Trespass incident at Broxbourne (03/06/26)

[mr_moo]

Hi,

I'm currently sat on a train in a queue behind a line closure for trespassers.

The driver has said it's "not looking like a good day" and that there "is a trespasser who is refusing to move" on the tracks ahead and that the tracks are closed.

Looking at OTT it shows there is a substantial line block in place, that has been taken around 3 trains:



Trespassers are nothing new but I've not seen a line block taken around 3 trains before. No idea if this means it's major or just unfortunate positioning of trains when the lines needed to be closed, but it certainly stuck me as unusual.

Here's hoping we get moving at some point...

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 3 Jun 2026 ==

The driver has now told us that it's a man with a baseball bat who is attacking anyone who comes near!
Still, we've also just got moving again so they presumably sorted him out.
Fun times.

 

[LCC106]

I think similar happened on EMR Intercity a couple of weeks ago. Man damaging anything in sight.

 

[mr_moo]

Madness. Quite incredible that someone would do that.

 

[mr_moo]

Whilst I feel some of these incidents take a long time to resolve and maybe we don't handle them well, I also feel that we have no idea why he did that.

Perhaps he was on drugs.
Perhaps he was having a mental breakdown.
Perhaps he was just out to cause disruption and have a laugh.
Perhaps this was a last cry for help from someone who has been repeatedly failed by mental health support systems and care that is severely under-resourced in this country.

In any case, I absolutely do not wish that he was killed by any means.

What I feel we need, and must be able to be designed somehow, is a non-lethal restraint system that can be fired at them, e.g. a net or something, and/or a sedative dart or something that would restrain and/or neutralise a person who present a threat and/or is causing substantial disruption, without significantly harming them or placing them or others in greater danger.

Anyway, this thread is rapidly going off topic, I posted as I was mostly surprised at how big a line block was put in place and the fact that it was taken around 3 trains.