A 101-year-old London Underground passenger was seriously injured after being dragged along a platform when their coat became trapped in a Tube train door.
A report by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) said the incident happened after the centenarian stepped off a Northern line train as the doors began to close at Archway station, north London on February 18 last year.
The person’s unzipped coat became trapped in the door but the driver “was not aware” that had happened so “commanded the train to depart”, investigators said.
After being pulled for two metres, the passenger fell to the ground and their coat became free of the door.
They were later taken to hospital for treatment of what were described as “serious injuries”.
Investigators found that the driver had activated the control to close the doors just four seconds after they opened at the station, meaning they were only fully open for six seconds.
The RAIB report also covered another incident where a passenger was dragged along a station platform after their coat became stuck in a door.
The passenger — whose age was not given — was pulled for 20 metres at Chalk Farm station, also on the Northern line in north London, on April 20 last year.
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They suffered “minor physical injuries to their left elbow and both knees and psychological distress”, the RAIB said.
Investigators made four recommendations for the London Underground, related to understanding the risk from incidents of this kind and how to minimise them, the minimum amount of time a Tube train should remain at a platform before continuing its journey, and how a train driver’s attention and awareness can be influenced.
Nick Dent, London Underground’s director of customer operations, said: “The safety of our customers and staff is at the heart of everything we do and we were extremely concerned that two customers were injured at Archway and Chalk Farm last year.
“London Underground is consistently recognised as one of the safest metro systems in the world, carrying millions of customers every year.
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“However we are not complacent and we welcome the recommendations from the RAIB’s report and we are in the process of implementing them.”