INVESTIGATORS have been criticised after it emerged the cause of a Suffolk train crash has yet to be established almost a year after the accident.Concerns were last night raised by community leaders and a commuter about the length of time it has taken to complete the probe into January's crash at Sudbury train station.

INVESTIGATORS have been criticised after it emerged the cause of a Suffolk train crash has yet to be established almost a year after the accident.

Concerns were last night raised by community leaders and a commuter about the length of time it has taken to complete the probe into January's crash at Sudbury train station.

South Suffolk MP Tim Yeo said: “I think it is quite understandable that commuters are worried and there should be local concern about the delay. I would urge rail investigators to publish their findings as quickly as possible.

“Given the importance of the line and the station to Sudbury, we don't want to cast any doubt in people's minds. A lot of commuters use the service every day and they need to have every confidence in it.

“I think given the scale of the event and the seriousness, in terms of Sudbury, it is very surprising that the investigation has taken so long.”

In January, passengers told how they heard a “loud bang” and were thrown to the floor when the train, carrying an estimated 80 people, hit the buffers at Sudbury's station.

Bosses at rail operator One, which operates the service, immediately moved to reassure commuters and said initial investigations had suggested brake failure was not to blame.

The company last night said: “We are not concerned about the length of time it takes to carry out the investigation.”

But one commuter, who did not want to be named, told the EADT: “There is concern because a year is quite a long time. While there have not been any repeat problems since the accident, we need to make sure any lessons will be learned.”

A spokesman for the Rail Accident Investigations Branch defended the time elapsed since the accident and said they would not be drawn on how long it will take for the findings to be published.

He added: “Different investigations take different lengths of time so we never stick to a certain timeline. We can reassure the public that we treat every investigation thoroughly and our findings will be published in due course.”