THE driver of the train involved in a collision at Lewes station was still being interviewed by accident

investigators this afternoon.

Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott ordered an immediate investigation into last night's crash amid fears the driver may have passed through a red light.

The Connex commuter train, which had left Gatwick for Hastings at 6.32pm and had 11 passengers on board, hit a

slow-moving empty Brighton-bound train at Lewes station at 7.24pm.

The accident, less than a fortnight after the Paddington rail disaster, left one person injured and ten more passengers suffering from shock.

The empty train had been travelling towards Brighton from Seaford when it was hit by the Hastings train.

One passenger suffered whiplash injury but the other people on board were not

seriously hurt.

A statement issued by

Mr Prescott's Department for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, said:"We are extremely concerned that another crash has occurred so soon after Paddington.

"However, we are relieved that no one was seriously hurt in this case.

"The Health and Safety Executive is investigating the circumstances surrounding tonight's accident and the Deputy Prime Minister has called for an urgent report from the Railway Inspectorate to be on his desk in the morning."

British Transport Police confirmed they were investigating whether the driver of the train had passed a red signal, renewing concerns over safety on Britain's railways.

A BTP spokesman said: "The passenger train hit the other train. That is not in question.

"What is not clear is why. It is possible he went through a red signal."

The Gatwick-Hastings train was fitted with an Automatic Warning System which sounds a horn and provides a visual warning if the train has run a red light.

If it is not cancelled by the

driver, then brakes are automatically applied.

The same system was employed on the train that allegedly ran a red light prior to the Paddington crash.

Connex and Railtrack currently are testing the new Train Protection Warning System on the Tunbridge Wells-Hastings line, a system that stops the train before it goes through red.

Last night, the commuter train had been due to leave Victoria but instead departed from Gatwick ten minutes late because of problems in London.

Bernard Jenkin, Shad-ow Transport Minister, said: "This is a matter of very grave concern.

"I trust that the Government will be setting up a suitable inquiry into this accident in order to add to the conclusions that will be drawn from the Paddington and Southall crashes."

The signal at the junction near Lewes station was not among 22 which were highlighted by the Health and Safety Executive after the Paddington rail disaster but questions are being asked about whether the signal system failed.

Lewes Lib Dem MP Norman Baker, speaking from the scene, said: "The public will be very concerned at this latest breach of rail safety.

"The need to be extra vigilant after Paddington is clearly not being fully observed."

Hastings MP Michael Foster said: "Obviously this latest incident is of enormous concern, coming so early after

the Paddington train crash. I'm amazed it happened.

"I support the Government's determination to ensure that rail safety is not handled internally by Railtrack because they and the train operating companies are clearly not doing their jobs."

Jimmy Knapp, head of the RMT transport workers' union, said the accident would stiffen the resolve of his members who are due to strike later this month over safety.

He said: "It is a timely reminder that you can't take the question of installing the best protection systems for granted."

Sussex Assistant Chief Constable Tony Lake described the collision as a "glancing blow".

Shocked passengers at the scene were comforted by emergency workers and given coffee before being taken on to their destinations by minibus or taxi.

Compartments lay empty, dark and silent after the crash. A ceiling light cover lay on the ground inside the front of the carriage and in the driver's compartment, an electronic communication box was still flashing the message "General Stop".

The driver's left-side compartment was undamaged but just feet away, the front was pushed in, showing how close he had come to injury.

The window had caved in and below was the smashed housing for jumper power cables, used for hooking up with other carriages.

Damage was extensive but a former train driver at the scene said: "The train was travelling at just 15mph when it crashed.

"Had it been going much faster, the consequences don't bear thinking about."

Rail engineers spent the night at the scene, and when dawn broke the full extent of the damage was visible. At 7.30am a diesel engine moved some of the carriages a few yards into Lewes station.

Connex is running a shuttle service between Lewes and Brighton. Special buses are running between Lewes and Berwick.

Long queues built up outside Lewes station, and the shuttle buses were packed.

Soon after 11am the Gatwick to Hastings train finally left the scene of last night's crash, heading westwards towards a Brighton depot, where Connex staff were expected to carry out thorough checks.

Connex station manager Gareth Leslie said it was hoped services could re-start this afternoon.

But long delays are still expected on services until well into the night.

He said: "Obviously it will take some time for services to get back in sync totally because some trains are currently in the wrong place as a result of the accident."

Repairs would be needed for the live conductor rail displaced during the collision, but only a "very small area" of track was damaged and this would not seriously affect services.

Many passengers attempting to commute to London gave up theirjourneys when faced with this morning's delays.

Legal secretary Diana Tuckett, 31, commuting to London Bridge, gave up her journery at 8am after spending one and a half hours from Seaford to Lewes.

She said: "I got a coach here. Then I tried to get on a crowded shuttle train to Brightion, but it was too packed. This is just too much, it's going to be hell this evening."

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