Emergency Brake Application on a Pendolino

[DarloRich]

Just heard from Virgin Trains on Twitter that it was a 'signal malfunction' on the approach to Wembley Central station. Must have crossed onto the slow, got a green and then sped up to find the following signal red - the faulty signal. Would explain the sudden EBA and also why we were only stationary for a short amount of time, menaing it couldn't have been due to hitting someone or an animal for instance.

That means this was a category B SPAD - "where the signal reverted to danger in front of the train due to an equipment failure or signaller error and the train was unable to stop before passing the signal."

no: it doesn't mean that at all and nor should us amateurs speculate.

 

[neilb62]

Fair enough, didn't know they went that way.

It's rare, other depots were trained through there then told not to sign it! I feel your pain about Social Media, been there too....

 

[Phil.]

Category B SPAD is now a Technical SPAR - Signal Passed at Red. The only SPAD now is the old Category A SPAD.

More complications for complications sake. A signal at red is a signal displaying danger ergo, go past one and you've passed a signal at danger. That'll be a SPAD. Once it's happened the job is now to find the reason. Instead of which some bright spark has seemingly thought, "how can we complicate this?"

 

[ComUtoR]

More complications for complications sake. A signal at red is a signal displaying danger ergo, go past one and you've passed a signal at danger. That'll be a SPAD. Once it's happened the job is now to find the reason. Instead of which some bright spark has seemingly thought, "how can we complicate this?"

It's pretty easy to understand tbh. It mostly came out of "danger" not really being any real danger. Reds are held for many reasons and the SPAD term is very negative. It also didn't really differentiate between each kind of incident.

SPAD is only really being kept because of the industry understanding and the TOC's refusal to move towards SPAR. The briefing I read was that everything is now just an "operating incident" and the technicalities listing in the reports. Remember that even SPADS are categorised deeper than just a Cat A. There are varying degrees of severity based on overlap distances etc.

SPAD has more relevance now and is always Cat A rather than the old complications of SPAD + What category it was. I've had a couple of SPADS but as they were Cat B they never appear on my record and rightly so