More level crossing madness

[wintonian]

Bus driver under investigation after level crossing barrier smash

A BUS driver is under investigation after a double-decker smashed through a level crossing barrier causing traffic gridlock.

Witnesses said the Bluestar bus failed to stop when a safety barrier came down at the crossing in Junction Road, Totton at about 9am on Friday

...

The crossing was the scene on Wednesday of a dramatic rescue by two schoolboys of an elderly man whose mobility scooter became trapped under the barrier.

 

[HugePilchard]

Playing devil's avocado for a second...

Is there any chance the barriers could be at fault? Like if the timings on the crossing were set wrong, and the barrier started to drop at exactly the same time as the yellow light showed? How infalible are the control electronics on this sort of thing - is it factory set, or is there space for someone to bugger it up when they install the kit?

 

[Oracle]

I regret to say that I have seen some sheer lunacy at that crossing, including a young driver overtaking four cars on double-white lines that had stopped for the lights and zooming just before the barriers started coming down. The problem is that it sometimes seems that the barriers go down long before the train arrives so regulars think that they have plenty of time to get through and can't be bothered to wait a longish time for the train.

 

[John Webb]

Playing devil's avocado for a second...

Is there any chance the barriers could be at fault? Like if the timings on the crossing were set wrong, and the barrier started to drop at exactly the same time as the yellow light showed? How infalible are the control electronics on this sort of thing - is it factory set, or is there space for someone to bugger it up when they install the kit?

Highly unlikely that there was a problem with the controls - these are of robust construction and well established. I don't know this crossing myself but would expect it is monitored in some way either directly or by CCTV. Errors by uncontrolled vehicle drivers are the cause of most crossing mishaps, although one recent incident - see http://www.raib.gov.uk/publications/current_investigations_register/110904_ufton.cfm seems to have involved a slip-up on the railway side in some way.

 

[balne-wonderer]

Maybe not the right thread to post this but had an incident the other day, see what you make of this.

I had pulled up to a crossing just as the yellow light and then red light sequence started before the barriers dropped. I wasn’t driving fast so had plenty of time to pull up and stop, no problem. I know the crossing well and knew the train could take a while to go past so I turned off my engine, I was also aware that the crossing I was at often stays down for long periods as several trains pass in a short space of time. A train passed and the barriers were lifted by the man in the signal box and I crossed the railway. However, as soon as I cleared the crossing the barriers went down again and observing in my rear view mirror the next train passed within 10 seconds, that is not an exaggeration at all. Obviously, I know that the man in the signal box was doing me a favour by letting me cross but it seemed like a very small window to do it. What if I had stalled on the tracks? That train never ever would have stopped in time. Are decisions like this left to the discretion of the crossing keeper or is there some kind procedure in place? I appreciate he had saved me a decent amount of waiting time but is that really the point?

 

[nr_signaller]

I cannot properly comment as I do not know the exact type of crossing but if it full barriers worked by the signaller the lowering sequence takes place, the signaller checks crossing is clear, then presses crossing clear button which clears signals for the train on approach to the crossing. If you had stalled on the crossing he would have not pressed crossing clear therefore train would have stopped at red signal on approach to crossing!

That is generally the normal operation of that sort of crossing.

There could have been many reasons for the short amount of time, train just approaching protecting signal at danger, clears to green on approach and driver powers back up?

As long as signaller has seen barriers are down and crossing is clear for the train and the train is correctly obeying signal aspects it does not really matter imo

 

[Oracle]

The Junction Road LC has CCTV on posts that are supposed to monitor the crossing. There are no cameras there to nab red-light dodgers.

 

[TheSlash]

Traffic does back up for a fair distance either side of the crossing.

 

[Oracle]

..and causes gridlock in Totton High Street and roads off it.

 

[wintonian]

..and causes gridlock in Totton High Street and roads off it.

Very true, however I have always found it surprising that I haven’t yet seen anyone misuse it.

 

[TDK]

Maybe not the right thread to post this but had an incident the other day, see what you make of this.

I had pulled up to a crossing just as the yellow light and then red light sequence started before the barriers dropped. I wasn’t driving fast so had plenty of time to pull up and stop, no problem. I know the crossing well and knew the train could take a while to go past so I turned off my engine, I was also aware that the crossing I was at often stays down for long periods as several trains pass in a short space of time. A train passed and the barriers were lifted by the man in the signal box and I crossed the railway. However, as soon as I cleared the crossing the barriers went down again and observing in my rear view mirror the next train passed within 10 seconds, that is not an exaggeration at all. Obviously, I know that the man in the signal box was doing me a favour by letting me cross but it seemed like a very small window to do it. What if I had stalled on the tracks? That train never ever would have stopped in time. Are decisions like this left to the discretion of the crossing keeper or is there some kind procedure in place? I appreciate he had saved me a decent amount of waiting time but is that really the point?

This can happen from time to time, as long as it is a safe method of working you do not have anything to worry about, the barriers are generally interlocked with fixed signals, is there a station near the crossing where the train in question could have stopped?

 

[balne-wonderer]

This can happen from time to time, as long as it is a safe method of working you do not have anything to worry about, the barriers are generally interlocked with fixed signals, is there a station near the crossing where the train in question could have stopped?

The nearest station on the south line is about 20 miles, the line speed is 125mph at the crossing. I wasn’t going to name the actual crossing but I’m sure looking at my username the detectives have probably worked it out! It just struck me as a bit bizarre, of course I would have had no problem waiting for the next train to pass. I actually like stopping at that crossing because a 125mph train passing is quite something when you have no other background noise in such a small little village.

 

[Strat-tastic]

Looking on google maps at a level crossing in your vicinity, it seems that the camera car only just got over the crossing in time before the gates came down!

 

[michael769]

Is there any chance the barriers could be at fault? Like if the timings on the crossing were set wrong, and the barrier started to drop at exactly the same time as the yellow light showed? How infalible are the control electronics on this sort of thing - is it factory set, or is there space for someone to bugger it up when they install the kit?

It is normal practice to check the system with every incident so it is very unlikely that a problem (if it existed) was not discovered quickly.

The simple reality is that many drivers are habituated to running amber lights and even the first 1-2 secs of red and fail to consider that many crossing have a large physical barrier that will get in the way.

 

[wintonian]

Well it appears that the people at the BBC have just woken up:

Link to 2nd story on BBC

 

[HugePilchard]

Looking on google maps at a level crossing in your vicinity, it seems that the camera car only just got over the crossing in time before the gates came down!

He could have been going the other way, though.

That said, looking at the angle of some of the pictures, it's difficult to tell which side of the road he was on. The driver seems to prefer the middle, it would appear!

 

[Strat-tastic]

He could have been going the other way, though.

That said, looking at the angle of some of the pictures, it's difficult to tell which side of the road he was on. The driver seems to prefer the middle, it would appear!

If you 'travel' with the camera, the shot nearest the crossing shows the lights on red and the gates half down, then the next shot further away shows the gates fully down with the red lights still on, so he must have just got through in time and is now driving away from the crossing.

 

[balne-wonderer]

If you 'travel' with the camera, the shot nearest the crossing shows the lights on red and the gates half down, then the next shot further away shows the gates fully down with the red lights still on, so he must have just got through in time and is now driving away from the crossing.

There’s a second level crossing in the village that is gated and worked by a crossing keeper. Given how busy the line is and the length of time it takes the keeper to open the gates to road traffic then close them again I was once waiting for nearly 20 minutes. Still, I can’t say I was that disappointed

Does anyone else drive up to level crossings and secretly hope they’ll close so you have to stop for a train? I did a bit of spotting just south of Balne a few months ago. Sites I used were Fenwick LC, Moss LC, Joan Croft LC and even further south at Rossington. That section of ECML is superb for spotting, so many locations.

 

[Strat-tastic]

Does anyone else drive up to level crossings and secretly hope they’ll close so you have to stop for a train?

Not half, mate

 

[wintonian]

Yet another incident at the same level crossing. I am going to have to pop down there again sometime just to remind myself at how stupid some pepole in Totton are.

 

[Oracle]

Thursday early evening there was a massive gridlock around the area. I was expecting to see chancers as the barriers did not allow enough trafic to get through at times to clear the area.

 

[fsmr]

Does anyone else drive up to level crossings and secretly hope they’ll close so you have to stop for a train?.

Er no not anymore in Oakham, now its just 66s 66s 66s and the odd DMU TBH Oakham is now split in half as since the route learning HST incident a few years back when it spadded and crossed the main crossing by the box with the barrier still up as a policeman crossed on foot, the protecting signals were moved back 1/2 mile and all up stopping trains are checked and then unload in the Oakham platform with the crossing still down before they clear it.
Had an odd one the other night when the other crossing, Brooke road remote CCTV went down for about 2 mins and then got cleared with no train having gone over. Needless to say i checked both ways before crossing
With both crossings now signal protected (Brooke was AHB) the delays with two trains passing can be up to 20 minutes at a time which is why there are traffic cams on the high street crossing now. Once the Felixtowe Nuneaton container traffic gets up to full strength, it will be rare to see the barriers open