Today is International Level Crossing Awareness Day (ILCAD), and several organizations have lent their support to this now annual event. Included below is a British Transport Police video....we should learn that treating crossings with contempt could have fatal consequences....and at the very least it could be a costly exercise, perhaps with a hefty fine and/or loss of job. Is it worth taking the risk?
The UK's House of Commons Transport Select Committee voices concern that new funding arrangements could leave some areas lagging behind.....
And if the Church of England's concern over the HS2 route were not enough to worry it, the Royal Mail stamps its disapproval on the proposed route.....
In Edinburgh, not everyone is happy with the new Trams... one person staged a protest on the small matter of financial accountability for the project.. and suffered some humiliation for his troubles, apparently......
Click on the links for the full stories
Headlines
www.parliament.uk. Transport Select Committee
New system may leave parts of UK transport infrastructure behind
The Transport Committee publishes its Local transport expenditure: Who decides? report.
Transport infrastructure in some parts of the UK may get left behind under the new system to be used from next year (2015) to share out central government money for local major transport schemes (1), warn MPs on the Transport Committee.
Chair's comments
Launching the report of an inquiry that looked closely at the new arrangements for local decisions on transport spending from 2015, Louise Ellman MP, Chair of the Committee, said today:“Far less money is spent on transport projects outside London than in the capital. This inequality has gone on for too long and has to change.
“For example, IPPR says that transport infrastructure spending is £2,500 per head in London compared with £5 per head in the north east (2). Even on the Government’s figures, transport spending per head in London is more than twice that in the English regions.
“The Government has again changed the system for distributing money to local areas for major transport projects, with much more emphasis now on competition for funding. This will not necessarily help regions get a fairer share of transport funding and could make the situation worse.
“Those Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) which are well organised and resourced will have an advantage in bidding for funds. Other areas may lose out as a result.
“In addition, with greater reliance on competitive bidding for funds, we will see more money wasted on failed bids.
“The Government’s focus on using competition to bring in private sector funding for projects could disadvantage the regions, where there tends to be less private sector money available compared with London.
“DfT must also make sure that strategically significant schemes such as access to ports don’t get overlooked and that areas covered by a number of Local Enterprise Partnerships do not miss out because of fragmentation.
“It is also unclear whether the £6 billion the DFT is contributing to the Single Local Growth Fund (3) will all be used for transport purposes.”
Efficient and Effective
The Committee calls for the new funding arrangements to be reviewed by the end of the next Parliament to ensure that they are efficient and effective in providing funding for the most urgent transport priorities.1. Costing over £5 million
2. On the wrong track: an analysis of the autumn statement announcements on transport infrastructure, IPPR North, Dec 11.
3. 2015/16 – 2020/21.
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Yorkshire professional road users targeted in new level crossing safety programme.(Network Rail).
Tina Hughes, mother of Olivia, who was killed at Elsenham level crossing in 2005 will be available for interview at 11.00 at Knottingley level crossing (WF11 0JA)
Network Rail has launched a nationwide awareness programme targeting motorists who drive for a living, on the same day 45 countries join forces to raise awareness of safety at level crossings.
Level crossings in Britain are among the safest in Europe but almost a fifth of the 142 near-misses that occurred at level crossings in 2013 included a vehicle driven in a professional capacity – such as a lorry, van, bus or taxi - putting the life of the driver as well as others at risk.
The “most important stop of the day” programme involves Network Rail’s 100 level crossing managers, who are based all over the nation, engaging with local employers whose workforce includes a significant number of drivers..
The programme launch coincides with ILCAD – International Level Crossing Awareness Day – a global initiative supported by 45 countries to raise public awareness on the safety factors and dangers posed by misuse at level crossings. This year, ILCAD is held on Tuesday, 3 June and is also targeting professional drivers.
To mark ILCAD, there are events taking place in Yorkshire on 3 June, including an awareness day at England Lane level crossing in Knottingley (postcode: WF11 0JA). Different rail partners including train companies and the British Transport Police (BTP) will be at the event.
At 1100 they will be joined for an hour by the mother of a young girl killed on a level crossing. Tina Hughes is a level crossing safety champion after her daughter Olivia and her friend Charlie, on their way to Christmas shopping, were killed at Elsenham level crossing in 2005.
Tina said: “I am very concerned whenever I hear about people misuing level crossings. I was never able to see or hold my daughter to say goodbye and that has been very difficult for me. I don't want anyone else to experience anything so awful.
“I hope that users will think about how devastating it would be for their families and friends if they were killed and realise that a short wait to cross the tracks is just not worth risking their life over.”
Other awareness events are taking place in the Doncaster area between 7:30am and 12:30pm at:
Liz Reedy, community safety manager at Network Rail, said: “The plan is to go to our most heavily used crossings with staff and volunteers who will speak with motorists and pedestrians about of the importance of level crossing safety.
“The crossings we have chosen are used a lot by heavy haulage vehicles, and are close to large businesses and industrial units, so we plan to visit as many of these businesses on the day to help get the message out.”
At each of the events, there will be giveaways and a host of experts to speak about safety at level crossings.
This year, there has already been successful prosecution drivers for careless or dangerous driving at level crossings. For example, in Bugle, Cornwall a delivery van driver was prosecuted, resulting in a fine as well as incurring costs and penalty points on his licence. The driver was also suspended from his job pending the outcome of an internal investigation. In Rossington, Doncaster, a driver found guilty of dangerous driving lost his licence for 12 months and will need to take an extended test in order to get his licence back. The message is clear: for a professional driver, a prosecution for the misuse of a level crossing could have a devastating effect on his/her career..
Publication video ILCAD 2014
'The most important stop of the day' - worldwide campaign for level crossing safety marks day of action.(SmartRail)
Today marks the sixth annual International Level Crossing Awareness Day (ILCAD) with participation from operators in more than 45 countries across the world. Launched in 2009, the ILCAD campaign spearheaded by the International Union of Railways has gained wide support across the rail sector, together with a growing number of road sector organisations, the European Commission and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. New participants this year include Russian Railways and Vietnam Railways.(See video above)
This includes events at south Yorkshire level crossings next Tuesday, 3 June.
Aimed at reducing the number of incidents at level crossings involving these “professional drivers” the programme will educate them on the safe use of level crossings.Level crossings in Britain are among the safest in Europe but almost a fifth of the 142 near-misses that occurred at level crossings in 2013 included a vehicle driven in a professional capacity – such as a lorry, van, bus or taxi - putting the life of the driver as well as others at risk.
The “most important stop of the day” programme involves Network Rail’s 100 level crossing managers, who are based all over the nation, engaging with local employers whose workforce includes a significant number of drivers..
The programme launch coincides with ILCAD – International Level Crossing Awareness Day – a global initiative supported by 45 countries to raise public awareness on the safety factors and dangers posed by misuse at level crossings. This year, ILCAD is held on Tuesday, 3 June and is also targeting professional drivers.
To mark ILCAD, there are events taking place in Yorkshire on 3 June, including an awareness day at England Lane level crossing in Knottingley (postcode: WF11 0JA). Different rail partners including train companies and the British Transport Police (BTP) will be at the event.
At 1100 they will be joined for an hour by the mother of a young girl killed on a level crossing. Tina Hughes is a level crossing safety champion after her daughter Olivia and her friend Charlie, on their way to Christmas shopping, were killed at Elsenham level crossing in 2005.
Tina said: “I am very concerned whenever I hear about people misuing level crossings. I was never able to see or hold my daughter to say goodbye and that has been very difficult for me. I don't want anyone else to experience anything so awful.
“I hope that users will think about how devastating it would be for their families and friends if they were killed and realise that a short wait to cross the tracks is just not worth risking their life over.”
Other awareness events are taking place in the Doncaster area between 7:30am and 12:30pm at:
- Bentley, Doncaster (DN5 0BG)
- Dock Hills and Moat Hills, Doncaster (DN5 9SP)
Liz Reedy, community safety manager at Network Rail, said: “The plan is to go to our most heavily used crossings with staff and volunteers who will speak with motorists and pedestrians about of the importance of level crossing safety.
“The crossings we have chosen are used a lot by heavy haulage vehicles, and are close to large businesses and industrial units, so we plan to visit as many of these businesses on the day to help get the message out.”
At each of the events, there will be giveaways and a host of experts to speak about safety at level crossings.
This year, there has already been successful prosecution drivers for careless or dangerous driving at level crossings. For example, in Bugle, Cornwall a delivery van driver was prosecuted, resulting in a fine as well as incurring costs and penalty points on his licence. The driver was also suspended from his job pending the outcome of an internal investigation. In Rossington, Doncaster, a driver found guilty of dangerous driving lost his licence for 12 months and will need to take an extended test in order to get his licence back. The message is clear: for a professional driver, a prosecution for the misuse of a level crossing could have a devastating effect on his/her career..
There are millions of near misses and thousands deaths estimated on level crossings around the world every year. But because the numbers are relatively low compared to accidents on the roads, not enough priority is given by policy makers to improving safety.
The International Union of Railways (UIC), road sector organisations, European Institutions and the UN-ECE are committed to raising awareness about the risks, improving technology and changing behavior. This film has been co-financed by UNECE, the Federal Office of Transport of the Swiss Confederation (FOT) and the International Union of Railways (UIC). This film is a documentary aimed at making the public and decision makers aware of the dangers at level crossings to better tackle this particular safety issue and risky interface to decrease the number of accidents and casualties around the world.
'The most important stop of the day' - worldwide campaign for level crossing safety marks day of action.(SmartRail)
Today marks the sixth annual International Level Crossing Awareness Day (ILCAD) with participation from operators in more than 45 countries across the world. Launched in 2009, the ILCAD campaign spearheaded by the International Union of Railways has gained wide support across the rail sector, together with a growing number of road sector organisations, the European Commission and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. New participants this year include Russian Railways and Vietnam Railways.(See video above)
3 June 2014Today (3 June) ORR is supporting International Level Crossing Awareness Day – a global campaign to raise public awareness of the risks and dangers posed by level crossings. This year the focus is on 'professional drivers'.
In support of the day, Ian Prosser, ORR's Director of Safety said:
In support of the day, Ian Prosser, ORR's Director of Safety said:
Great Britain's level crossings, although among the safest in Europe, pose a significant rail safety risk to the public. ORR wants the industry to keep on making our railways safer which is why we have set aside more than £100 million pounds for Network Rail to close 500 level crossings over the next five years. Where full closure is not possible we will work with Network Rail, governments, industry and the public to deliver innovative solutions, for example, implementing new technology to make level crossings safer. Level crossing safety is a top priority for ORR, and our safety inspectors carry out hundreds of level crossing inspections each years. As we scrutinise the progress of Network Rail over the coming years, we welcome their commitment to greater transparency, public information and guidance on level crossings – something which will help improve safety standards.You can read more about ORRs approach to level crossings on our website at http://goo.gl/i72vf0 and you can find out more about International Level Crossing Awareness Day on the ILCAD website at http://www.ilcad.org
CCTV captures drivers dicing with death at level crossings in Britain
New clips of those who took their lives into their own hands have been released for International Level Crossing Awareness Day 2014. Prosecutions were made in all incidents shown.
(British Transport Police on YouTube)
Bombardier to build new test facility for Crossrail trains.(Global Rail News).
.Royal Mail “greatly concerned” about planned High Speed Rail route.(Post and Parcel)
Two-part documentary telling the remarkable story of a band of visionaries who rescued some of the little narrow gauge railways that once served Britain's industries. These small railways and the steam engines that ran on them were once the driving force of Britain's mines, quarries, factories and docks. Then, as they disappeared after 1945, volunteers set to work to bring the lines and the steam engines back to life and started a movement which spread throughout the world. Their home movies tell the story of how they helped millions reconnect with a past they thought had gone forever.
Last Day on BBC iPlayer!
UK Heritage
James Holley, the Divisional Chief Executive at Grindrod Rail, will be analyzing the funding and leasing of locomotives in Africa – at Africa Rail.
Grindrod’s rail division provides a full suite of rail services from the manufacture and refurbishment of locomotives and wagons to facilitating a seamless “pit to port” rail logistics solution for freight customers on the African continent. Grindrod has a rail presence in several African countries. To learn more go to - http://www.grindrod.co.za
Join other African railway and transport operators, investors and major African exporters - at the 17th Annual Africa Rail to lean more - view the full programme
Africa Rail is part of Africa’s largest transport and infrastructure conference and exhibition. It also features Africa Ports & Harbours, Signalling & Train Control World, Aviation Outlook Africa, The Cargo Show and Transport Safety & Security Show – your VIP conference ticket will provide you wish access across all of these events as they all take place at the same venue on the 1st & 2nd July 2014
www.progressiverailroading.com
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