Celebrities and rail bosses were among hundreds trapped by downed wires in west London
Wires down. Overhead equipment dropped over a GWR train outside Paddington in the night of 6 December 2023 (Image by Andrew Haines posted on LinkedIN) (Image by Andrew Haines posted on LinkedIN)
It’s already entered folklore as the Great Paddington Dewiring. When a major terminal is paralysed, one of the world’s busiest airports has connections severed, a showpiece metro grinds to a halt, shoppers, celebrities and business bosses are all trapped on stationary trains, and it all happens in London in the run up to Christmas, you have the sort of scenario that makes the six o’clock news. It most certainly did. Oh, and there was a strike on.
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1.
Railways is the most vulnerable, system of all transport modes.
2.
Standards, optimal 100 years ago, does not meet with current load and traffic, thus infrastructure, etc. is rapidly detoriating and due for “maintenance” (repairing).
3.
Safety factors, at railways, currently, neither are calculable, nor possible. ( No surplus capacity is present.)
4.
A shift is needed! (Electrification, yes, but a robust a resilient and redundant, etc., etc.)
Obviously needed, battery operated “Thunderbird” rescue locomotives to pull back stranded electric sets to allow passengers to alight safely at a proper station, and spare sidings to park the resulting Empty Coaching Stock.