
In a
railway accident, telescoping occurs when the
underframe of one vehicle overrides that of another, and smashes through the second vehicle's body. The term is derived from the resulting appearance of the two vehicle bodies: the body of one vehicle may appear to be slid inside the other like the tubes of a collapsible telescope – the body sides, roof and underframe of the latter vehicle being forced apart from each other.
Telescoping often results in heavy fatalities if the cars telescoped are fully occupied. The car riding on top will often destroy the structure of the car below, crushing those on board (although the physics of the incident may reverse the cars' roles). The chances of telescoping can be reduced by use of
anticlimbers and other structural systems which direct crash energy and debris away from the passenger and crew areas. One such energy absorbing system is the Green Buffer, winners of the 2023 Swedish Steel Prize, where a collapsing steel structure in the buffers dissipate energy similarly to the crumple zones used in the automotive industry.
Accidents where telescoping occurred are numerous and include:
* 1864
Shohola train wreck
* 1888
Mud Run disaster
*
1928 Times Square derailment
* 1945
Michigan train wreck
* 1947
Camp Mountain rail accident
* 1952
Harrow and Wealdstone rail crash
* 1957
Lewisham rail crash
* 1962
Rail accidents in Winsford
* 1970
Benavídez rail disaster
*
1972 Chicago commuter rail crash
* 1981
Seer Green rail crash
*
1987 Bintaro train crash
* 1990
Ursus rail crash
*
2008 Chatsworth train collision
*
2009 Washington Metro train collision
*
2012 Buenos Aires rail disaster
To reduce the chance of telescoping, rail and tramway vehicles are often provided with an anticlimber: a horizontally ridged plate at the end of the chassis, which in a collision will engage with the anticlimber on the next car.
Gallery
File:June 22, 2009 WMATA Collision - NTSB accident photo 422860.jpg, The aftermath of the June 2009 Washington Metro train collision
File:St Johns train crash 1898.jpg, The aftermath of the 1898 St Johns rail accident, where the rear two carriages of a passenger train were telescoped by being hit at by a following train.
File:MudRunDisaster.jpg, Cars involved in the Mud Run disaster, October 10, 1888
See also
*
Anticlimber
*
Buff strength
*
Crashworthiness
*
EN 15227 anti-climbing
References
{{Rail accidents
Railway accidents and incidents