| OTD - 12 December 1988 Clapham Junction rail crash Posted by Electric train at 06:56, 12th December 2025 |     |
On 12 December 1988 the 07:18 from Basingstoke to London Waterloo, a crowded 12-car train made up of four-car 4VEP electric multiple units was approaching Clapham Junction when the driver saw the signal ahead of him change from green to red. Unable to stop at the signal, he stopped his train at the next signal and then reported to the signal box by means of a line-side telephone. He was told there was nothing wrong with the signal.
At 08:10,the following train, the 06:30 from Bournemouth, made up of 4REP unit and 2 4TC units, collided with the Basingstoke train.
A third train, carrying no passengers and comprising 2 4VEP units, was passing on the adjacent line in the other direction and collided with the wreckage immediately after the initial impact.
The driver of a fourth train, coasting with no traction current, saw the other trains and managed to come to a stop behind the other two and the signal that should have protected them, which was showing a yellow aspect instead of a red aspect.
I can remember this very vividly in my early railway career, the "Hidden" enquiry lead by Anthony Hidden, QC, resulted in significant changes in how railway infrastructure, in particular signalling, operation, renewals and maintenance were managed and organised. It brought in the max 12 working hours and limiting 13 days working in 14, it was not uncommon at the time for railway staff to work 16 hour days without any days off; to many railway(wo)men it was to only way at the time to earn a decent wage.
There were many other changes brought in by Hidden which to this day impact on how the railways are operated, renewed and maintained
We should remember the 35 who died, the 69 seriously injured and the other 415 sustained minor injuries; and the emergency services and railway staff that responded to the incident
| Re: OTD - 12 December 1988 Clapham Junction rail crash Posted by grahame at 07:14, 12th December 2025 | |
Thank you for bringing us a separate thread on that dreadful morning ... I have amended "on this day" so that it now points direct to this thread. I remember the shock at the time - not that I had any public transport involvement in my life at the time; it took over the general news. Thank goodness, at least, that lessons were learned and we now have a safer railway resulting from some of the changes it brought about in, in memory of those who lost their lives.
