Summary
A passenger on London’s Elizabeth line was forced to run several meters along a platform at Ealing Broadway station after his hand became trapped in the closing doors of a departing train on 24 November.
Railway staff intervened to pull him away, and the train stopped after moving 17 meters. The passenger sustained minor injuries.
The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) is investigating the incident, part of a series of similar “trap and drag” cases, to improve safety measures.
Transport for London and the operator, MTR, are cooperating fully.
The Elizabeth line is already built with platform screen doors, although I believe they’re only on underground sections. I don’t know enough about this station to say whether it had them; I expect not.
Platform screen doors tend to be used underground mainly for airflow management. They are not primarily for safety.
They work less well outside. No overhead structure to anchor to, weather has a larger impact (particularly snow/ice), and they can become something to climb rather than an obstacle.
Some metro projects in India are using them outside though.
I haven’t personally traveled on this station before but looking online at pictures it seems this station is overground not underground and doesn’t have the platform screen doors.
I do know other lines have started to add platform screen doors as well on the London Underground namely Waterloo Underground Station and the Jubilee line.
On underground lines, the PSDs are mostly for air-sealing. It allows you to air-condition the platforms without trying to cool the tunnels, and it helps the piston effect of moving trains pull air through the tunnels, rather than just swirl air around each platform.
Also probably helps for fire engineering.