Railways probe reveals Loco Pilot’s fault in Sabarmati-Agra express derail incident; Driver overshot red signal 

The initial probe into the Sabarmati-Agra Superfast Express derailment near Ajmer has revealed that the loco pilot overshot (went past) the red signal after which it collided with two rear wagons of a freight train.

In the wee hours on Monday (March 18), four coaches of the passenger train, which was on its way to Agra, derailed near the Ajmer station. No loss of life was reported in the incident.

Now a joint probe report prepared by seven experts mentioned that train number 12458 (Sabarmati-Agra Superfast Express) departed from Ajmer at 00:50 and while approaching Madar station, the driver overshot the red signal and the train collided with two rear wagons of a freight train which was passing through at an intersection/crossover.

Due to the impact, four coaches of the train and its engine derailed causing a huge disruption to the train operations in both up/down lines for several hours. In the aftermath of the incident, Indian Railways canceled six trains and diverted the other two. 

The report further mentioned that no casualties or injuries happened in the incident. The train was plying at a speed of 50 km per hour at the time of collision. 

Loco pilot’s response 

Giving his submission, the loco pilot said that before entering the Madar station, he saw the first signal in the double yellow position and the second in single yellow. The driver further said that when he saw the third signal in the red position, he applied an emergency brake but by the time, the train collided with the rear end of the freight train.

As per the norms, a driver has to apply brakes when he gets the first signal in the double yellow position as the train takes time to stop after covering about 500 to 600-metre distance due to its momentum.

“The first signal in double yellow position is an indication to the driver that he has to apply the brake as there is an obstruction on the track ahead. In such a situation, the next signal is kept yellow and the third one is red,” a retired loco pilot said.

He added, “The driver in his version to the joint report committee has admitted that he saw the first signal in double yellow position. But he hasn’t specified why he didn’t apply the brake then.” 

It is noteworthy that overshooting a red signal (also called Signal Passed At Danger or SPAD) occurs when drivers lose focus and indulge in other activities.