The driver in the 2016 Croydon tram crash and two transport bodies are being criminally prosecuted for alleged health and safety breaches, it has been announced.
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) announced on Thursday it is bringing prosecutions against Transport for London, Tram Operations Limited, and the driver Alfred Dorris over the derailment which left seven passengers dead and more than 50 injured.
Announcing the charges, the ORR said TfL allegedly “failed to ensure the health and safety of passengers on the Croydon Tramlink network, so far as reasonably practicable”.
The tram operating company faces a similar allegation, while Dorris is accused of an “alleged failure as an employee to take reasonable care of passengers whilst employed at work driving the tram”.
The crash happened on the morning of November 9, 2016, when the tram tipped over and spun off the track close to the Sandilands stop.
The ORR said a hearing will take place at Croydon magistrates court, on a date to be set.
“My thoughts are with the families of the seven people who lost their lives on 9 November 2016, the many more injured and everyone whose lives have been impacted as a result of this incident,” said ORR’s HM Chief Inspector of Railways Ian Prosser CBE.
“Following a detailed and thorough investigation, we’ve taken the decision to prosecute Transport for London, Tram Operations Limited and driver Alfred Dorris for what we believe to be health and safety failings.
“We’ve made a fair, independent and objective assessment about what happened, and it is now for the court to consider if any health and safety law has been breached.”
