After train accident: Bahn expert criticizes safety technology - "half-baked cheap solution"
Created: 01/11/2023, 16:50
By: Christopher Peters
The recovery of the crashed train began on the day of the accident.
© Hans-Helmut Herold
After the train accident in Peiting, in which a railcar of the Bavarian Regiobahn derailed on Tuesday morning, there are first insights into the course of the accident.
It is not yet clear how long the route will be closed.
Peiting – On the day of the accident, the big clean-up at Peiting station east begins.
The team of experts that arrived coupled the wrecked railcar to a locomotive in order to stabilize it.
Then the men begin to put the derailed train back on the rails.
A hydraulic ram is used to lift axle by axle over an iron girder underneath and the wheels of the bogies are placed back on the rails.
It is already dark when the final millimeter work is completed and the crashed train can be transported away.
It is taken to the depot of the Bavarian Regiobahn in Augsburg for repairs.
Railway experts used hydraulic equipment to heave the railcar back onto the track.
© Hans-Helmut Herold
The good news this Tuesday is that nothing more happened than property damage of several hundred thousand euros and that all around 50 passengers, including many schoolchildren on the way to class, remained unharmed.
But how could the tragedy have happened in the first place?
Experts from the Federal Police and the railways start the investigation on the same day.
The first findings will be available on Wednesday.
A spokeswoman for the BRB says that there was apparently a switch fault.
"The points were not closed as they should be." The train driver was informed by a signal that something was wrong.
Due to the poor visibility with snow flurries in the early morning, however, according to the current status of the investigation, he did not recognize it and drove into the siding,
whereupon the train jumped off the track.
The spokeswoman could not provide information on the age of the train driver and whether it was an experienced employee.
Deutsche Bahn did not want to comment today.
The press office said it was not possible to anticipate the investigations of the investigative authorities.
Safety technology: Bahn expert speaks of "half-baked cheap solution"
The probable course of the accident raises questions about safety on the route.
Just a year and a half ago, the tracks and switches were renewed as part of the barrier-free expansion of Peitingen station.
However, according to the BRB, there have been repeated switch failures at Ost station in recent months, most recently on Sunday.
The technology used involves fall-back points that are "raised" by the train and actually return to their previous position independently after passage, thus enabling the oncoming train to pass through.
If this does not happen, this is indicated to the train driver via a so-called NE13 signal.
"Then he has to stop the train in front of the switch," explains Norbert Moy from Pro Bahn.
According to the BRB, the cause of the derailment was apparently a switch fault.
© Hans-Helmut Herold
The problem: If the signal is overlooked, as in this case, there is no additional safety technology to prevent the train from moving on.
This is different in Peißenberg, for example, where the points are controlled via the electronic signal box in Weilheim, says Moy.
If there is a malfunction here, the entry signal does not turn green and the engine driver cannot simply run over it.
"The train would then be forced to brake." The technically supported train control operation, as used from Peißenberg on the Pfaffenwinkelbahn, is permitted for branch lines, according to the railway expert.
"It's just a half-baked cheap solution." The fact that not much happened is due to the low speed at which the train passes the points.
The accident was "extremely annoying" in any case,
It will be a while before trains can run again.
"According to the current status, around 50 meters of track and a damaged switch have to be renewed," said a railway spokeswoman on request.
Since the exact damage to the track infrastructure is still being assessed, it is a preliminary assessment.
"It is not yet possible to make an exact forecast of how long the repair work will take." BRB, on the other hand, assumes that the route will probably have to be closed for four weeks.
Rail replacement service: “We can do it”
During this time, passengers between Peißenberg and Schongau are dependent on rail replacement services.
The organization was taken over by Regionalverkehr Oberbayern (RVO) on behalf of the BRB.
"We'll manage it," said branch manager Ralf Kreutzer optimistically.
In addition to its own vehicles, the RVO relies on the support of local bus companies.
After an emergency operation was managed at short notice in the last two days, the timetable is to be used from today, Thursday.
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In addition to commuters, the students who use the train to travel to class are particularly dependent on this.
The Welfen-Gymnasium alone has around 230 students from Peiting, Hohenpeissenberg and Peißenberg.
The school said there were no major problems today.
At the Pfaffenwinkel Realschule, too, around 70 students normally use the train.
Today, some students were late for class, according to headmaster Armin Eder.
But it was only a matter of a few minutes.
This happened again and again in normal rail traffic.
“Hopefully that will work out now and then work better.”