- Author, Tom Edwards
- Role, Traffic Reporter, London
- Twitter,
- Report from Ealing Broadway, West London
Another passenger contacted BBC London after he was seriously injured on the Elizabeth line at Ealing Broadway in west London.
Rolf Kern, 82, had to go to hospital after badly cutting his shin while trying to board an Elizabeth Line train. He says the vertical gap between the platform and the train is too high and caused his injuries. He is now said to be considering legal action.
It comes weeks after another passenger broke his leg on the same platform.
WARNING: This article contains an image of an injury that may be disturbing to some.
Mr Kern says the gap is too high: “Normally I take the left or right side and use the railing. But this time I happened to be in the middle and missed the step and fell to the floor. I realized I had hurt myself very badly.”
“The wound was very severe. It was a two-inch gap below the knee and the skin was actually completely separated. It’s very, very serious.”
Mr Kern says the height of the step is unacceptable: “It’s an absolute fact that the step is 12 to 14 inches high, which I think is unacceptable for a modern new line that the government has invested so much money in.”
Also at Ealing Broadway station in February, Eric Leach stepped off an Elizabeth Line train onto the platform. The fall was so forceful that he broke a bone in his foot. He collapsed onto the platform.
Mr Leach, who also suffered a bruise on his right knee, says the gap is not acceptable: “It’s a 12-inch gap. Mums with prams, people with heavy luggage, elderly people, it’s obviously not acceptable.”
He told BBC London: “It’s a scandal, someone will be seriously injured or die. It’s a death trap.”
“I was trying to climb down. Other people were trying to push their way on. I was horrified to see the gap, I lost my balance, and I fell and fell and broke a bone in my left leg. And I crushed my right knee.”
“I was on the ground for about 20 minutes. They took me home in a taxi and a few days later I realized I was unwell so I went to Ealing Hospital.”
Mr Leach’s story has been seen around the world with 7.9 million views on BBC London’s Instagram, Facebook and X social media channels.
The rules don’t apply
The Elizabeth line opened in May 2022 and cost £19 billion.
The platforms at Ealing Broadway are owned by Network Rail and are not new. Before the Elizabeth line services were introduced, they were used by GWR trains from London Paddington.
Safety guidelines say new platforms should not have a horizontal gap of more than 27.5 cm (10.8 in) or a vertical gap of more than 23 cm (9 in).
However, Rail Safety and Standards Board rules only apply to new stations, so Ealing Broadway, as an older platform, does not fall under the regulations. The rules don’t apply.
A spokesman for Transport for London (TfL) said: “We are sorry that some customers were injured at Ealing Broadway station and we wish them a full and speedy recovery.
“Safety is our number one priority and although the height difference between train and platform meets the required safety standards on all platforms on the Elizabeth line, we recognize that it may be greater at some older stations such as Ealing Broadway.
“We provide manual boarding ramps for anyone who needs them and staff are available to anyone who needs assistance at any of our stations.
“We are also issuing announcements on the train reminding passengers to remember the gap when leaving the train. We continue to work with our operator, MTR-Elizabeth line, and our infrastructure provider, Network Rail, to ensure that all our stations remain safe and available to all our customers.”
Mr Kern is now trying to find fellow passengers who witnessed what happened as he considers legal action. His leg is healing.
TfL says Elizabeth line operator MTREL is in contact with Mr Kern and says it is actively investigating the incident.