 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (November 2012) |
| Clayton Tunnel rail crash | |
|---|---|
 The tunnel's north entrance | |
| Details | |
| Date | 25 August 1861 ~08:45 |
| Location | Clayton, West Sussex |
| Coordinates | 50°54′46″N 0°09′14″W / 50.91278°N 0.15389°W |
| Country | England |
| Line | Brighton Main Line |
| Operator | London Brighton and South Coast Railway |
| Cause | Signaller's error |
| Statistics | |
| Trains | 2 |
| Passengers | 589 |
| Deaths | 23 |
| Injured | 176 |
| List of UK rail accidents by year | |
The Clayton Tunnel rail crash occurred on Sunday 25 August 1861, five miles (8 km) from Brighton on the south coast of England. At the time it was the worst accident on the British railway system. A train ran into the back of another inside the tunnel, killing 23 and injuring 176 passengers.
Three north-bound trains left Brighton station within a few minutes of one another. At the southern entrance to Clayton Tunnel an automatic signal failed to return to danger after the first train passed, allowing the second train to follow it into the tunnel. The signaller at the south end of the tunnel belatedly waved a red flag in an attempt to stop the second train, but thought that it had not been seen. However the driver of the second train had briefly glimpsed the flag and stopped his train inside the tunnel. The signaller then misinterpreted a 'line clear' telegraph message from the signal box at the north end of the tunnel as referring to the second train instead of the first, and signalled the third train into the tunnel.[1]
- ^ Great Britain Parliament, House of Commons (1862). "Railways; Turnpike Trusts; Miscellaneous: Accounts and Papers". Parliamentary Papers, Session 6 February – 7 August 1862. LIII. HMSO: 1793–1802.