Back in time

Rail accidents

Collisions, derailments and other railway accidents recorded in Wikidata, from the early days of steam to this year, nearly all with a Wikipedia article.

Open the live map

What you see

  • Each accident as a teal disaster mark where it happened.
  • A page for each, with its date, the deaths and injuries where Wikidata gives them, and its Wikipedia summary.
  • Opened from this page, the map plays 1850 to today.

Where the data comes from

  • WikidataItems that are railway accidents, with a date and a place; 96% have a Wikipedia article.

Taken from Wikidata when the set is imported; an accident added there since appears after the next import.

Good to know

  • The United States, Britain and Germany hold about a third of them.
  • About three in ten are placed only at an area.
  • Deaths are given for nearly nine in ten; the map draws every accident at one size.

Goes well with