London Underground has admitted they have known for more than two years that there was a mechanical fault on Central Line trains which could cause motors to dislodge.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said today in a statement that there had been two previous incidents where motors on Central Line trains had either fallen off, or dislodged.
The fault was first discovered after a half-ton motor became dislodged on a train entering Hainault depot in October 2001.
Engineers were aware there was a problem with motors on the Central Line and had been carrying out safety checks every five days on the Central Line's rolling stock, a London Underground spokeswoman said.
HSE engineers and staff from the HM Railway Inspectorate (HMRI) completed their investigations of the crash site yesterday.
Initial investigations had confirmed RMT claims that the driver was aware of "excessive noise" coming from the train during the journey and contacted the LU control centre. LU staff then arranged for the train to terminate at Holborn, one stop after Chancery Lane, HSE said in a statement.
It was not thought at this stage that the condition of the track was a "contributory factor" in Saturday's train derailment, HSE said in a statement.
Initial indicators were that the derailment which injured 32 passengers was caused by a traction motor falling onto the track from beneath the fifth carriage of the train, HSE said.
The traction motors are slung underneath the train and secured by four main bolts. There had been two previous incidents of a motor either falling off, or becoming dislodged on the Central Line, HSE said.
The motor bolts on the ten-year-old train involved in Saturday's crash had been checked just 48 hours prior.
The HSE has taken into its possession the train and the motor as part of its investigation.
Examination by HSE engineers of the rolling stock and crash debris is expected to take a month.
The driver, control centre staff and maintenance staff still have to be interviewed and the train's maintenance records, the data recorder and voice tapes from the train are to be examined.
Discussions will also be held with trade union safety representatives and the London Transport Users Committee.
January 28, 2003 21:00
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