Man jailed after train hits empty car left on tracks

A man who drove his car onto tracks in Burton upon Trent has been jailed for 68 months after the vehicle was hit by a passenger train.

Jonathon Geoffrey Mather, 36, pleaded guilty to obstructing the railway.

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Stafford Crown Court heard how on Monday 20 July 2015, Mather had driven his Vauxhall Insignia onto the railway line at Clay Mills Crossing then drove a further 220 meters down the track before abandoning his car straddling the rails and running off.

A short while later, a passenger service travelling between Derby and Burton on Trent, which had 40 people on board, came along the same stretch of track.

The train was travelling at 100mph but luckily the driver spotted the car and managed to hit the emergency brakes at the last minute, resulting in the train hitting the vehicle at 70mph.

Luckily no-one on board was injured but the incident resulted in over £650,000 in costs to the rail industry in delays, compensation and damage to the tracks and train.

Detective Sergeant Shanie Erwin of British Transport Police (BTP) said: "When officers and other emergency service colleagues arrived at the scene the area was searched and Mather was discovered hiding in a bush nearby.

"Mather claimed to have had an episode of memory loss as a result of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, however he was fully assessed by an independent mental health team and deemed fit to be interviewed by Police and prosecuted by the Crown Prosecution Service.

"I cannot emphasise the seriousness of his actions. The train could have easily derailed after striking his vehicle at such a speed, and everyone on board could have been seriously injured or killed."

He added: "The sentence handed down to Mr Mather today sends a strong message that obstructing the railway, and risking people's lives in this way is taken extremely seriously by the courts and BTP."