The Granville-Paris Express was hauled by steam locomotive No. 721, a 2-4-0 (type 120 in the French style of notation). On October 22, 1895, the locomotive crashed in the train because it was several minutes late and the driver was trying to make up for lost time. It entered the station too fast and the train air brake failed. After running through the buffer stop, the train crossed the station concourse and crashed through the station wall; the locomotive fell onto the Place de Rennes below, where it stood on its nose. A woman in the street below was killed by falling masonry. The event occurred during 's dream when the Train Engineer and the Train Engineer Assistant were driving the locomotive too fast and were trying to stop the train because Hugo found the key on the tracks. The key was in the shape of a heart and was the key to automaton. In the movie the locomotive was pulling 2 luggage vans and 4 passenger carriages. There is a goof in the movie. In the close up of the locomotive's wheels, we can see that it has the wrong valve gear and it has 2 front wheels and 1 driving wheels. The crash was the inspiration for the Thomas & Friends episode A Better View For Gordon.
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