Report 03/2025: Derailment of a passenger train at Roudham Heath
Derailment of a passenger train at Roudham Heath, Norfolk, 6 February 2024.
Summary
At around 20:53 on 6 February 2024, a passenger train travelling at 83 mph (134 km/h) through Roudham Heath, Norfolk, struck two trees which had fallen onto the track. As a result, the train derailed and travelled for around 680 metres before coming to a stop.
One of the 31 passengers on board suffered a minor injury. There were no other injuries to the passengers or staff on the train. The train and infrastructure both suffered damage, and the line was closed for a day while repairs took place.
The two trees were part of a forest adjacent to the railway that is owned and managed by Forestry England. One of the trees, a twin-stemmed pine tree, fell first, landing on and felling an adjacent oak tree. The pine tree suffered from a loss of root anchorage, primarily because it was standing in highly saturated, sandy soil. Because of the way the pine tree had grown and its proximity to the railway, it was more likely to land over the tracks in the event of it falling. Inspections of the trees by Network Rail and Forestry England had not identified any cause for concern, and so no action had been taken to reduce the likelihood of the tree falling.
RAIB’s investigation identified that the risk imposed by trees standing in saturated soil was not being effectively managed by either Forestry England or Network Rail. This was an underlying factor to this accident.
There was no significant deformation of the train’s cab structure following the collision, and an axle-mounted brake disc on the train engaged with one of the rails which helped to contain the train’s path during the derailment.
Recommendations
RAIB has made two recommendations, one addressed to Forestry England and one to Network Rail. Both recommendations ask the respective organisations to review their processes for inspecting and managing trees that are within falling distance of the railway, to consider the effects of high soil saturation levels on the risk of trees falling, and to make any appropriate changes.