By the TrainsNews newsroom · Updated 30 October 2026
High-speed rail accidents are rare, but a few of them have changed the way railways are run. This page lists 21 accidents involving high-speed trains in Europe and Asia since 1997. For each one we give the date, the death toll, the cause and where that information comes from. Official investigation reports come first; when there is none, we say so.
How we built this list
Every toll and every cause is linked to a source. We rely first on national investigation bodies: BEA-TT in France, CIAF in Spain, DIGIFEMA in Italy, BEU (formerly EUB) in Germany and JTSB in Japan. When only the press reports a fact, the source is marked "press". Accidents for which we do not yet have a solid source are left out of the table for now and will be added as we check them.
Why does speed matter so much? A train at 300 km/h needs several kilometres to stop. Too much speed on a curve, a set of points in the wrong position or an obstacle on the line has far worse consequences than on a conventional line. That is why high-speed lines have automatic speed supervision and are usually fenced.
Timeline
In date order. Where we have a dedicated page, the place name links to it.
| Date | Place | Train | Toll | Cause | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 January 1997 | Piacenza (Italy) | ETR 460 Pendolino | 8 dead | No investigation body at the time; press reports cite excessive speed | The Adige (press) |
| 3 June 1998 | Eschede (Germany) | ICE 1, ICE 884 | 101 dead | Broken wheel tyre; no independent investigation report | epd via evangelisch.de (press, 2013) |
| 23 October 2004 | Nagaoka, Chūetsu earthquake (Japan) | Shinkansen Toki 325 | No casualties (154 people on board) | Derailment caused by the earthquake | Cabinet Office of Japan |
| 19 December 2007 | Tossiat, Ain (France) | TGV 6561 Paris–Genève | 1 dead (the driver of the road convoy) | Abnormal road load stuck on a level crossing (BEA-TT) | BEA-TT, summary |
| 26 April 2008 | Landrücken tunnel (Germany) | ICE 885 | No deaths; 22 seriously and 17 slightly injured | Collision with a flock of sheep at the tunnel entrance (EUB) | EUB report of 14 May 2010 (unofficial copy) |
| 23 July 2011 | Wenzhou (China) | D301 and D3115 | 40 dead, 172 injured | Design faults in signalling equipment and poor handling after a lightning strike (State Council) | State Council report, reproduced by Sina |
| 24 July 2013 | Angrois, Santiago de Compostela (Spain) | Alvia 150/151 (class 730) | 80 dead according to the CIAF; the court ruled on 79 counts of manslaughter (press) | 179 km/h on a curve limited to 80 km/h; late braking after a work phone call (CIAF) | CIAF final report ; Público (press, appeal ruling of 23 January 2026) |
| 30 June 2015 | Odawara (Japan) | Shinkansen Nozomi 225 | 2 dead, 28 injured | Fire deliberately started by a passenger (JTSB) | JTSB report RA2016-5-2 |
| 14 November 2015 | Eckwersheim, Bas-Rhin (France) | TGV Dasye test trainset 744 | 11 dead, 21 seriously injured | 255 km/h on a 945 m radius curve after inappropriate braking (BEA-TT) | BEA-TT report, March 2017 |
| 14 April 2016 | Kumamoto (Japan) | Empty Shinkansen | No casualties | Derailment caused by the Kumamoto earthquake | JR Kyushu document published by MLIT |
| 8 December 2018 | Gangneung (South Korea) | KTX Gangneung–Séoul | No deaths; 15 passengers taken to hospital | Crossed points wiring, according to ARAIB findings reported in the press | JoongAng Daily (press) ; NewDaily (press) |
| 13 December 2018 | Marşandiz, Ankara (Turkey) | YHT Ankara–Konya | 9 dead | Points wrongly set, according to a TCDD inspection report quoted by the press | NTV (press) |
| 6 February 2020 | Livraga, Lodi (Italy) | Frecciarossa 1000, train 9595 | 2 dead | Points set to the diverging route after an actuator wiring error (DIGIFEMA) | DIGIFEMA final report |
| 5 March 2020 | Ingenheim, Bas-Rhin (France) | TGV 2350 Colmar–Paris | No deaths; 1 seriously and 21 slightly injured | Embankment slip on the LGV Est (BEA-TT) | BEA-TT report, January 2022 |
| 5 January 2022 | Yeongdong (South Korea) | KTX-Sancheon | No deaths; 7 injured | Wheel fatigue fracture, according to ARAIB findings reported in the press | Korean press |
| 16 March 2022 | Shiroishi, Fukushima earthquake (Japan) | Shinkansen Yamabiko 223 | No deaths; 6 slightly injured | Derailment caused by car bodies rocking in the earthquake (JTSB) | JTSB report RA2024-1-1 |
| 4 June 2022 | Rongjiang, Guizhou (China) | D2809 | 1 dead, 8 injured | Mudslide on the track, according to the press; no official report found | Sina (press) |
| 11 February 2025 | Hamburg-Harburg (Germany) | ICE 613 | 1 dead; 1 seriously and 23 slightly injured | Collision with a semi-trailer on a level crossing; BEU investigation ongoing | BEU interim report |
| 18 January 2026 | Adamuz, Córdoba (Spain) | Iryo 6189 and Alvia 2384 | 46 dead (Junta de Andalucía figure of 30 January 2026, via EFE) | Investigation ongoing; the CIAF found a broken rail (provisional data, according to the press) | RTVC/EFE (press) ; Diario de León (press) |
| 7 April 2026 | Mazingarbe, Pas-de-Calais (France) | TGV 7304 Dunkerque–Paris | 1 dead (the TGV driver), according to the press | Collision with an abnormal road load on a level crossing; BEA-TT investigation ongoing | BEA-TT, investigation opened ; Le Temps (press) |
| 28 October 2026 | Urda, Toledo (Spain) | AVE 2080 and Iryo 6076 | 69 dead, provisional CIAF figure (29 October 2026) | CIAF investigation ongoing; no official cause | El Pespunte (press, quoting the CIAF) |
Tolls and causes taken from the sources listed, checked on 30 October 2026. Figures for Adamuz and Urda may still change.
The deadliest accidents
- Eschede, Germany (3 June 1998): 101 dead. ICE 884 from Munich to Hamburg derailed after a wheel tyre broke. There is no public report from an independent investigation body.
- Angrois, Spain (24 July 2013): 80 dead, according to the CIAF. The Alvia entered a curve limited to 80 km/h at 179 km/h. The 2024 judgment, upheld on appeal in January 2026, covered 79 counts of manslaughter, according to the press. In 2016, ERA found that the investigation had not been carried out independently, as staff from Renfe, Adif and Ineco were part of the team, according to the press.
- Urda, Spain (28 October 2026): 69 dead, provisional figure. An AVE ran into the back of an Iryo train, which was stationary according to the press. The investigation has only just started.
- Adamuz, Spain (18 January 2026): 46 dead. An Iryo train derailed and was hit by an Alvia. The CIAF has not published its final report.
- Wenzhou, China (23 July 2011): 40 dead. One high-speed train ran into the back of another after a signalling failure.
- Eckwersheim, France (14 November 2015): 11 dead. A TGV test train overturned on a curve at 255 km/h, France's worst TGV accident. Read our page on Eckwersheim.
What these accidents changed
- Speed supervision where it matters. After Angrois, the CIAF recommended balises that brake the train automatically if it approaches a speed restriction too fast, and fixed signs for those restrictions.
- Cab recordings. Both the CIAF (Angrois) and BEA-TT (Eckwersheim) recommended recording sound and communications in the cab.
- Test runs. After Eckwersheim, SNCF banned anyone outside the test teams from test trains, and BEA-TT made six recommendations on how tests are prepared and run.
- Points and their wiring. After Livraga, DIGIFEMA recommended functional tests of point actuator connections and a documented check that the points are really where the signalling says they are before reopening.
- Embankments. After Ingenheim, BEA-TT recommended making the at-risk slopes of the LGV Est safe and tightening geotechnical requirements for earthworks.
Investigations under way
Urda, Spain (28 October 2026). At about 08:53, at kilometre 118 of the Madrid–Andalusia high-speed line between Mora and Urda, Renfe AVE 2080 ran into the back of Iryo train 6076. Spain's rail accident investigation body, the CIAF, gave a provisional toll of 69 dead on 29 October, according to the Spanish press. No official cause has been established. Read our report.
Adamuz, Spain (18 January 2026). Iryo 6189 from Málaga to Madrid derailed near Adamuz (Córdoba) and Alvia 2384 from Madrid to Huelva hit it. The Andalusian government put the toll at 46 dead on 30 January 2026. According to the press, the CIAF found that the outer rail had broken, based on provisional data. Its final report has not been published. Read our report.
Figures checked on 30 October 2026.
FAQ
What was the worst high-speed rail accident?
Of the accidents on this page, Eschede in Germany on 3 June 1998, with 101 dead.
Has a TGV ever crashed in France?
Yes. The worst was at Eckwersheim on 14 November 2015, when a test train derailed: 11 dead and 21 seriously injured, according to BEA-TT. The line was not yet open to passengers. Other TGVs have hit road vehicles stuck on level crossings on conventional lines, at Tossiat in 2007 and Mazingarbe in 2026.
Who investigates rail accidents?
Every EU country has an independent investigation body, separate from the courts. Its job is not to blame anyone but to find the causes and make recommendations. Criminal proceedings can run in parallel.
Why is there no official cause yet for Urda and Adamuz?
Investigations usually take months or years: recorder analysis, tests on the train and track, interviews. Until the CIAF publishes its final report, we only report established facts.
Sources: investigation bodies
- France: BEA-TT
- Spain: CIAF, the rail accident investigation commission (its final reports are also published by ERA, below)
- Italy: DIGIFEMA
- Japan: Japan Transport Safety Board
- European Union: European Union Agency for Railways (ERA), which publishes national investigation reports
Read next: ERTMS and ETCS explained.
