"Man clipped by train pulling into railway station"

[Jimini]

BBC article:

Blackfriars: Man clipped by train pulling into railway station

Govia Thameslink Railway is urging people to be safe on trains and at stations this Christmas.

www.bbc.co.uk

Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) has released CCTV footage of a man who was clipped by a train while he was waiting at London Blackfriars station as part of efforts to urge passengers to get home safely this festive period.

In the video, the man gets too close to the train as it pulls into the station, then stumbles into it and gets knocked to the ground while it is still moving.

He suffered no injuries but GTR, the UK's biggest rail operator, has warned passengers to take extra care at its stations and especially to stay behind the yellow line while waiting at platforms.

That could have ended a lot worse...

 

[martin2345uk]

I’d say that is one very lucky, and very silly, man.

 

[Deepgreen]

My immediate reaction was that he was drunk, but I have no source other than what I perceived from seeing the clip (in both senses!). IF that is the case, he was even luckier, and there is little that can be done to protect people in those circumstances (other than PEDs).

 

[43066]

My immediate reaction was that he was drunk, but I have no source other than what I perceived from seeing the clip (in both senses!). IF that is the case, he was even luckier, and there is little that can be done to protect people in those circumstances (other than PEDs).

Quite possibly. Or perhaps under the influence of something “harder” than drink? In the first few seconds of the video he appears to be standing facing the moving train, and then deliberately reaching out to touch it. That is not normal behaviour, even for a drunk person.

 

[Elecman]

Very lucky that he didn’t end up being pulled under the train and suffering life changing injuries

 

[Sheridan]

To say that he was clipped is a strange way of wording it when he moved towards the train which was moving along its highly predictable path! It removes any sense of the part he played in it. But a very lucky man however you want to word it!

 

[piers1234]

Very lucky that he didn’t end up being pulled under the train and suffering life changing injuries

Definitely would of resulted in death.

They was very lucky!!!!!

 

[StoneRoad]

One very lucky guy - could have been killed. Doesn't quite qualify for a Darwin Award.

But also a very stupid man, was standing far too close to the platform edge / the moving train.
And, even stupider for trying to touch - if that is what happened - a moving train.

 

[GatwickDepress]

Quite possibly. Or perhaps under the influence of something “harder” than drink? In the first few seconds of the video he appears to be standing facing the moving train, and then deliberately reaching out to touch it. That is not normal behaviour, even for a drunk person.

Was wondering if it was cocaine. Very common in the business world these days, especially as it seems the gentleman is wearing smart attire, and I've seen that sort of behaviour before from people before. Very lucky to be alive, really.

 

[Western Gaffer]

Was wondering if it was cocaine.

To paraphrase Grandmaster Flash from way back in 1983, "WhiteRailway Lines (Don't Do It)"....

 

[ainsworth74]

And, even stupider for trying to touch - if that is what happened - a moving train.

Looked to me like they lost their balance a bit (slight stumble) and instinctively reached forward to try and catch their balance but, of course, instead got thrown off their feet to nearly terminal fate due to the contact with the train.

 

[brad465]

And that ladies and gentlemen, is why you stay behind the yellow line "until the train has come to a complete stop."

 

[Trackman]

Looked to me like they lost their balance a bit (slight stumble) and instinctively reached forward to try and catch their balance but, of course, instead got thrown off their feet to nearly terminal fate due to the contact with the train.

I think so, too. They seem to step forward and touch the train to regain balance.

Quite possibly. Or perhaps under the influence of something “harder” than drink? In the first few seconds of the video he appears to be standing facing the moving train, and then deliberately reaching out to touch it. That is not normal behaviour, even for a drunk person.

Could be a medical condition.

 

[fishwomp]

I think so, too. They seem to step forward and touch the train to regain balance.

Could be a medical condition.

Exactly. Sure, he shouldn't have been beyond the yellow line, but that's not a hanging offence, yet. Folks can be awfully quick to make assumptions without the benefit of evidence or knowledge - it's too easy to cross the line into libel.

 

[dan4291]

And that ladies and gentlemen, is why you stay behind the yellow line "until the train has come to a complete stop."

Absolutely 100% agree.

 

[Discuss223]

Golly, this is terrifying. Thank goodness for the gap at this station being so narrow. Standing behind the yellow line could easily save your life.

 

[StoneRoad]

Back when I was a guard on a narrow-gauge railway in North Wales, on busy days / trains it was a bit nerve-wracking coming into the station; people seemed to think it's only a little train, it can't hurt me - and would crowd to the platform edge, leaving their shins almost in range of running boards ... as far as I know, no-one actually got hurt, but there were some close calls, despite announcements [and staff walking the edge asking people to step back].

 

[Lockwood]

"why didn't the driver steer to avoid him?", the masses bayed.

Saw the clip earlier. Feel bad for everyone involved there - the What If factor must be playing in some of their minds

 

[Malaxa]

Looks very CGI - it's amazing what can be done these days. If it were in the cinema you wouldn't believe it would you?

 

[Russel]

Was wondering if it was cocaine. Very common in the business world these days, especially as it seems the gentleman is wearing smart attire, and I've seen that sort of behaviour before from people before. Very lucky to be alive, really.

Without wanting to generalize, that did cross my mind, it's rife.

 

[Falcon1200]

Could be a medical condition.

Exactly. Sure, he shouldn't have been beyond the yellow line, but that's not a hanging offence, yet.

Would a medical condition cause a passenger to stand so close to the platform edge; From the video, they were the only person doing so?

 

[Lockwood]

Potentially - lack of spatial awareness, disorientation, inability to process the risk.

Lots of physical conditions could cause confusion and neuro symptoms that impact that. Or mental health conditions.

 

[7Sonofa7Son]

What a div. Just stay behind the yellow line, it's there for a damn good reason.

 

[QueensCurve]

What a div. Just stay behind the yellow line, it's there for a damn good reason

And the reason the yellow line was introduced, in 1976, on platforms where trains might pass at over 100mph, was to avoid people being disturbed by the aerodynamic effects of passing trains.

 

[Deepgreen]

And the reason the yellow line was introduced, in 1976, on platforms where trains might pass at over 100mph, was to avoid people being disturbed by the aerodynamic effects of passing trains.

However, for those under the influence (possibly the greatest risk category) a yellow line will make no difference. I don't know if this man was, however.

 

[fishwomp]

However, for those under the influence (possibly the greatest risk category) a yellow line will make no difference. I don't know if this man was, however.

People can also be very easily distracted and lose spatial awareness - mobile phones being a particular risk, along with headphones. We have ideas of what happened in this particular case, the release of the video was done to try and encourage others to be more aware.

Ultimately, short of prohibitively expensive platform barriers, we have to live with the risk. Simpler interventions are already not done due to cost - take this one for example - recently published:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...-occupied-pram-at-banbury-station-8-june-2024

At around 12:26, a passenger train travelling between Reading and York entered platform 2 of Banbury station, where it was due to stop. As the train arrived, a pram, carrying a 2-month-old infant, rolled towards the platform edge and came into contact with the train’s bodyside. This contact occurred while the train was moving at an estimated 35 mph (56 km/h) and caused the pram to spin and tip over, resulting in the infant falling from the pram onto the platform surface. The infant sustained a minor head injury as a result.

In a nutshell - plenty of old platforms slope towards the track - new platforms don't. In this incident, it was very lucky to have not proven fatal. The risk of sloping platforms is hardly a recently discovered phenomenon - and won't be resolved.

 

[Trackman]

Would a medical condition cause a passenger to stand so close to the platform edge; From the video, they were the only person doing so?

They did move forward though, my post was about don't assume someone is drunk/taken drugs and so on.

 

[43066]

They did move forward though, my post was about don't assume someone is drunk/taken drugs and so on.

Nobody has done that. However it’s pretty likely that a youngish suited and booted bloke, on Blackfriars platform in the evening, in the run up to Xmas, is going to have had a few. Nothing wrong with pointing that out, and that’s surely more likely to account for the behaviour in the video than a medical condition.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Would a medical condition cause a passenger to stand so close to the platform edge; From the video, they were the only person doing so?

Yes.

Potentially - lack of spatial awareness, disorientation, inability to process the risk.

Lots of physical conditions could cause confusion and neuro symptoms that impact that. Or mental health conditions.

The thing that immediately sprung to mind was low blood sugar. As someone with diabetes I can assure you that to the untrained eye it can resemble drunkenness.

They did move forward though, my post was about don't assume someone is drunk/taken drugs and so on.

Nobody has done that. However it’s pretty likely that a youngish suited and booted bloke, on Blackfriars platform in the evening, in the run up to Xmas, is going to have had a few. Nothing wrong with pointing that out, and that’s surely more likely to account for the behaviour in the video than a medical condition.

Several people have done exactly that- assumed the person was either drunk or on something else. Medical conditions such as diabetes can affect people of any age and income. Certainly the person's choice of attire has nothing to do with it.

 

[jon0844]

The video before the incident will no doubt shine a light into what the person was like and had been doing since entering the station, but wasn't going to be included in what was a short and succinct video for social media about standing clear.