TGV collides with lorry in Northern France

[whole diary]

[stuving]

There was a collision early this morning between a TGV^▸ (Train a Grande Vitesse) and a military transporter vehicle at a level crossing at Bully-les-Mines (Pas-de-Calais). This was not a high-speed line, of course, but the direct impact at speed on such a heavy vehicle destroyed the drivers cab, and killed the driver. The load on the transporter (a bridge, most likely self-deploying) was thrown into a garden.

The crossing (no. 96) has four half-barriers, and it is unclear at the moment how the vehicle got to be there with them down. It was last in a convoy of civilian vehicles returning from an exercise, and the driver has already been detained for a variety of manslaughter.

From the Luxembourg Times:

TGV collides with lorry, one dead and two in critical condition

Driver of lorry carrying military equipment has been arrested after fatal level-crossing smash

A collision between a TGV high-speed train and a lorry on Tuesday morning at a level crossing in Pas-de-Calais, northern France, killed the train driver, and left two people in critical condition and 11 with minor injuries, local authorities said.

The lorry driver has been taken into custody, AFP has learnt from a judicial source. The lorry was carrying military equipment, according to a spokesperson for the local prefecture.

An earlier provisional toll had put the number of injured at 27.

On Tuesday morning, large numbers of rescue workers and technical teams were deployed around the scene of the accident, AFP journalists observed, noting that the front of the train was badly damaged.

At around 07:00, the TGV travelling from Dunkirk to Paris, with 243 people on board, collided with a lorry at a level crossing in the town of Bully-les-Mines, between Béthune and Lens, the Pas-de-Calais prefecture said in a statement...

[ChrisB]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page)

One dead as high-speed train collides with lorry in France

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A train driver has died after his high-speed passenger train collided with a lorry carrying military equipment at a level crossing in France.

A number of injuries have also been reported following the incident, which took place on Tuesday morning between Béthune and Lens in the north-western Pas-de-Calais region.

Two people were critically injured while 11 others sustained minor injuries, French media reports.

The region's President Xavier Bertrand confirmed the death of the TGV^▸ (Train a Grande Vitesse) driver and described the accident as a "terrible tragedy".

"My thoughts are with his family, his loved ones and all the staff at who are mourning his loss," he wrote on X.

French Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot said he was heading to the scene along with the head of France's state-owned rail operator SNCF^▸ (Societe Nationale des Chemins de fer Francais - French National Railways).

Tabarot said the collision involved a heavy goods vehicle, while news site Franceinfo reported that it was a truck that had been transporting military equipment.

It said the incident occurred shortly before 07:00 local time (05:00 GMT), citing a local official.

The train had been travelling from Dunkirk to Paris.

The regional rail network, TER Hauts-de-France, said traffic between Béthune and Lens would be disrupted until mid-morning, with services on certain lines resuming gradually.

[.../cont.]

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[matth1j]

There was a collision early this morning between a TGV^▸ (Train a Grande Vitesse) and a military transporter vehicle at a level crossing at Bully-les-Mines (Pas-de-Calais). This was not a high-speed line, of course

Sorry - why "of course"?

[WSW Frome]

High speed lines are designed with no level crossings.

[stuving]

There was a collision early this morning between a TGV^▸ (Train a Grande Vitesse) and a military transporter vehicle at a level crossing at Bully-les-Mines (Pas-de-Calais). This was not a high-speed line, of course

Sorry - why "of course"?

There are no level crossings on high-speed lines, in the sense that applies in France.

[infoman]

at what speed is classed as a high speed line in France?

[stuving]

at what speed is classed as a high speed line in France?

They weren't - they were built from scratch as Lignes à Grande Vitesse, deigned for at least 300 km/hr. The Ligne Nouvelle Provence Côte d’Azur is an exception where it upgrades the existing riviera line, but officially it's not being called an LGV^▸ (Lignes à Grande Vitesse (high speed rail lines) in France, or Large Goods Vehicle in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom), depending on context) (and work finally started only in December last year).