RAIL UNION RMT today reissued its demand that Scotrail call an immediate halt to plans to extend Driver Only Operation on its services as it emerged that another train derailed on the Oban-Glasgow line at Falls of Cruachan 13 years ago due to a landslip. Incredibly, the same Guard, Angus MacColl, was on board both trains and was praised back in 1997 for his professional and calm response as he implemented emergency procedures.
The previous derailment occurred on the 5th April 1997 just yards from Sunday evening's incident. 40 passengers were on board when the train hit a landslip of silts and boulders, derailing the train which, on this occasion, remained upright.
Due to a fault with the radio that night it was the Guard, Mr MacColl, who left the train and walked back to the nearest phone to contact the emergency services, ensuring the safe evacuation of passengers and securing the area.
RMT General Secretary Bob Crow said:
In the light of Sunday evening's incident, and the previous derailment on the same section of track just thirteen years ago, it would be a scandal if First Scotrail and the Scottish Government pressed on with their cash-driven plans to axe the Guards on the new Airdrie-Bathgate route.
In incident after incident on our railways, going back many years, the safety-critical role of the Guard in an emergency situation like Sunday night's has been both recognised and praised by the investigating authorities.
The lesson is simple and is staring Scotrail in the face. In an emergency you need both the driver and the Guard, working as a team, to secure the incident and to implement safe, evacuation procedures.
Scotrail cannot be allowed to get away with praising Angus MacColl on one hand and then axing his colleagues from their services on the other. The political leaders at the Scottish Government cannot stand idly by while they try to do just that. We are demanding an immediate halt to the Scotrail plans for Driver Only Operation.
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