Leominster rail crash: Man arrested after train hits tractor and trailer

A man has been arrested after a train hit a tractor and trailer on a level crossing in Herefordshire, leaving two people injured and rail services at a standstill.

One passenger, a man, was airlifted to Hereford County Hospital, although his injuries were not life-threatening, West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) said.

A woman was also taken to hospital by ambulance following the crash near Leominster, although she is not thought to be seriously hurt.

British Transport Police (BTP) said a 32-year-old man from Bromyard had been arrested on suspicion of endangering safety on the railway.

A spokesperson for the Rail Accident Investigation Branch said a team of inspectors was at the scene, gathering evidence.

Fifteen other people were checked over and discharged at the scene. The tractor driver was uninjured, the ambulance service added.

Ashley Phoenix, who was on the train at the time, said he was woken up by “shaking and vibrating” and added: “I thought it was going to come off the tracks. People [were] screaming and shouting.

“It’s not something you expect to happen on your way to work.”

He was one of 56 passengers on board the Manchester-to-Cardiff service when the crash happened near Leominster on Thursday morning.

WMAS said it was called to the crash on the track at Nordan Farm, Leominster, just after 10:45 BST.

Transport for Wales (TfW) said services had been stopped after the 08:30 from Manchester Piccadilly struck the vehicle on a crossing between Ludlow and Leominster.

National Rail said all lines were blocked between Hereford and Craven Arms, and services between those stations would be cancelled or changed, with disruption expected until the end of the day.

A TfW spokeswoman urged people to check before travelling and said tickets would be accepted by other operators.

A spokesperson for BTP said inquiries were ongoing to better understand the circumstances leading up to the crash.

The level crossing takes a farm track across the railway tracks and is only used by agricultural vehicles.

The facility is a user-worked crossing – in these cases, when a railway crosses private land, the owner of the land, working with a signaller, is responsible for opening and closing the gates.

The mile-long approach is difficult to access for standard cars and the route is currently blocked by emergency vehicles.

There are dozens of them, belonging to police, ambulance, Network Rail and fire crews.

Last month, investigators found numerous faults detected in a safety system on a TfW train were a contributing factor for a fatal crash in October 2024.

The trains – the Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth service and the Machynlleth to Shrewsbury service – were travelling in opposite directions on a single line and were meant to pass on an extra section of line but the braking system failed.

One man, 66, died and four other passengers were seriously injured.