Rafz train crash [SEP] point in time
Rafz train crash
The Rafz train crash occurred at approximately 6.43 am on 20 February 2015. An S-Bahn and an Interregio express train collided at Rafz railway station in Switzerland.
Accident.
The collision occurred as the Interregio train, which was running late, was passing through Ratz without stopping. The S-Bahn train was departing for and was involved in a side-long collision, with the Interregio train coming from behind the S-Bahn train. The express was partially derailed, but the couplings held
the same line, was caused by outmoded safety equipment that allowed a train to leave the station against a signal. The equipment at Rafz should in theory have prevented the 2015 crash; authorities are investigating why it did not, and whether there are any similarities between the two accidents. The automatic braking equipment is not activated at the first signal after a train has been turned. The head of the train drivers' union suggested as a possible cause operator confusion because when Rafz station was renovated in 2011, the applicable signal was