1906 Salisbury rail crash

Incident

The London and South Western Railway (LSWR) boat train from Devonport Stonehouse Pool to London Waterloo failed to navigate a very sharp curve at the eastern end of Salisbury station. The curve had a maximum permitted speed of 30 mph, but the express had been travelling at more than 70 mph. The train was completely derailed and smashed into a milk train and a light engine, killing 28 people including the driver and two firemen.

The crash occurred around the time that a short cut for the rival Great Western Railway was opening, and it was claimed that the driver of the crashed train was trying to show that his railway was capable of competitive speeds. It was also rumoured that passengers – mostly rich New Yorkers travelling to London from the transatlantic port at Plymouth – had bribed the driver to run the train as fast as possible, but there was no evidence of this and, if anything, the train had lost time earlier. Conversely, it was stated that drivers often ran through Salisbury very fast to "get a run" at the following hill.

The crashed train's engine was a new LSWR L12 class 4-4-0 No. 421 with a higher centre of gravity than the earlier T9 class. The most likely cause of the accident is that the driver did not realise the level of risk he was running, particularly as this was the first time he had taken a non-stopping train through Salisbury. Steam locomotives at this time, and for half a century afterwards, were not fitted with speedometers.

Prior to the crash the boat train had no passenger stops between Plymouth and Waterloo, just a locomotive change at Templecombe. As a result of the accident all trains were required to stop at Salisbury station, and the speed limit on the curve east of Salisbury was reduced to 15 mph, still in effect today.

There is a memorial tablet to the 28 dead (including the driver, two firemen and the guard) in Salisbury Cathedral.

The accident was the first in a series of three derailments due to excessive speed at night in a 16-month period; the others were at Grantham in 1906 and Shrewsbury in 1907. All three resulted in deaths, including the footplate crews; the cause in each case was recorded as driver error but there has been much speculation since.

References

References

1. (1996). "British Railway Disasters". Ian Allan Ltd..