Report on derailment at Grytå, Bergensbanen line 9 February 2015
Railway report 2016/02
Monday 9 February 2015, the locomotive of freight train 5502 derailed at Grytå between Tunga and Haugastøl stations on the Bergen Line. The locomotive derailed with three of its axles going off the rails to the right in the direction of travel. All the wagons were on the track, and the freight car set was connected to the locomotive. The locomotive and the first wagon had become buffer-locked. The Accident Investigation Board Norway (AIBN) is conducting interviews with the parties involved and carrying out technical investigations of the infrastructure and rolling stock to determine the chain of events.
East of Tunga station, the train ran into a cutting where a snowdrift had started to build up. The locomotiv derailed when the train run through this snowdrift. The rescue work after the derailment was demanding and was delayed, and the section of line was reported ready for traffic at approximately 60 hours after the incident.
The Norwegian National Rail Administration (NRA) states that on high mountain sections the trains must be equipped and prepared to plough large amounts of snow, even though the NRA, in principle, ploughs the track. In the Technical Regulations it is stated that the rolling stock must be tested in winter under all foreseeable conditions and approved without restrictions. In the compatibility declaration for the Vectron locomotive the NRA submitted that the locomotive can be used with different snowplough configurations, and this must be taken into consideration and lead to restrictions on use where snow conditions are difficult.
A lot is known in Norway about the design and functioning of snowploughs. The Accident Investigation Board Norway (AIBN) find it important that knowledge about design and functioning of snow ploughs and other general technical knowledge about the running, construction and functional properties of traction vehicles are collected and made available to all present and future operators. The AIBN wishes to draw attention to how to ensure the best possible management and communication of existing knowledge in connection with the implementation of the ongoing railway reform.
AIBN proposes one safety recommendation in this report. It recommends that all railway undertakings be required to carry out analyses of their own operations and implement measures to redress any matters that are uncovered.
Photo: Jernbaneverket
Safety recommendation
Safety recommendation JB no 2016/01T
At 20:15 on Monday 9 February 2015, freight train 5502 derailed at Grytå between Tunga and Haugastøl on the Bergen Line when it ran into a snowdrift. The train was pulled by a new type of locomotive. Operators that are to operate a section of line are required to carry out risk assessments in order to identify all technical and operational risk factors, but this had not uncovered the weaknesses in the positioning and design of the snowplough.
The Accident Investigation Board Norway recommends that the Norwegian Railway Authority take steps to ensure that railway undertakings have procedures for and are aware of their duty to assess risks and implement adequate barriers when introducing new rolling stock in winter operations.
Facts
| Location | Grytå |
| Occurrence date | 09.02.2015 |
| Train No | 5502 |
| Type of Transportation | Freight train |
| Type of occurrence | Derailment |
| Rolling Stock | Locomotive |