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Sloterdijk train collision
The two trains involved in the collision near Westerpark
Details
Date	21 April 2012 (2012-04-21) 18:30 local time (16:30 UTC)
Location	Sloterdijk, Amsterdam
Country	Netherlands
Line	Oude Lijn
Operator	Nederlandse Spoorwegen
Incident type	Head-on collision
Cause	Suspected SPAD
Statistics
Trains	2
Deaths	1
Injured	116 (12 critical, 43 or 44 serious, < 60 minor)

v t e Amsterdam Westerpark train collision
Legend
to Amsterdam Muiderpoort Amsterdam Centraal Singelgracht site of collision Isolatorweg A 10 Amsterdam Sloterdijk Amsterdam Sloterdijk (Hemboog) De Vlugtlaan Amsterdam Metro 50 Westpoort to Schiphol Airport to Haarlem to Den Helder

On 21 April 2012, two trains collided head-on at Westerpark, near Sloterdijk, in the west of Amsterdam, Netherlands. The collision occurred at 18:30 local time (16:30 UTC). Around 117 people were injured, one of whom later died in a hospital. The collision is thought to have been caused by the driver of one of the trains having passed a red signal.

Accident

In the early evening a local train (NS Sprinter Lighttrain) had just left Amsterdam Centraal and collided with a double-decker NS VIRM Intercity train travelling in opposite direction on the same track. Initial reports varied with potentially between 33 and 136 passengers injured, with up to 20 of them seriously although a member of the fire service later corrected this to 56. The actual figures were reported at 117 injuries (13 critical, 43 or 44 serious, less than 60 minor). On 22 April, a 68-year-old woman died from her injuries. There were sixteen people still in hospital. Amsterdam's mayor, Eberhard van der Laan, said "Our thoughts go out to her family. We wish them lots of strength after this terrible loss". As of April 24th, eight people still remained in hospital.

The trains involved were an NS Class 2600 electric multiple unit, number 2658, and an NS Class 8700 double-deck electric multiple unit, number 8711. Neither of the two trains derailed. Passengers were reported to have been thrown against walls, seats, windows, and other passengers. Just before the crash, witnesses said one of the trains sounded a long hoot of its horn. Photographs show that the Class 8700 unit received moderate damage, with deformation at the rear of the first and front of the second carriage.

The accident occurred between Amsterdam Centraal and Amsterdam Sloterdijk stations, near Westerpark, suspending railway services between Amsterdam and The Hague as well as to Schiphol Airport on one of the busiest rail routes in the Netherlands. The local train was travelling between Amsterdam and Uitgeest whilst the Intercity train was travelling between Den Helder and Nijmegen. By Sunday afternoon, traffic was partially restored with a full service expected by that evening. The stretch of line where the accident occurred is where trains do not travel at full speed. It is estimated that both trains were travelling at about 50 kilometres per hour (30 mph). Bus services were laid on to get people to their destinations during the suspension.

Ik vrees dat ik een rood sein heb gemist.
I fear that I have missed a red light.
– Driver of the class 2600 train.

Although the cause of the accident has not been officially determined, a reporter from de Volkskrant was travelling on the Class 2600 train, immediately behind the cab. He reported that the driver of that train said that she feared that she had just missed a red signal.

Emergency response

Emergency services were swiftly on the scene. Many people were rescued from the train wreckage either by using cranes or by being placed in a protective wrap, with some carried out on stretchers. A trauma helicopter was used to take some of the people to a nearby hospital. Many of the injured were treated on a bridge nearby. Those that had only minor injuries were taken to an Amsterdam hotel. People were reported to have received broken bones, bruising and neck injuries.

Investigations

Two separate investigations are being carried out into whether the train collision was by human error or by a technical fault on one of the trains. By 22 April, the damaged trains had been towed away by locomotives allowing technicians to inspect the track for damage. The director of Nederlandse Spoorwegen, Bert Meerstadt, said it was still too early to speculate the cause and it was best to await the conclusion of the investigations. The Dutch Safety Board (Onderzoeksraad Voor Veiligheid) is conducting one of the investigations, whilst the other is being conducted by the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (Inspectie Leefomgeving en Transport, ILT). The data recorders were recovered from both trains.

The fact that the driver may have passed a signal at danger has been included in the ILT's investigation. However, Transport Minister Melanie Schultz van Haegen has said to await further investigations to see if the initial findings can be confirmed. De Telegraaf reports that the driver may not face prosecution however as a report submitted by ProRail, the operator of the line, to the ILT, showed the signal in question was part of an older system and it is speculated that if it had been one of the more modern signals, fitted with upgraded safety equipment, the train would have stopped in time.

The investigation by the Dutch Safety Board has been looking into a number of questions, in particular, why the two trains crashed and why there were over 100 injuries and one death when the collision was not extremely hard. Prevention of accidents start with the planning of the timetable and one of the last things considered is a red signal. The driver or the signalman could intervene but the OVV asks why they did not do so or why the security system did not activate. Finally it will continue to focus also on whether the signal was visible in the first place.

See also

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• Automatische treinbeïnvloeding (ATB)
• List of rail accidents (2010–2019)
• Train protection system (TPS)

References

1. ^ "Dutch train injures 125: police". Reuters, New England Public Radio. 21 April 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
2. ^ "At least 60 injured in Amsterdam two-train crash". Channel Asia News. 21 April 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
3. ^ "Dozens injured in Dutch train collision". BBC News. 21 April 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
4. ^ "60 injured in Amsterdam two-train crash: police". AFP. 21 April 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
5. "More than 100 injured as trains collide in Amsterdam". CNN. 21 April 2012. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
6. ^ "Dutch experts examine train crash site". The Age. Australia. 23 April 2012. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
7. ^ "Dutch train crash: Woman dies of her injuries". BBC News. 22 April 2012. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
8. "Eight still in hospital after Amsterdam train crash". Dutch News. 24th April 2012. Retrieved 25th April 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
9. "125 gewonden na treinbosting" (in Dutch). AT5. 21 April 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
10. Hawley, Caroline (21 April 2012). "Netherlands train crash: Scores injured near Amsterdam". BBC News. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
11. "Treinongeluk Westerpark" (in Dutch). AT5. 21 April 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
12. ^ "Passagier ramptrein: Alles zat onder het bloed" (in Dutch). Algemeen Dagsblad. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
13. "Treinbotsing tussen intercity en sprinter, Amsterdam, 21 April 2012" (in Dutch). Onderzoeksraad Voor Veiligheid. 21 April 2012. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
14. "Treinbotsing in centrum Amsterdam – tientallen zwaargewonden" (in Dutch). NRC Handelsblad. 21 April 2012. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
15. "Train driver in crash ran red signal". Radio Netherlands Worldwide. 23 April 2012. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
16. "Train crash driver may avoid prosecution: signal safety out of date". Dutch News. 24 April 2012. Retrieved 26 April 2012.
17. "Onderzoek treinongeluk focust op oorzaak en botsveiligheid" (in Dutch). AT5. 30 May 2012. Retrieved 31 May 2012.

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