Derailment at Wickford - Friday 14th August 2026

[rower40]

On the very few cab-rides I've had, even back in the 1990s the driver could dial up the required speed, and the loco/unit would accelerate to that speed, and keep it there. (That was a class 90 on WCML.)

If the rear coach derails, the traction computer possibly notices a decrease in speed, and just applies more power to overcome the (much-increased) rolling resistance. If the driver isn't specifically watching the ammeter (going into the red), then they may not be immediately aware of the issue.

I have no idea what the driving controls and indications are in a GE class 720.

 

[Dieseldriver]

Quite simply, any Driver that suspected their train had derailed is clearly going to make an immediate emergency brake application. If it doesn’t affect the leading cab and has occurred several coaches back with the brake maintaining continuity it’s likely very little would be felt by the Driver.

 

[RUK]

Gosh - it must have been quite scary for the train driver going in the opposite direction, driving into a cloud of ballast dust, which obscures whatever might be causing it beyond, and driving into the ballast which was thrown up into the air, hitting their train.

 

[XCTurbostar]

Surely the question should be why the basically brand new Class 720 does not have some type of 'bogie off rail detector' to stop the train?

 

[yorkie]

Just a gentle reminder this thread is for updates regarding what's actually happening regarding the Wickford incident.

We do welcome any suggestions to do things differently, or comparisons with other recovery operations, providing these are posted in dedicated threads, please
Edit: the post making the comparison, along with posts which replied or referred to it, can be found at the link below:

Why did the Wickford recovery take longer than Harrow & Wealdstone in 1952?

Moderator note: Split from https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/derailment-at-wickford-friday-14th-august-2026.305883/ One bogie derailed on one coach at Wickford and it takes 12 DAYS to reopen the railway. Three carriages derailed at Lewes and it takes 19 DAYS to reopen the railway. After the...

www.railforums.co.uk

 

[Harpo]

The branch from Wickford to Southminster now appears to have a blanket 30 mph speed restriction.

Trains between Wickford and Southminster are running at a 30mph speed restriction, after a safety inspection of the track found faults.

I’ve posted it here on the assumption that the underlying geology at the Wickford end of the branch won’t differ from the derailment site?

Incident: Southminster | National Rail

Buses replace trains between Wickford and Southminster. Find details of all current incidents on National Rail Enquiries.

www.nationalrail.co.uk

 

[Jaydubya]

The branch from Wickford to Southminster now appears to have a blanket 30 mph speed restriction.

I’ve posted it here on the assumption that the underlying geology at the Wickford end of the branch won’t differ from the derailment site?

Incident: Southminster | National Rail

Buses replace trains between Wickford and Southminster. Find details of all current incidents on National Rail Enquiries.

www.nationalrail.co.uk

London clay bedrock. There was a similar speed restriction on the Crouch Valley Line a few years back after a hot summer. Although this time there has just been a week long blockade of the Crouch Valley Line so wonder if it is related to that.

 

[dannyh73]

London clay bedrock. There was a similar speed restriction on the Crouch Valley Line a few years back after a hot summer. Although this time there has just been a week long blockade of the Crouch Valley Line so wonder if it is related to that.

Last weeks block appears to have renewed the track between Battlesbridge and Woodham Ferrers, so I’m presuming the 30mph is between Woodham and Southminster? The road running parallel between Battlesbridge and Woodham (A132) suffers badly every Summer with cracks and subsidence and this Summer is no different.

 

[flashgordon]

For Anglia railways and railway companies this came at a very bad time after the other very serious one that was due to over heated track or is that to simple to just blame it on the weather ,. Me i think it is more about track maintenance than hot weather . Easy to blame the weather in the head lines but the real truth is that failure to service and check the rails . When was the last time they was checked ???

 

[GB]

. Me i think it is more about track maintenance than hot weather .

what is your evidence?

Easy to blame the weather in the head lines but the real truth is that failure to service and check the rails . When was the last time they was checked ???

How can you say the ”real truth” is a failure to check the rails but then go onto say you don’t know when the last inspection was?

 

[Bald Rick]

For Anglia railways and railway companies this came at a very bad time after the other very serious one that was due to over heated track or is that to simple to just blame it on the weather

Yes, the hottest driest summer in living memory, following a dry summer last year. First time that anyone can remember having two very dry summers in a row, which has absolutely wrecked what sits beneath the track formation across much of Anglia, causing many track alignment issues to materialse in short order.

but the real truth is that failure to service and check the rails .

How have you reached that conclusion, may I ask? I assume you mean the whole track system, and not just the rails.

When was the last time they was checked ???

Different lines are inspected on different frequencies. But those with known potential for movement due to shrinkage / movement of the subsoil beneath the track formation are checked by a track engineer every couple of days in these weather conditions. That’s in addition to being seen by every driver who runs over them, each of whom will report in any track alignment or rail defect issues they might see that they feel present a possible risk to safety.

 

[RailwayRookie]

but the real truth is that failure to service and check the rails .

You should probably substantiate this claim, perhaps if you have proof the RAIB would be interested to hear it for thier investigation too?

When was the last time they was checked ???

The track recorder went over that exact piece of track two days before the incident happened and it tends to be pretty thorough....

 

[flashgordon]

the question is, trains do not fall off tracks !(easily) Without doubt it was the heat the tracks over heated to such an extent that the trains simply slipped off the rails . Sorry to say i am a little bemused of this. It they appear to have checked the track days before ( okay where is this report ?) why did the train come off the rails ? The problem it be months before any report is out and by then it be swepted under the track ( carpet) HSE( railways) report on this should have only taken days to reveal what happened . I suspect i will be right. I have had experience ,in Commercial business HSE ,mainly dealing with safety and the health of the workers in working environment . ( including electrical safetyas well as the public safety )

 

[35B]

the question is, trains do not fall off tracks !(easily) Without doubt it was the heat the tracks over heated to such an extent that the trains simply slipped off the rails . Sorry to say i am a little bemused of this. It they appear to have checked the track days before ( okay where is this report ?) why did the train come off the rails ? The problem it be months before any report is out and by then it be swepted under the track ( carpet) HSE( railways) report on this should have only taken days to reveal what happened . I suspect i will be right. I have had experience ,in Commercial business HSE ,mainly dealing with safety and the health of the workers in working environment . ( including electrical safetyas well as the public safety )

I suggest that you look at the Rail Accident Investigation Board website (www.raib.gov.uk/home) and do some reading to see the type of investigations that they do. You will find that the majority of accidents are more complicated than you allow for, and that they do not sweep under the carpet when they find that work has not been done properly (of local interest, see report ref. 09/2022).

In this case, as trains do not simply "slip off the rails", the question is how the derailment happened - even if the immediate cause was heat related.

 

[flashgordon]

I suggest that you look at the Rail Accident Investigation Board website (www.raib.gov.uk/home) and do some reading to see the type of investigations that they do. You will find that the majority of accidents are more complicated than you allow for, and that they do not sweep under the carpet when they find that work has not been done properly (of local interest, see report ref. 09/2022).

In this case, as trains do not simply "slip off the rails", the question is how the derailment happened - even if the immediate cause was heat related.

As we all know they look at the driver first what speed was he doing ? okay yes but was there a speed restriction there ? i suspect not. HSE and R A I B are very similar in a lot of ways they are both civil service and a public body . In my case i had a 7 days crash course from my Union to make sure our reports was independant and not hushed up by the empoyers . This was at a time when computers was being introduced in the workplace . In effect we banned the dreaded "green screens" due to health to eye sight in particular and reduce there times allowed at the computer . I am sure R A I B has seen similar problems to safety to drivers and passengers as well as the tracks

 

[35B]

As we all know they look at the driver first what speed was he doing ? okay yes but was there a speed restriction there ? i suspect not

And? The speed of the train is one of the data points that the investigation will need to consider, as it may be relevant to whether or how the incident happened. There's no suggestion whatsoever in the little that's been published that the driver was in any way at fault; whether a speed restriction may have been necessary will come out of the more detailed analysis. The intro mentions that the driver saw a "kink" in the track, we don't know how that kink came about (Were the rails stressed properly? Was there an issue with the ballasting? Was there a problem with the ground under the track? Something else?) or how some wheels on the train came to ride over the rail.

We know that the track was examined 48 hours before; the full report will make clear whether that report showed problems and, if Network Rail did not deal with them appropriately, previous reports have shown that RAIB go through the paper trail of the decisions extremely thoroughly.

Just saying "the tracks over heated", even if correct, doesn't tell us why it happened there, to that train, or how it can be prevented from happening another time.

Remember, this is a very rare event on a network that has been suffering from the heatwave.

 

[RailwayRookie]

It they appear to have checked the track days before ( okay where is this report ?)

This might surprise you but the reports arent publicly available, the track recorders existence is publicly verifiable information and i can assure you the defects it finds are graded near instantly on severity and dealt with accordingly. Even the lowest level defect will have a fault raised within hours.

The accident investigation will undoubtedly look into the maintenance and condition of the track as part of the causal factors.


I note you didnt substantiate any of your claims like people asked you to. You have done nothing but speculate.

So I ask you again, what proof do you have that there was a problem with maintenance causing the issue? Because for someone pertaining to know a lot, you seem very ill informed.

 

[flashgordon]

This might surprise you but the reports arent publicly available, the track recorders existence is publicly verifiable information and i can assure you the defects it finds are graded near instantly on severity and dealt with accordingly. Even the lowest level defect will have a fault raised within hours.

The accident investigation will undoubtedly look into the maintenance and condition of the track as part of the causal factors.


I note you didnt substantiate any of your claims like people asked you to. You have done nothing but speculate.

So I ask you again, what proof do you have that there was a problem with maintenance causing the issue? Because for someone pertaining to know a lot, you seem very ill informed.

There is only speculation anyway ! unless someone seen the initial reports . With a previous very serious accident due to the condition of the rails ( why did it happen) People will speculate on this one too . Feeling the report will take a while maybe months to be published. following questions must be answered ( assuming it is the rails) 1 when did they replace the rails themselves ,was they bedded in properly 2. checked and who checked them or was it a quick check did they use a train maintence vehicle or just a simply a visual check . Those reports must be made public , what is the reason why they are not ( maybe hiding something ) But we want to know what caused the accident and will it happen again if the weather is a factor here

 

[Bald Rick]

It they appear to have checked the track days before ( okay where is this report ?) why did the train come off the rails ?

There are many, many, examples of derailments that have been caused by track defects that have occurred a matter of hours, even minutes, before the passage of the train that derailed.

I suspect i will be right.

Ah, the confidence of youth.

In my case i had a 7 days crash course from my Union to make sure our reports was independant and not hushed up by the empoyers .

I’m going to be kind, but that crash course in report writing didn’t seem to extend to grammar.

 

[flashgordon]

There are many, many, examples of derailments that have been caused by track defects that have occurred a matter of hours, even minutes, before the passage of the train that derailed.



Ah, the confidence of youth.



I’m going to be kind, but that crash course in report writing didn’t seem to extend to grammar.

You can be as kind as you like. with my crash course on safety ( Note i have a MH certicate and BISC adding to the B SE training with the various jobs i had retired in 2005 ) too We probably saved a lot of peoples eyesights and prevented accidents. in those years 1990 to 2005 . If i believe something is wrong i tell them . And more often than not i was right grammer is not my strength ! Does it really matter. when it comes to safety

 

[NeakPed]

You can be as kind as you like. with my crash course on safety ( Note i have a MH certicate and BISC adding to the B SE training with the various jobs i had retired in 2005 ) too We probably saved a lot of peoples eyesights and prevented accidents. in those years 1990 to 2005 . If i believe something is wrong i tell them . And more often than not i was right grammer is not my strength ! Does it really matter. when it comes to safety

For safety & communication, grammar is very important.
If is the difference between helping your Uncle, Jack, off a horse and your uncle jack off a horsel

 

[Bald Rick]

Does it really matter. when it comes to safety

Absolutely it does if you are writing reports where the recommendations and observations are intended to prevent future loss of life or injury.

As others have said, I strongly recommend you read a few recent RAIB reports (who have nothing to do with the HSE), and await the future RAIB report on this incident, which will be diligently researched, reviewed, and assured as they always are.

 

[43096]

Does it really matter. when it comes to safety

Yes, because if you cannot communicate properly, people a) are liable to misunderstand (which is not good for safety) and b) won’t take you seriously.

 

[Harpo]

assuming it is the rails

Be interesting to understand how you’ve ruled out all other factors such as (but not exhaustively) ground conditions, formation, geometry, rail fixtures and fittings or even the train itself.

 

[sh24]

I've got a fairly extensive background in Health and Safety in industrial operations and I wouldn't presume to read over those experiences directly to the railway. A very different physical and human environment to a factory or office.

Pretty sure jumping to conclusions about root causes without an investigation and evidence isn't H&S best practice.

 

[Falcon1200]

Without doubt it was the heat the tracks over heated to such an extent that the trains simply slipped off the rails

why did the train come off the rails ?

You have already told us, in the same post!

I have had experience ,in Commercial business HSE ,mainly dealing with safety and the health of the workers in working environment .

And what experience of railway engineering, operations and procedures? I suspect.... none whatsoever.

 

[RailwayRookie]

There is only speculation anyway ! unless someone seen the initial reports .

So perhaps, don't state your initial comment like its a fact and you know there was a deficiency somewhere, as that would make you complicit.

Feeling the report will take a while maybe months to be published.

correct, a year in the best case because they are consise and need all factors included, always has been this way, always will be.

did they use a train maintence vehicle or just a simply a visual check Those reports must be made public , what is the reason why they are not ( maybe hiding something )

The reports do not need to be made public at all, the inspection train alone collects literally millions of points of data per mile and 99.9% is for want of a better word, rubbish.

You seriously want every track walk or inspection train to be made public?

The pertinent points from the inspections relevant to this incident WILL be made public. You dont need to know if a pandrol clip in a siding is missing and got replaced within 24 hours.

But we want to know what caused the accident and will it happen again if the weather is a factor here

Thats literally the whole point of the report.


Honestly you come across as a bit of a conspiracy theorist with all of the comments about things being covered up, this with how new your account is and how insanely difficult your posts are to interpret makes me think you are on a wind up personally. I shan't reply any more because I dont think any of us have the time or the crayons to explain it to you.

 

[Annetts key]

assuming it is the rails

I'm sure there are clearer/better diagrams, but this does show that there is more to track than some steel rails fixed to sleepers.

From here https://www.trackopedia.com/fileadmin/user_upload/02_Der_Fahrweg/Lastabtragung/64_b.PNG

Like many engineering disciplines, the detail becomes far more complex beyond what a lay person sees.

Those reports must be made public , what is the reason why they are not

In this country, it's unusual for internal company documents such as those you are suggesting to be made public unless required by legislation or by the courts. Even though Network Rail is considered to now be a state company, legally it's still a company and normal rules apply.

If you think that getting the documents released is in the public interest, you can try to request that they are released under the freedom of information system.

In the meantime, the RAIB will continue its work. When it's completed it's work, it will publish a report. The ORR (the industry regulator) will likely also be taking a keen interest. If there are serious concerns, it may issue an improvement order on Network Rail.
Plus, Network Rail may well be conducting it's own internal and private investigation.

Also, you can be certain that the relevant railway unions (RMT, ASLEF etc.) will be asking questions in the regular meetings (as per the agreements between these parties) that they have with the relevant company management. I can't speak about this region, but the Infrastructure Maintenance Delivery Manager (IMDM) where I worked was very reasonable when discussing incidents and accidents in the meetings I attended when I was a second level union representative.

 

[Purple Train]

Suffice to say, the Rail Accident Investigation Branch is extremely thorough and will cover all aspects of how the track in the area was managed, observed, inspected, and so on. There is a reason the reports take about 12-18 months to produce, when it takes mere minutes or hours to establish a few facts (speed of train, point of derailment) and a rough cause (permanent way defect). There is also a reason why accident investigations no longer have anything to do with the HSE.

The Lewes derailment happened 22 hours previously. Even if the kink in the track which caused the derailment was visible and actionable then (which I doubt given what has been posted upthread by some highly experienced people, but we'll see what the RAIB say), it is impossible to check every single piece of track in the country in 22 hours while keeping trains running.

Another part of the reason that the minutiae of track reports aren't and won't be made public is that, based on what I've seen of them in RAIB reports, they are exceptionally boring and hold little to no useful information for a layman such as I.

Obviously the wait for a public report is a tense one. I'm mildly concerned about the three relatively serious incidents so far this year, and I know how vanishingly rare such events are and how safe our railways still are. So I do appreciate that the thirst of the general public would be easily satiated by an update. But just because we see nothing doesn't mean there is nothing: other internal reports will be produced that perhaps don't grind quite so fine as the RAIB but will at least result in action being taken.

It's not as if the railway wants these derailments to happen, given it has terrible public image problems even when it hasn't suffered two potentially very bad derailments in two days. And the "solution" that appears to have been put forward on this thread, for a report to be thrown together in five minutes flat saying "track fault, make sure it doesn't happen again", ignores the fact that the first principle of railway safety is to investigate the incidents of now to prevent the disasters of tomorrow.

Finally, for the record, while I would be surprised if the weather wasn't a factor in both incidents, I would also be surprised if the root cause of the track irregularity at Wickford was the same as the root cause of the track irregularity at Lewes - as Annetts key says, the permanent way is extremely complex.

 

[Horizon22]

the question is, trains do not fall off tracks !(easily) Without doubt it was the heat the tracks over heated to such an extent that the trains simply slipped off the rails . Sorry to say i am a little bemused of this. It they appear to have checked the track days before ( okay where is this report ?) why did the train come off the rails ? The problem it be months before any report is out and by then it be swepted under the track ( carpet) HSE( railways) report on this should have only taken days to reveal what happened . I suspect i will be right. I have had experience ,in Commercial business HSE ,mainly dealing with safety and the health of the workers in working environment . ( including electrical safetyas well as the public safety )

The RAIB full report will probably be over 100 pages and take over a year to produce. They are meticulous and look at secondary and causal factors too.

Maybe instead of wild speculation yet claiming to be "without doubt", you should just wait for this rather than being "a little bemused", suggesting it will be "swepted [sic] under the track (carpet)" and that "it should have only taken days" and having such blind confidence to "suspect I will be right".

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 10 Sep 2026 ==

Those reports must be made public , what is the reason why they are not ( maybe hiding something ) But we want to know what caused the accident and will it happen again if the weather is a factor here

They are - why are you suggesting they are not? All maintenance reports need not be made public. Why should they be - what is the benefit? That's thousands if not millions of data reports where 99% of it will not be of note. And no doubt any inspection of this section of track will end up in the final RAIB report anyway. You may be able to initate an FOI for a specific bit of track to Network Rail which may/may not be successful.

See all the RAIB full reports here for a full picture on what they investigate: https://www.gov.uk/raib-reports
You can also see what is currently in investigation stage: https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...t-investigation-branch-current-investigations