Summary
A rail company, Great Western Railway (GWR), was fined £1 million for not following safety rules after a woman died by hitting her head on a tree branch while looking out of a train window in 2018. The company knew about the risk of droplight windows but did not act on safety recommendations before the accident. After the incident, measures were put in place to prevent similar accidents.
Key Facts
- Great Western Railway was fined £1 million for breaching safety laws.
- Bethan Roper died in 2018 after leaning out of a droplight window and hitting her head.
- The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) prosecuted the company for not addressing known safety risks.
- GWR was aware of safety issues with droplight windows but did not implement recommended changes before the accident.
- A prior incident in 2016 led to safety warnings, but measures were not fully adopted by GWR in time.
- Since the accident, new safety measures have been introduced to prevent the use of droplight windows while trains are moving.
- The ORR praised industry-wide steps taken to improve safety after the incident.
