UK - Warning over level crossing risks

[John Ashworth]

NB: The BBC site (see link below) has CCTV footage of near misses at level crossings in the UK - amazing how stupid some people are.

Warning over level crossing risks
BBC
Page last updated at 13:43 GMT, Monday, 9 February 2009

The number of cases of motorists taking dangerous and illegal risks at UK level crossings is at a four-year high.

Figures released by Network Rail show there were more than 3,400 cases of level-crossing misuse last year, disrupting thousands of trains.

It said trains had hit 20 vehicles that tried to drive around barriers after crossing lights had come on, and 15 people had died in accidents.

Network Rail is urging changes in the law to toughen sentences for offenders.

It says 95% of accidents at level crossings are caused by misuse or errors including drivers ignoring barriers, warning lights and alarms.

Every week, an average of more than three motorists and five pedestrians were involved in a near-miss.

This is said to have caused delays totalling 55 days to trains and passengers, costing Network Rail about £1.8m.

It added that the real cost of level crossing misuse was much higher once damage to trains and tracks and staff time was taken into account.

Court sentences

A television and radio advertising campaign warning of the dangers, which ran last November, is airing again this month.

Network Rail has also released fresh footage of a train missing a car by inches after the vehicle drove in front of the oncoming train and another of a man's shoe being knocked off his foot by a passing train as he ran across its path.

It wants longer driving bans for those jailed for motoring offences.

Chief executive Iain Coucher said: "Every week we see people who ignore warning signs and lights or drive round barriers at level crossings just to save a few minutes.

"This behaviour has the potential for massive damage, disruption and death.

"We think that the judiciary penalties received need to reflect the seriousness of these crimes and are calling on the judiciary to consider all these factors when handing down sentences."

Bob Crow, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, called for level crossings to be phased out.

"Level crossings are a 19th Century solution that should have no place on a 21st Century railway, and year on year there are too many unnecessary deaths and serious injuries.

"Network Rail should commit itself to a 10-year programme of eliminating crossings, replacing them with bridges or underpasses, so that trains no longer have to mix with road traffic or pedestrians."

[Mike Haslam]

It is interesting to note that railways should find the money to build bridges etc and not the road authorities. I always thought that the railway reserve was private (state eventually!) land.

Seems to me to be a "political" answer.

[John Ashworth]

Level crossing maniacs put lives on the line

Jon Henley
The Guardian, Wednesday 11 February 2009

Tricky things, level crossings. On the one hand, no one could ever condone the kind of idiocy on display in those terrifying CCTV clips released by Network Rail this week, in which a succession of cars and pedestrians miraculously escape collisions with trains by less than the proverbial hair's breadth.

On the other, level crossings are inherently dangerous. Rather charmingly, Network Rail - which is calling for stiffer penalties for misuse - calls them a "legacy feature". Says a spokesman: "If we were to rebuild the rail network today, we would do so without level crossings at all. They represent the biggest single risk to the safe running of the railways, not only to people who misuse them but to train passengers."

Britain has more than 7,600 level crossings. Last year there were more than 3,400 cases of misuse, a four-year high; trains hit 20 vehicles that tried to drive around barriers after crossing lights had come on, and 15 people died. On average, three motorists and five pedestrians were involved in near misses every week.

Network Rail is unsure exactly why more people are trying to jump level crossing barriers. "It may be that it's just down to there being more road users," says the spokesman. "Or that people increasingly feel they are simply a nuisance. We all hesitate for a second when an ordinary traffic light turns amber: should I stop, should I put my foot down? At a level crossing, if you put your foot down you are quite literally putting your life on the line."

But 5% of incidents are not the result of misuse. Crossing in icy conditions, in fog or in bright sunlight can all prove fatal.

Reg Thompson, whose daughter Charlotte, 14, was killed with her friend Olivia Bazlinton at a crossing in Essex three years ago, says some warning systems are inadequate. They "weren't messing about", Thompson says - the girls seem to have assumed the warning lights and bell applied to a train that had just pulled in to the station, not to a through train coming from the opposite direction.

The only failsafe answer is to replace level crossings with bridges or underpasses, but at an estimated £1m-£2m a throw, that's not going to happen tomorrow. In the meantime, when the lights start flashing and the bell starts ringing, just stop.

[Steve Appleton]

Ellimination of most level crossings may be practical in the long-term in the UK, but what about huge countries with low traffic volumes and, like South Africa, even fewer trains? Ellimination of the majority of the remaining level crossings in SA would simply be unaffordable. Even installing lights and barriers cannot be justified at the vast majority of them. And, of course, where there are stop signs, lights and good visibility, fatalities continue to occur, such as the one on the Stellenbosch line recently. Perhaps this is a psychological issue, wherein encountering trains approaching level crossings is such a rarity (in SA anyway) that motorists, not used to the phenomenon and not having practised stopping at crossings since their driver's tests, simply freeze up mentally, unable to make a decision and take action, therefore driving on regardless. Nonetheless, it seems that the world over, some motorists willalways be risk-taking motorists and deliberately drive into danger, taking a chance, trusting their infallible skill and judgement, without a thought of the consequences if they are wrong.

[John Ashworth]

On lines which have fast and frequent train services, as one finds in much of Europe, then the level crossing probably really should become a thing of the past. Obviously one would never build one on a line which carries 300+ kph trains, but even for fairly "slow" trains 160 kph isn't unusual nowadays. But I agree with Steve, the main problem is psychological. For some reason people all over the world don't seem to take level crossings seriously, not even as seriously as they take normal traffic lights at a road junction.

[John Ashworth]

Here is Network Rail's own news release (link):

News Releases: National
TOUGH SENTENCES NEEDED AS LEVEL CROSSING LAW BREAKING REACHES FIVE YEAR HIGH

Monday 9 February 2009 08:00

The number of people breaking the law at level crossings is at a five year high, Network Rail revealed today. Running risks at level crossings should come with tough consequences, and Network Rail is calling on judges and magistrates to stamp down hard on motorists jumping lights and dodging barriers, to act as a clear deterrent.

Last year, over 55 days of delays to trains and passengers were caused by level crossing misuse, costing Network Rail around £1.8million – money that can’t be invested into the railway. The real cost to the industry far exceeds this, as it does not include actual damage to trains or tracks or staffing time and cost.

Network Rail chief executive Iain Coucher said: “The toughest consequence of breaking the law at a level crossing is to lose your life – thankfully that doesn’t happen very often. But every week we see people who ignore warning signs and lights or drive round barriers at level crossings just to save a few minutes. This behaviour has the potential for massive damage, disruption and death. We think that the judiciary penalties received need to reflect the seriousness of these crimes, and are calling on the judiciary to consider all these factors when handing down sentences.”

Network Rail welcomes the changes to the Coroners and Justice Bill, currently going through Parliament, in particular the proposal to establish a new Sentencing Council for England and Wales, with strengthened remit to promote consistency in sentencing practice. It also welcomes the amendment to the Road Traffic offenders Act (1988) to extend the length of the period of a driving disqualification where a custodial sentence is also imposed. Network Rail will be looking to work with Government, parliamentarians and interested parties to see how this important piece of legislation can support tougher action on level crossing offences.

Last year, there were more than 3400 incidents of misuse at level crossings. On average, more than three motorists a week were involved in a near miss, where a train narrowly avoided missing them because they ignored warning signs and lights or weaved round barriers. There were 20 collisions between trains and motor vehicles for those that didn’t beat the lights.

Pedestrians were also putting themselves at risk with more than five a week involved in near misses. If a train hits a person at high speed, there is almost always only one tragic outcome. Sadly, 15 people lost their lives at level crossings in 2008.

Network Rail’s hard hitting tv and radio advertising campaign, which launched in November 2008, is again running across Britain this month. It illustrates in graphic detail the tragic consequences of misusing level crossings by both motorists and pedestrians.

Mr Coucher added: “We hope that increased awareness of the dangers of taking risks at level crossings, coupled with tough sentences for those caught breaking the law, will act as a deterrent and help bring down the number of offences and ultimately save lives.”

Notes to Editors:

STATISTICS

Year Number of recorded level crossing offences
2003 2158
2004 2348
2005 2839
2006 3221
2007 2896
2008 3479

The work on Network Rail’s Don’t Run the Risk campaign runs in parallel with other Network Rail and industry initiatives to minimise the safety risk at level crossings. These include:

- Network Rail’s dedicated community safety team which aims to reduce railway crime and provide young people with positive activities to fill their time
- Development of solutions which could lead to the replacement of some crossings
- Development of obstacle detection systems
- Developing better and cost-effective ways of detecting and recording level crossings misuse
- Working with the Police and Crown Prosecution Service to improve the prosecution of offenders

FACTS ABOUT LEVEL CROSSINGS
- Level crossings are safe if used correctly
- 95% of accidents at level crossings are caused by misuse or error– i.e. drivers ignoring red signals, barriers and klaxons
- There are over 7,600 level crossings both on public and private land that cut across the UK railway network.
- British deaths at level crossings are low by international standards – amongst the lowest in Europe and worldwide

[M. Hardy-Randall]

Problems like those already mentioned also happen in Switzerland. Last year an HGV driver took on a relatively slow moving [60 km/h] TGV, the train was slightly damaged but the lorry was just the opposite.

This is a photo of a collision that occurred today at a point to the north of Zürich. The car driver did not survive the encounter with the large SBB Cargo shunting diesel working on the oil storage section of an industrial branch line. Photo is from the Zürich Kantonal Politzei.

http://www.bahnonline.ch/wp/8033/nieder ... #more-8033 Double click the photo at the top for a larger size.

Malcolm