Container falls off train: Lucky Escape ?

[Boodiggy]

As I recall the only reason the containers were spotted on the WCML was because they were actually shorting the OLE - both were end up from what I recall reading.

Of the two that fell off one shorted out the OHLE as it ended up on the UP FAST between Cheddington and Ledburn Junction, the other one ended up in the up slow cess at Sears Crossing where the old Ledburn Junction was. If I recall correctly one / a few containers also came off near Shap the same night.

 

[ac6000cw]

In places where freight trains are less of a novelty than they are in Britain, the normal practice is to use the twist locks when containers are loaded on flat wagons.

If the twist locks are used properly (i.e. a two man team goes along the train and locks down every container once all the containers are loaded) then containers should only ever become detached in the event of the wagon having a severe crash. It might not be the most convenient method, but it becomes viable if the business consequences of stuffing up are severe enough.

Out of interest, how are the 'linking' spigots/locks inserted between containers when they are stacked e.g. double-stack trains and much taller stacks on ships - does someone go along in a travelling platform and drop them into the top holes of the containers ?

 

[DownSouth]

Out of interest, how are the 'linking' spigots/locks inserted between containers when they are stacked e.g. double-stack trains and much taller stacks on ships - does someone go along in a travelling platform and drop them into the top holes of the containers ?

I don't know about ships, but yes that is how it works for the twist locks on stack trains. The key to getting it right is that the locks are done as one operation once all the containers are loaded, not on each individual container as it gets loaded.

When the new multi-level terminal opened at Adelaide Airport and brought an end to passengers walking across the tarmac, a couple of the newly redundant self-powered mobile staircases were transferred to the Adelaide Freight Terminal and some modifications made to use them for locking and checking stack trains.

 

[ac6000cw]

Thanks for the info

 

[ilkestonian]

In places where freight trains are less of a novelty than they are in Britain, the normal practice is to use the twist locks when containers are loaded on flat wagons.

If the twist locks are used properly (i.e. a two man team goes along the train and locks down every container once all the containers are loaded) then containers should only ever become detached in the event of the wagon having a severe crash. It might not be the most convenient method, but it becomes viable if the business consequences of stuffing up are severe enough.

Hopefully the RAIB will conduct a full investigation that goes beyond just the simple examination of how it happened and looks at the best practices used elsewhere. In addition to compelling the use of twist locks, introducing well wagons on routes known to be prone to high winds might also be worth looking into.

IIRC, when RAIB last looked into this issue, they specifically stated that twist locks were not the way forward, specifically because they were not in common use in Europe, and using them here unilaterally could cause problems when trains were unloaded in Europe and twist locks were not expected.

It went on to say that properly designed, manufactured and maintained spigots were the best option.

Looks like the key issue is poor implementation of the design in specific rolling stock rather than an issue with spigots per se.

 

[GB]

IIRC, when RAIB last looked into this issue, they specifically stated that twist locks were not the way forward, specifically because they were not in common use in Europe, and using them here unilaterally could cause problems when trains were unloaded in Europe and twist locks were not expected.

.

Not a problem if services are purely domestic. However it still imparts an element of risk in uk terminals and slows the unloading process.