UK: Car driven down main railway line

[John Ashworth]

Car driven down main railway line

9:00am Saturday 24th March 2012 in Local By Richard Vernalls
Worcester News

A SUSPECTED drink-driver took a wrong-turn at a level crossing in Worcester and drove 30 yards along the track.

Thankfully he was spotted by a passer-by who alerted the authorities and trains were stopped before they reached the Henwick Road crossing in St John’s.

As a result the silver BMW saloon was removed, but only after early morning commuter trains had been delayed.

Police were alerted at 4.06am yesterday. When they arrived they found the car halted on the railway track, 30 yards from the crossing.

The driver of the car, a 31-year-old man from Worcester, was still at the scene and he was arrested on suspicion of driving while unfit through drink. The man was expected to be questioned at the city’s main Castle Street police station as your Worcester News went to press yesterday evening.

Neighbours said they were woken by the flashing blue lights of several police cars and vans, which blocked Henwick Road in either direction.

“I saw a silver car a fair way along the line and I saw police around it,” said one woman, who declined to be named. “There were about eight policemen, but I didn’t see the driver of the car.

“The police had parked a van across this end of the road, and a car across the other blocking it.”

Another man said the car had made it “20 or 30 yards along the line, straddling both trackways”.

“I wasn’t expecting to see that at 4.20am in the morning,” he said.

“I have no idea how the driver managed to get down there in that car.

“It doesn’t usually get busy with trains here until the first service comes through at 5.15am”. He said a Roger’s Rescue recovery truck was used to winch the car off the rails – a job completed at 5.45am.

A Network Rail spokesman said the line was checked for damage before it was reopened. Two trains running between Hereford and Worcester were delayed 18 minutes while the car was removed, and line checks performed. “We are taking this very seriously, as an incident which could have had a serious impact on the safe running of the railway,” she said. “We will be working closely with the police as investigations continue.”

A British Transport Police spokesman said: “On arrival, officers found a silver BMW car on the railway tracks.

“The driver of the car, a 31-year-old man from Worcester, was arrested on suspicion of driving while unfit to do so through drink. He is currently in custody helping police with their enquiries.”

No trains had been running at the time overnight due to engineering works according to the BTP, however Network Rail did point out that services can be changed at any time.