A passenger on a main line in Powys claims Transport for Wales may have risked the safety of those on board after one of the company's trains filled with smoke.
Bill Slater, a retired police officer, was travelling on the Cambrian line from Caersws to Birmingham on Thursday (May 2) when the rear two carriages filled with smoke.
Mr Slater said trouble began when they had crossed the Welsh border.
“We got into Shrewsbury and the train stopped, apparently as normal,” he said.
“We stood there for 5-10 minutes and I was like “come on let’s get going” and after another 10-15 minutes after that I heard the engine rev and the train tried to pull away but it didn’t.
“It was almost immediately apparent to me as a driver that it was like when you pull away and you forget to pull the hand brake off.
“It didn’t move, a few minutes later he tried again, next thing you know he went backwards just a foot or two then he tried to go forward again. This went on for a while.
“I am from an engineering background, I am a retired police officer, I was vehicle examiner for the police but even a normal driver would think well this is just a binding brake and he was trying to drive it off."
OTHER NEWS:
- Powys garages chain Bradley's plans to expand shop at one of its petrol stations
- Powys man accused of sending obscene voice notes and social media messages
- Caravan park near Welshpool DENIED permission to expand
After eventually pulling away, the journey continued past Telford when the train came to a sudden stop 500 yards short of Cosford.
“Everybody was obviously disappointed," Mr Slater added.
"Then the fella next to me nudged me and he said ‘Did you see that? That fella has just gone running down the train with a fire extinguisher.’
“I already knew the brakes must be binding. Two minutes later all the passengers from the two rear carriages came milling though our carriages. I then had a peer backwards into the next carriage whose doors had just slid open and saw that carriage was full of smoke.
“It wasn’t thick but you could see quite a haze in the air and I could smell it."
He said the tannoy on the train was too quiet to hear any explanation.
They reached Cosford and decoupled the rear carriages before setting off to Wolverhampton where the train terminated early.
“We never made it to Birmingham they said we are just going to stop in Wolverhampton and you can find another train pal,” said Mr Slater.
Mr Slater says he now has serious concerns that they set off from Shrewsbury with the brakes possibly binding.
"They should have stopped the train there," he said.
“Transport for Wales told me to fill in a complaint form,” said Bill. “I said can’t we do something immediately? I then contacted the Department for Transport to get this stock out of the system.
"That may sound dramatic but that is what we do in this day and age. We act early and decisively to stop it to save lives.
“I saw lorries have a similar problem on more than one occasion. They burned to the ground in half an hour from a wheel brake. In a blaze in 10 minutes – they happen fast when they happen."
A spokesperson for Transport for Wales said : "There was an issue with dragging brakes on the 13:29 Aberystwyth - Birmingham International after it coupled with additional carriages at Shrewsbury which resulted in the train being cancelled."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here