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Driverless subway trains collide in Nuremberg shunting incident
🇩🇪 Germany /Disasters & Emergencies

Driverless subway trains collide in Nuremberg shunting incident

From Die Zeit · () German

Translated from German, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Official statement Under investigation
  • Two driverless subway trains collided during a shunting operation in Nuremberg, Germany.
  • The incident caused several wagons of one train to derail, leading to the closure of the Röthenbach subway station until at least Wednesday.
  • An investigation is underway to determine if a control center error contributed to the accident, with experts and regional authorities involved.

A rare collision occurred between two driverless subway trains in Nuremberg, Germany, during a shunting maneuver on Sunday. The incident involved trains from subway line 2, which operates autonomously and is controlled from a central command center.

Several wagons of one of the trains derailed and must now be put back on the rails.

— VAGThe Nuremberg Transport Authority described the immediate consequences of the collision.

The collision resulted in several wagons of one of the trains derailing. The Nuremberg Transport Authority (VAG) announced that the affected subway station, Röthenbach, will remain closed until at least Wednesday while the derailed carriages are re-railed and the track is cleared. The VAG stated that the driverless system, implemented in 2008, is considered extremely safe and has not experienced similar incidents before.

Similar incidents or even more serious accidents have never occurred before.

— VAGThe VAG emphasized the safety record of the driverless system prior to this incident.

Authorities are now investigating the cause of the collision. A key focus is whether any errors occurred in the control center that manages the driverless trains. To prevent further incidents during the investigation, shunting operations in subway storage areas have been temporarily suspended. The VAG confirmed that an expert and the government of Middle Franconia are participating in the clarification process.

Whether there were errors in the control center is currently being clarified.

— VAGThe VAG confirmed that the investigation is examining potential control center faults.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Die Zeit in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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