Emergency services worked for more than five hours to free trapped passengers from the wreckage of the train at Great Heck near Selby in North Yorkshire. One theory being examined was a blown-out tyre. The man, who is believed to have suffered only whiplash injuries, was delivering a car from his home county of Lincolnshire to Wigan. North Yorkshire police said he was in a distressed state. Last night John Prescott, the deputy prime minister, told the Commons he had ordered the health and safety executive to produce an interim report into the crash within the next few days so that he could make a decision on what further steps needed to be taken.
Attention is likely to focus on the absence of adequate crash barriers at such a vulnerable spot.
Although the bridge and a few metres either side were protected, the Land Rover left the carriageway before the barriers began. The Highways Agency last night announced a review of barriers over rail bridges on motorways and trunk roads. The chief executive of Great North Eastern Railways, Christopher Garnett, made no attempt to hide his incredulity at the circumstances of the tragedy. It's terrible, unbelievable. It's something which has got to be investigated.