The UK avoided a freight disaster forty years ago, thanks to a brilliant, but modest signalman. Commemoration has been made for the quick thinking and potentially life saving actions of Willie Taylor. On the fortieth anniversary of his actions, Carlisle Signalman Willie Taylor has been honoured with a locomotive named in his memory at Carlisle Citadel station.

GB Railfreight, a company that didn’t exist at the time of the incident, has commemorated the actions of Signalman Willie Taylor. GBRf named a workhorse class 66 locomotive after the modest railway professional who averted a certain disaster for the city of Carlisle. The choice of a familiar locomotive would be approved by Willie, who never claimed to be anything other than a man doing his job.

Certainly averted disaster

It has been largely forgotten, but averting Carlisle’s biggest rail accident was all down to the swift actions of a signalman. Quick thinking by Willie Taylor resulted in a train wreck for sure, but it certainly averted a railway disaster. If not for his split-second decision, the city of Carlisle would be scarred to this day by a traumatic crash, right in the middle of its busy station.

Last Wednesday (1 May), on the platform at Carlisle Citadel station, GBRf Asset Director, David Golding officiated at a ceremony to name one of the company’s class 66 locomotive 66308 “Signalman Willie Taylor” to mark 40 years since an incident few people recall. The reason the “River Caldew Crash” has not passed into notoriety is down to Willie’s actions, and his modesty in the aftermath.

Grace under pressure

On the morning of 1 May 1984, Willie Taylor realised that a freight train carrying dangerous chemical goods had become uncoupled south of Carlisle and was rolling northwards, downhill towards Carlisle Citadel station. He quickly and calmly switched the uncoupled wagons onto an empty freight track – a route reserved for freight – to avoid the busy passenger station.

The complicated track layout around Carlisle reflects the city’s importance as a major junction on the West Coast Main Line. Historically, seven railway companies all converged on Carlisle – five of them, who invested in the city’s station, have their crests carved into the imposing facade. The city has seen a number of incidents over the two centuries of railway operations, most recently the 2022 Petteril Bridge Junction derailment which hampered operations for months.

Hoping for a quieter shift

Willie Taylor showed remarkable presence of mind, not to mention a clear understanding of the bewildering track layout. Exhibiting a cool head under remarkable pressure, he made the right decisions to mitigate a potential disaster. The detached rear of the train ended up wrecked in the River Caldew, but no one was hurt in the incident, and a disaster was avoided.

The infrastructure, including the bridge over the river, was deemed beyond repair. The freight-avoiding line has since been disused. At the time, when speaking to local news, Willie said he wasn’t a hero and had only been doing his job, that he would do exactly the same thing again if required, and that he would be back at work that night. He did tell a news reporter that he hoped he would have a quieter shift. “I’ll just be going to work as usual tomorrow. I hope that same thing doesn’t happen again, mind.”