Great Western Railway train nearly hits worker on Devon train track

This is the shocking moment where a Great Western Railway train had a very near miss with track worker near a train station in Devon. The worker, dressed in florescent orange, was nearly struck by a passing train on the Up Main line just after it set off from Totnes station last month.

The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) said the train, travelling at around 50mph towards Newton Abbot passed the worker at around 10.45am on March 13 this year. It nearly hit the controller of site safety (COSS) for a team working just off the line.

CCTV footage, shared with the RAIB by GWR shows just how closed the worker was to the track of the passing train. The RAIB has begun an inquiry into the incident and said it has undertaken a preliminary exam into the circumstances surrounding the incident. Following the results of this, the organisation said it will publish a safety digest, with recommendations to improve railway safety.

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In a statement, the RAIB said: "At around 10:44 hrs on 13 March 2024, a Great Western Railway train travelling at around 50 mph (80 km/h) was involved in a near miss with a track worker on the Up Main line shortly after leaving Totnes station in Devon.

"The track worker involved in the near miss was the controller of site safety (COSS) for a team which was undertaking work adjacent to the Up Main line. At the time of the incident, the COSS was assessing if there was enough clearance on the side of the railway for the team to continue using the separated system of work which had been planned for the task.

"We have undertaken a preliminary examination into the circumstances surrounding this incident. Having assessed the evidence which has been gathered to date, we have decided to publish a safety digest."