The trial of the TGV Est accident which occurred in Eckwersheim on November 14, 2015 opens this Monday before the Paris criminal court. Three legal entities and three natural persons are on trial.
This Monday, March 4, the trial begins into the derailment of the train of a test TGV which caused the death of 11 people in Alsace, on November 14, 2015. The tragedy of the “TGV Est” occurred during the final test of the section of the Eastern European high-speed line between Baudrecourt (Moselle) and Vendenheim (Bas-Rhin). The accident also left 42 injured, some seriously, near Eckwersheim (Bas-Rhin). SNCF, its subsidiaries Systra, SNCF Réseau as well as three employees are on trial before the criminal court until May 16, 2024 for “injuries and involuntary manslaughter due to clumsiness, recklessness, negligence or breach of a safety obligation”.
The tragic derailment of November 14, 2015
More than eight years ago, a test began during which the TGV ran faster than in conventional traffic, in order to “test the track” according to the order for referral to the criminal court consulted by France Info. A particularly tight and difficult bend to negotiate requires a succession of three speed levels. If the instructions are not respected, in this case, respect a maximum speed of 176 km/h, it is impossible to go through this bend.
That day, the driver applied the brakes too late, the train began its turn at 243 km/h and tipped into the Marne-Rhine canal. Railway employees and members of their families were on board. This is the “worst accident in the history of the TGV” written at the Ouest France era. The first and only fatal TGV accident in France since it was put into service in 1981.
Three individuals, SNCF, Systra and SNCF Réseau, judged
SNCF, its subsidiaries Systra (test sponsor) and SNCF Réseau (track manager), as well as three natural persons: the titular driver, an SNCF executive responsible for giving him braking and acceleration instructions as well as a Systra engineer appears before the 31st correctional chamber. Legal entities are particularly accused of having hired staff without training them. They risk fines of up to 225,000 euros each. An initial investigation showed in particular that the drivers had not received the necessary training for this type of TGV overspeed test.
SNCF and its two subsidiaries are also accused of not having identified the railway risks linked to driving a train at overspeed. The investigating judge indicates in his order “a lack of anticipation of the risks of derailment”, “insufficient preparation”, or even “gaps in staff training” between SNCF and Systra. Pushing the train to 330 km/h was “dangerous, unnecessary and contrary to recommendations”.
Negligence and multiple dysfunctions
Experts from the “collective accidents” department of the Paris judicial court believe that the derailment was due to speed on the one hand, and to late braking. According to investigators, the precise braking point was not clearly indicated in the driving team documents. They were determined “with a grain of salt” according to the terms reported by the AFP, from a driver to the investigators. The confusion could therefore be due to a lack of rigor in the organization of this essay. SNCF Réseau is also accused of negligence on the part of its safety coordinator, who did not ensure that the risks linked to carrying out overspeed tests would be taken into account at their fair value.
Three individuals are also on trial in this case. Two employees from SNCF and one from Systra. First, the driver of the train who did not maintain the electric brake according to the investigation. The traction transport executive, responsible for validating the train control and the traction pilot, who defines the braking strategy are also on the dock. The three railway workers face sentences of three years in prison and a fine of 45,000 euros each. The trial promises to be very technical because justice will have to determine the responsibilities of each person in the chain of events, leading up to the tragedy.