2026 Bedford train collision
Fatal rail incident in central England
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On 19 June 2026, two East Midlands Railway trains collided on the Midland Main Line south of Elstow, near Bedford, England. One train driver was killed and over 160 people injured. An initial examination stated the accident occurred after one train stopped on the line unexpectedly due to an Automatic Warning System fault causing it to automatically brake. It was then hit from behind by the second train that had passed a red signal protecting the train in front.
| 2026 Bedford train collision | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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 Approximate location of collision (map data) | |||||||||
| Details | |||||||||
| Date | 19 June 2026 17:15 BST | ||||||||
| Location | Elstow, Bedfordshire, United Kingdom | ||||||||
| Line | Midland Main Line | ||||||||
| Operator | East Midlands Railway | ||||||||
| Incident type | Rear-end collision | ||||||||
| Cause | Under investigation | ||||||||
| Statistics | |||||||||
| Trains | 2 | ||||||||
| Vehicles | |||||||||
| Deaths | 1 | ||||||||
| Injured | 162[3] (including 8 critical, 2 very serious, 32 serious, 57 minor)[1][4] | ||||||||
Collision
Two passenger trains operated by East Midlands Railway collided at Elstow, near Bedford, at 17:15 BST on 19 June 2026.[1][5] The first train to halt on the line was the 15:50 Nottingham to London St Pancras service 1B67, a five-car Class 810 Aurora unit; the second train was the 16:40 Corby to St Pancras service 1H46, operated by a four-car Class 360 Desiro unit.[1][6]
Casualties and emergency response
The driver of the Corby train was pronounced dead at the scene.[7][8] More than 160 people were injured.[3] Eleven people sustained very serious injuries, 32 were seriously injured, and 57 received minor injuries, some of whom were treated at the scene.[4][1] Seven air ambulances attended the scene, the first was the Magpas Air Ambulance from Cambridgeshire.[9] The East of England Ambulance Service said they sent six air ambulances to the incident, along with more than 20 road ambulances.[10] More than 70 firefighters and officers attended the scene.[11] The train manager on the Corby train, who was also injured in the crash, was praised by passengers, and by the regional organiser of the RMT, for requesting the closure of the line on the radio and carrying out emergency actions.[12]
By 22 June, 53 people remained in hospital, with eight in a critical condition.[13] By 26 June, 36 people remained in hospital, with three of them in a critical condition.[14]
Aftermath
Train services between London St Pancras and Nottingham, Derby and Leicester were disrupted, and passengers were advised not to travel on those routes for the remainder of the day.[15] Thameslink suspended services between Bedford and Luton.[5] Passengers who were unable to retrieve their cars from a car park at Bedford station were issued with fixed penalty notices by Bedford Borough Council. Complaints were raised on social media, as the police had told motorists not to collect their vehicles in the immediate aftermath of the collision. The council subsequently apologised and rescinded the fixed penalty notices.[16]
There were planned engineering works taking place on the weekends of 20–21 June and 27–28 June between Bedford and London St Pancras, meaning the line was to be closed anyway. However, due to the collision, train services on the line were suspended between Luton and Bedford from 19 June until 28 June at the earliest.[5][17]
Recovery of the carriages of the trains involved started on 21 June.[17] A temporary access road was built, and the overhead lines were temporarily removed to allow the access of a road crane.[18] In addition, 600 metres (660 yd) of track required replacing.[12] Ellie Burrows, Network Rail Eastern regional managing director described the operation as "complex and challenging".[12][17]
On 26 June, Network Rail announced that recovery and repair work on the site of the accident had been completed, with services to resume on 29 June. [19]
Investigation
Both the British Transport Police and Bedfordshire Police attended the scene of the collision as part of the emergency response, with inspectors from the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) and the Office of Rail and Road arriving shortly afterwards.[6][20] Whilst a full RAIB investigation into the accident remains underway,[1][13] a preliminary report was published on 24 June. The full investigation will consider:[3]
- the actions of those involved and any factors that may have influenced them
- the status and performance of the braking, Automatic Warning System (AWS) and other safety systems on train 1H46
- the reason train 1B67 stopped
- the status of signal WH154 and its AWS equipment, as well as its positioning, visibility, and conspicuity
- the crashworthiness performance of both trains during the collision
- the emergency response to the accident
- the processes used to assess the risk of overrun at this location, and the effectiveness of any control measures intended to address this
- any relevant underlying factors, including any actions taken in response to previous relevant safety recommendations.
Preliminary report
In its preliminary report released on 24 June 2026, the RAIB identified the likely contributing factors. Due to a fault with the AWS which caused the brakes to apply, the Nottingham service had stopped unexpectedly on the up fast line where it was struck from the rear by the Corby service.[21][3] The report stated that the Corby service passed a signal at danger (SPAD), which was protecting the Nottingham service.[3] The Corby service made a brake application just nine seconds before the collision, with the train travelling at approximately 76 miles per hour (122 km/h). The Corby service was still travelling at 49 miles per hour (79 km/h) at the time of the collision.[3] Significant damage was caused to both trains, which also partially derailed.[3]
