Another level crossing fatality.
 

When will it end ?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...shire-27306152

When I started on the railway, the route from York to Scarboro, had many level crossings, which were operated by gate keepers who lived in cottages at the side of the track.
These men and ladies opened and closed the gates, on the route.
This meant that the xings were open and shut maybe 10 mins before the train was due.
Guess what no crashes.
This was 1982.

And who? in this day & age is going to wait ten minuets for a train to come along before they can carry on with their journey?
That was the whole idea of barriers cutdown on waiting times & save money on staff.
99.99% of crossing accidents(?) are caused by missuse(idiots in a hurry) & plain stupidity.

In this case the 10 minute wait argument seems to be irrelevant.
Unless he had been in contact direct with the signalman as it is a User worked crossing provided with a phone link.

As to who in this day and age is going to wait 10 minutes etc.
The answer is simple - EVERYBODY
Because otherwise they would be breaking the law and everybody obeys the law don't they?

Dear Plowman; The dead ones didn't !

NO chance of this happening at Downham Market, where there is 1 signalman/woman, who lowers the barriers at LEAST 5-10 minutes before ANY train is due to pass through, causing Serious tailbacks into town and to the roundabout west of the station.

Which as I'm sure you know is because of interlocking on the Locally Operated crossing. Although the Fen Line is Track Circuit Block signalled nowadays, most of the multiple aspect colour light signals are still situated in their old Absolute Block signalling positions. So before the Downham Market signaller can clear (what is in effect) the Down Home Signal into the station, he/she must have already lowered and locked the crossing gates. Since the train on the Down Line coming towards Downham from Littleport is approaching at between 90mph and 75 mph, the home signal needs to be cleared several minutes earlier otherwise the train will be 'checked down' by preceding signals showing the caution sequence.

Contrast this with the nearby Automatic Half Barrier crossing at Downham bypass, where the gates are only down ~7 secs before the train passes ! This is because it is operated via treadles which the train 'strikes'. The signalling is not interlocked with this AHB crossing (although they're often set up so that a gate failure sends the signal in the rear to danger).

Hope this makes sense, BW

Seriously BW, I thank you for the explanation about Downham Market to me. I was unaware until now. On a train back from King's Lynn this afternoon, the down one was running late, and the barriers were not lowered until the approach of the same one, and we had already stopped at DOW. I used both crossings by road tonight, but no trains due, or even seen. I still feel that 10 minutes can be a bit excessive, especially as an emergency vehicle could so well need to cross the one at the station, in order to save a life or two.

Hi bramleyman I agree it really does seem like a very long time that the gates are down at Downham Market - and it's when you see Emergency Vehicles waiting there that you feel bad about it.

We're taught that in the interests of safety we must never rush any on-train procedures, and most of the time that's true but when there's an ambulance or fire appliance with blues spinning I do make the effort to get the doors closed and train away as soon as possible.

There are a lot of level crossing accidents in South Africa and the USA too. I'm not sure what the safety record in Australia is.