 2 to track 3 at a speed of 67 mph, over four times the set limit of 15 mph.

On June 10, 2013, the final TSB report was issued. The report confirmed that the train was travelling more than four times the authorized speed while changing from track 2 to track 3. It concluded that the crew misinterpreted the signal indication when approaching the crossover and proceed at a speed appropriate for a train remaining on track 2. It also indicated that a maintenance crew was working on track 2 beyond the crossover, and that the attention of the locomotive crew may have been focused on the safety of this maintenance crew, diverting their attention from the signal indication. Furthermore, the previous signal which gave advance warning of the speed restriction was passed before a stop at Aldershot Station, and the locomotive crew may have forgotten about its indication while stopped for several minutes. It also concludes that since Via trains rarely change tracks at this crossover, the crew may have had a strong expectation that they would be remaining on track 2.

References

References

1. (2012-02-26). "Reports of numerous passenger injuries – Three crew fatalities". [[Via Rail]].
2. "Railway Investigation Report R12T0038". Transportation Safety Board of Canada.
3. (2012-02-26). "3 Via train engineers killed in Ontario derailment". [[CTV News]].
4. (2012-02-26). "3 Via employees die in Ontario derailment". [[CBC News]].
5. (27 February 2012). "Transportation Safety Board of Canada - Welcome". Transportation Safety Board of Canada.
6. (27 February 2012). "Featured investigations – Rail: VIA Rail train derailment near Burlington, Ontario". Transportation Safety Board of Canada.