[4] At the time of the accident, British Rail passenger trains between Glasgow Queen Street and Edinburgh Waverley were operated by the push–pull technique with a single British Rail Class 47 locomotive located at one end of the train at all times[5][6] – the locomotive usually pulled the carriages from Glasgow to Edinburgh and pushed them on the return journey.

[9] On Monday 30 July 1984, a westbound express train, the 17:30 service from Edinburgh Waverley to Glasgow Queen Street[10] – consisting of a British Rail Class 47/7 diesel–electric locomotive pushing five Mark 3 coaches and fronted by a DBSO (no.

[1] The cow was destroyed on impact, but a significant part of the carcass, later thought to be a leg bone, became trapped under the leading bogie of the DBSO, lifting it off the track and derailing it.

This problem was to be revisited in the Great Heck accident in 2001, where a leading coach of a train being powered from the rear was again derailed by an object (this time a motor vehicle) on the line.

The inquiry[8] made recommendations which were followed; the main ones of which were: In 2009, on the 25th anniver­sary of the accident, a memorial plaque at Polmont station was erected and unveiled by Falkirk Council, First ScotRail and the local emergency services, to remember those who died and were injured.