101-year-old passenger seriously injured after being dragged along platform as coat caught in Tube train door

The centenarian had stepped off a Northern line train at Archway station in north London when the doors began to close, trapping their unzipped coat in an incident that took place on February 18 last year, reported The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB)

Despite the driver being aware that the passenger and their companion were "close to the train," they were "not aware" of the trapped coat, which was undetected by onboard systems. Consequently, the driver "commanded the train to depart," as noted by the investigators.

The elderly passenger was dragged for two metres before falling to the ground, at which point their coat was freed from the door. The train continued for another 20 metres before the driver applied the emergency brake upon realising the situation.

The injured passenger was taken to the hospital for treatment of "serious injuries," while their companion, who had been holding onto them, also fell but was uninjured. The RAIB noted that the pair "both regularly travelled" on the Tube and had "moved to the door area to be ready to alight" as the train approached the station.

Investigators found that the driver had initiated the door closing process just four seconds after they had opened, leaving the doors fully open for only six seconds. The driver had been involved in a similar incident in December 2021, when a passenger was caught in the doors while trying to board a train at Bank station.

The RAIB report also revealed another incident involving a passenger dragged along a platform at Chalk Farm station on the Northern line on April 20 last year. The individual, whose age was not disclosed, was pulled for 20 metres after their coat became trapped in a door, resulting in "minor physical injuries to their left elbow and both knees and psychological distress," according to the RAIB.

The investigators issued four recommendations to the London Underground, focusing on understanding and mitigating risks from such incidents, the minimum time a train should remain at a platform, and factors influencing a train driver’s attention and awareness.

Nick Dent, London Underground’s director of customer operations, commented, “The safety of our customers and staff is at the heart of everything we do and we were extremely concerned that two customers were injured at Archway and Chalk Farm last year.

“London Underground is consistently recognised as one of the safest metro systems in the world, carrying millions of customers every year. However, we are not complacent and we welcome the recommendations from the RAIB’s report and we are in the process of implementing them.”