Network Rail and rail services company Amey have pleaded guilty to safety offences linked to the partial derailment of a high-speed train. Nobody was hurt when the Swansea-to- London express derailed at 120mph near Southall Station, in November 2002.
But the Health and Safety Executive said the firms exposed 450 passengers to risks by not maintaining the track.
Magistrates transferred the case to the Old Bailey where the maximum penalty is an unlimited fine.
The train, which had been travelling at 120mph, carried on for another two miles before coming to a halt.
The maximum penalty the magistrates court could have imposed for a single offence breaching Section Three of the Health and Safety at Work Act is a �20,000 fine.
A date for the Old Bailey hearing has yet to be set.
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