The Naka-Meguro train disaster occurred in Japan on 8 March 2000. Five people were killed and 63 were injured when a derailed Eidan Hibiya Line train was sideswiped by a second train near Naka-Meguro Station.
Accident events
At around 9 a.m. on 8 March 2000, the rearmost car of an eight-car Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line (now Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line) train from Kita-Senju to Kikuna derailed on the tight curve immediately before Naka-Meguro Station. The derailed car was then hit by the fifth and sixth cars of an eight-car Tobu Railway train travelling in the opposite direction from Naka-Meguro to Takenotsuka.
Factors
It is generally the case that the distance between the tracks less the width of the carriages only allows about 600mm, so that if a train derails on the same side as the other track, it will almost certainly be foul of the other track, making a collision inevitable. Track circuits do not detect derailments, so it requires prompt action from the train crew to warn the opposing train.
One must also ask why didn't the ATP or ATO if fitted failed to prevent the overspeed in the first place.
See also
References
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Japan