Three years after the cable car accident on Mount Jested in Liberec, Czech Republic, near the German border, the railroad supervisory authority has identified serious technical defects in its final report. When one of the two cabins crashed on October 31, 2021, a railroad employee died and property damage equivalent to almost 400,000 euros was caused. It was only by chance that there were no passengers in the accident cabin for 34 passengers.
The immediate cause of the accident was the breakage of a train cable, some of the wires of which showed considerable corrosion. As a result, the cabin slid uncontrollably downhill. An automatic emergency braking system should have prevented this. However, this had been removed in the past, contrary to legal regulations and the technical documentation.
Supervisory authority admits mistakes
In its final report, the state railroad inspectorate also criticized itself. Its supervision of the regular inspections and technical checks was inadequate. The authority called for changes to the law to enable stricter controls.
In connection with the cable car accident, criminal investigations are underway against three people on charges of negligently endangering the public. This criminal offense is committed by anyone who causes danger to the life or limb of a large number of people.
The cable car led to Jested, Liberec's local mountain. It was built in 1933 and modernized in 1975. The operator was the Czech state railroad Ceske drahy (CD). The lift has been out of service since the accident. The city of Liberec has expressed interest in taking over the land and building a new cable car in an extended version to the final stop of the streetcar.
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