Wantage Road level crossing in Grove has been closed following a series of dangerous incidents. Shocking images show people putting themselves, passengers and railway staff in danger, as they stop to take selfies on the high-speed railway line.
Accidental deaths on rail network rise by 26% compared to last year, prompting Network Rail and British Transport Police to launch new campaign targeting unsafe behaviour on the railway.
New hard-hitting safety films feature first responders sharing the devastating physical and emotional impacts of railway accidents
Wantage Road pedestrian level crossing in Grove has been closed in order for Network Rail and local authorities to work on implementing a permanent solution following a spate of dangerous incidents.
New images- taken last month at the crossing situated on the Great Western Main Line, on which trains can travel at speeds of up to 125mph- shows people stopping on the tracks to take photos. In July 2022, Network Rail released CCTV footage showing a group of children dancing and performing scooter tricks on the active railway line at the same crossing.
Emma Barry, level crossing manager for Network Rail, said: “These images show actions we see far too often across the rail network, of people acting in a reckless and incredibly dangerous manner at level crossings. The number of unsafe incidents at this particular crossing has left us with no choice but to take action and close it before a tragedy happens.
“The people in these photos not only put themselves at serious risk of death with their unsafe behaviour, they also put the safety of our staff and passengers at risk.
“Our new safety campaign with the British Transport Police is deliberately hard-hitting, at a time where accidental deaths on the railway are at a five-year high.
“We’re urging everyone to follow the guidance on using level crossings safely and stay alert when using them, particularly with the school summer holidays approaching.”
Twenty-four people lost their lives in preventable accidents on the railway last year. Five of those lives were lost at level crossings, while the other 19 were a result of crossing the railway at unauthorised locations.
Pedestrians were involved in 457 of the 467 near misses with trains at level crossings in Britain last year. Research by Network Rail has revealed that distraction by mobile phones is likely to be a contributing factor in some of those events.
As well as the risk to lives, safety incidents involving the public have a serious impact on train performance. Last year, more than a million minutes of delays to train services were caused as a result of people straying onto the railway tracks.
Image credit: Network Rail
