Family pay tribute to ‘devoted’ train driver Shaun Burton killed in Bedford crash that injured 100 people
THE devastated family of the train driver who was tragically killed in the Bedford rail crash which left 100 people injured have paid moving tribute to him.
Shaun Burton, 60, was driving the Luton Airport Express train which rammed into the back of another, stationary East Midlands Railway service at around 5.15pm on Friday.
The crash left 100 people injured – with at least nine of them still fighting for their lives.
It has the highest number of casualties of any rail disaster in the UK in the last 20 years.
Now, Shaun’s family have paid heartfelt tribute to him after his devastating death.
They said: “We are devastated by his loss. Our thoughts are also with those affected by this incident.”
Two trains collide in Germany as carriages plunge off bridge leaving one dead
Shaun, from Great Stukeley, Cambs, had worked in coaches and buses, including at Arriva, before moving into the railway industry.
He joined East Midlands Railway in 2019 as a Train Manager.
The much-loved train driver moved to the role of Mainline Train Driver in March 2024, and often worked the Corby to London route.
Shaun was a Chartered Member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, one of the most senior professional bodies in the industry.
He was also a local parish councillor in Great Stukeley and a member of Huntingdonshire Council.
Dave Calfe, general secretary of Aslef, the train drivers’ union, said: “We are all heartbroken by the death of Shaun Burton which leaves a hole in the lives of his family, friends, and colleagues, which will never be filled.
“The railway family grieves his passing; no-one should go off to work in the morning and not come home.”
Both trains were heading for London with the first, a 3.50pm train service from Nottingham to St Pancras, stopping on track.
It was running 18 minutes late when the 4.40pm Corby train, which had stopped at Bedford station two minutes earlier, slammed into the back of it.
BTP declared the accident as a major incident as pictures emerged revealing the horror of the crash.
Passengers likened the horrifying accident – which left carriages mangled and seats torn from their fastenings – to a “bomb going off”.
Dr Peter Knapp, who was travelling in the front carriage of the train that crashed into the other, told the BBC: “When I got up, I saw all of the chairs everywhere. It felt like I’d been in a bomb explosion.
“When I got up, I saw people’s bloodied faces and people’s legs looked broken and there was smoke everywhere.”
Teresa Itabor, from Northamptonshire, told The Times she had been travelling to London to celebrate her birthday when the chaos unfurled.
Upon leaving Bedford station, she said she heard a “massive bang” and her head struck the seat in front of her.
