HC Deb 26 January 1953 vol 510 cc657-9
11 and 16. Mr. Nabarro

asked the Minister of Transport (1) what arrangements are in hand for the extension and standardisation of automatic train control and signalling on British Railways with a view to avoiding further collisions and accidents;

(2) whether he will now make a statement upon the causes of the Harrow train disaster in October, 1952; and what is the final casualty roll.

Mr. Lennox-Boyd

I am awaiting the report of the Chief Inspecting Officer of Railways on the recent accident at Harrow. Until it is published I am unable to amplify the statement which he made in public on 16th October, 1952, that the accident was due primarily to the Perth express having passed two signals at danger. The final casualties, I regret to say, were 112 persons killed, 66 seriously injured and 274 slightly injured.

As I informed the House on 27th October last, in reply to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Truro (Mr. G. Wilson), the British Transport Commission are giving urgent consideration, in the light of experiments which have been going on for some time, to the initiation of a practical programme for the extension of automatic train control on British Railways. This question also will be fully reviewed in the Chief Inspecting Officer's report, and I cannot say anything further at this stage.

Mr. Nabarro

Would my right hon. Friend not agree that this further consideration of automatic train control and signalling has now been going on since 1947, and that, in the meantime, we have had a number of very serious accidents? Would he bear in mind that only a very small number of the 19,000 steam locomotives in use on British railways are fitted with automatic equipment; and does not the matter call for much more urgent action than has been taken in the course of the last two or three years?

Mr. Lennox-Boyd

I am glad to say that I hope that by the end of the month about 50 engines will be fitted with improved magnetic type apparatus, and will be tried as a production type on the Barnet-Huntingdon line. I do not want the public to think that this is bound to lead almost overnight to the fitting of all engines with this apparatus. There must be long and exhaustive inquiries into the production model, but this is the first step and I hope that it will be very fruitful.

Mr. Sparks

When the right hon. Gentleman says that this will have to be a long process, is he aware that more than 40 years ago the former Great Western Railway introduced their system which has proved to be the most effective of any? Why is it that more than 40 years have elapsed before any of the railway companies, and now the British Transport Commission, have introduced the system which has proved so effective on the Great Western Railway? Is the right hon. Gentleman also aware that it is practically impossible to devise a system which is 100 per cent. perfect in all circumstances, and would it not be far better to proceed with a system which has proved itself, and which gives the maximum degree of safety?

Mr. Lennox-Boyd

Perhaps the hon. Gentleman would agree, then, that it is a pity the identity of the Great Western Railway was dissolved. I am anxious that people should realise that there must be experiments. I do not mean experiments running into years, but with these production types there will probably have to be some six months or so of hard investigation as to how far they are proving effective. I am very hopeful that after that we shall be in the realm of definite achievement.

Mr. Callaghan

Is it not clear that, had it not been for the dissolution of the Great Western Railway and the formation of the Railway Executive, with powers over all the companies, the inter-company jealousy which has prevented the adoption of the system during the last 40 years would never have been got rid of?

Mr. G. Wilson

Can my right hon. Friend say what progress has been made with the experimental use of radar equipment on railway engines as an additional standard safety precaution?

Mr. Lennox-Boyd

I think that this and other matters had better await the report of the Chief Inspecting Officer.

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