Battersea Park railway station

On 24 December 1881, a train hauled by LBSC Terrier No.70 Poplar collided with the rear of the 11:35pm from London Bridge owing to a fogman's error.[13]

On 2 April 1937, two electric passenger trains collided just south of the station; ten people were killed and 17 seriously injured. The signalman at Battersea Park, believing there to be a fault with his equipment, overrode the electrical interlocking and allowed the second train into the occupied section.[14]

On 31 May 1985, 1D91 09:20 Gatwick Airport to Victoria Gatwick express formed of Class 489 GLV, Class 488 8301, 8203, 8313, Class 73 73117 collided with 2L51 08:51 East Grinstead to Victoria formed of DEMU Class 205 1113 and Class 207 1309 travelling along the up fast main line from Clapham Junction. Train 1D91 was following 2L51 along the Up Fast line, through Clapham Junction station, at which the latter train had made a scheduled stop and beyond towards Battersea Park. 1D91 had closed sufficiently on 2L51 that the former passed a series of signals displaying a 'single yellow' caution aspect, at which the driver cancelled the AWS warning and continued, as he was entitled to, at a speed of around 30 mph (48 km/h). Train 2L51 was then stopped for 1–2 minutes at signal VC552 displaying a red aspect. When that signal cleared, 2L51 was accelerating past it when it was struck from behind by 1D91 which had passed the protecting signal, VC564, at Danger.[15]

A consensus of evidence suggests that at the moment of collision 2L51 had reached a speed of between 5 and 10 mph (8–16 km/h), whilst 1D91 was still travelling at between 25 and 30 mph (40–48 km/h), so that the net collision speed was about 20 mph (32 km/h). After the collision the trains separated and came to rest 20 m (66 ft) apart. There was no derailment but the shock of collision passing down each train caused damage throughout the length of both. Only one vehicle sustained severe structural damage; this was the leading passenger coach of 1D91, running immediately behind the GLV. This coach sustained a small degree of telescoping at underframe level, and hinging down of its trailing end, so that the saloon floor buckled upwards by about 600 mm (24 in) with consequent displacement of seats in one bay. One window each side was broken when this deformation occurred through the window opening, but the general integrity of the vehicles could be judged by the fact that these were the only external windows broken throughout the two trains.[15]

The trains were conveying a large number of passengers, one estimate being as high as 800. In the collision 104 persons suffered injury and were taken to two hospitals by means of ten ambulances, the first of which arrived at 09:58. Most of the injured suffered only cuts and bruises and were discharged after treatment, but eighteen had serious injuries requiring detention in hospital for periods between one and fourteen nights. Twenty other passengers later reported having suffered injury. The uninjured passengers were conveyed forward to Victoria at 10:58 by a special train, the unobstructed Slow lines having been re-energised for electric trains at 10:45 after an initial complete isolation of the conductor rails in the area. During the day the damaged trains were made fit to move and hauled into sidings so that, there being no damage to the track or signalling equipment, normal working was resumed at 16:12.[15]