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Cambridgeshire cyclist ignores warnings... and just manages to brake before train speeds through

Near-miss train cyclist contacts police after video goes viral

A woman who narrowly avoided death when she attempted to ride across a level crossing in Cambridgeshire at the very moment a train sped through has contacted police after a video of the near-miss went viral on the internet.

The video released by British Transport Police shows the bike rider ignoring the lowered barrier on the left hand side of the crossing, as well as the warning lights. There's no sound on the video, but such crossings are also equipped with bells.

At the very last moment, the cyclist realised her peril, and slammed on her brakes. Luckily, they were working, and it was also her good fortune not to go over the handlebars. Wiping her brow, the cyclist moved over to the side of the road, no doubt shaken by the near miss.

A woman contacted British Transport Police on Thursday, and has made an appointment to speak to them in person on October 9.

The incident took place at Waterbeach in Cambridgeshire on Thursday 12 September and the video has been released in an effort to trace the woman as well as to highlight to others the danger of ignoring warnings at level crossings.

PC PC Matt Mildinhall of British Transport Police said: “The footage shows a woman approach the crossing around 6.30pm as the barriers are down. She passes through the barriers and onto the line before braking hard, just seconds before a train passes through.

He added: “We are very keen to speak to the woman in this footage and explain the danger she not only put herself in but others around the crossing at the time.”

A recent safety campaign from Network Rail called Track Tests highlighted research that found that one in three people believe they would hear an approaching train in sufficient time to get out of the way.

Network Rail's Richard Schofield said:  “This is one of the closest incidents of near miss we’ve seen. The person using the crossing not only didn’t hear the train but ignored the warning lights and barriers, putting her life, the lives of passengers and the train driver in danger.

“Warning systems at level crossings are there for a reason, to protect users from the railway. I hope the release of this footage will highlight the importance of following the safety advice at level crossings.”

In May last year, Network Rail launched a TV advert called See Track, Think Train to highlight the dangers of level crossings used by cyclists and pedestrians.

The same month, 34-year-old cyclist Phil Dawn from Kirkby-in-Ashfield died when he was struck by a train as he rode through a level crossing between Sutton Park and Mansfield railway stations in Nottinghamshire.

According to police, he was wearing headphones at the time. Network Rail has previously run a campaign fronted by the rapper Professor Green warning of the dangers of listening to music while negotiating level crossings.

However, the father of a teenage girl killed at a level crossing in Essex seven years ago, insisted that it was wrong to place all the responsibility on crossing users.

Chris Bazlinton, whose 14-year-old daughter Olivia was killed along with her 13-year-old friend Charlotte Thompson, told Sky News last year:  "The sighting at that time was appalling, you couldn't see anything, you couldn't hear anything.

"The maximum time you could see a train is three seconds from that position.

"They were both quite short and they couldn't possibly see anything so they just stepped out in front, and they were killed instantly."

Network Rail was fined £1 million as a result of breaches of safety legislation in connection with that incident. A footbridge has now been put in place, and the level crossing gates have automatic locking.

Last year, Network Rail announced a £130 million upgrade programme for level crossings, including:

A closure programme which will see 750 crossings removed from the network by April 2014. More than 600 had already been closed by October 2012

Replacing footpath crossings with footbridges

Installing warning lights as an additional safety measure at footpath crossings

A new schools programme – Rail Life – teaching both primary and secondary schoolchildren about how to stay safe when crossing the railway

Rolling out 10 more camera enforcement vans

Investing in new technology including obstacle detection lasers

Introducing new cost effective barriers to open crossings

Employing more than 100 new dedicated level crossing managers

Community safety managers who work closely with local groups, councils and schools to raise awareness.

 

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64 comments

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cidermart | 10 years ago
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It's a sad state of affairs that you have to write that 'Stumps' but  41

Ignore the cock jockeys and carry on.

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Carl | 10 years ago
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Maybe she just thought "I'm a cyclist....that red light doesn't apply to me."

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freespirit1 | 10 years ago
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A V Lowe | 10 years ago
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The half-barrier design is there to provide that escape route if a car stalls or other problem occurs but puts a major obstruction in the way for going on to the crossing.

NR got fined (Section 3 HSAW - Duty of Care towards non-employees) at Elsenham because the the pedestrian gates were not interlocked with main barriers, and the issue of pedestrian abuse was known about but not addressed.

The death at Little Mill and 2 other cyclist deaths investigated by RAIB all had clear indication that the cyclists had switched off their 24/7 360 degree safety equipment - in the case referred to the cyclist had passed 2 walkers with hood up and audible music to the 2 walkers. They shouted at the cyclist to stop as they arrived at the crossing immediately behind him, but the cyclist gave no reaction to being shouted at, the noise of a train making a full emergency brake application, and sounding the horn full blast. If that doesn't clearly show the total stupidity of using any form or earphones, or other elements to block your hearing when cycling, walking AND driving then maybe we do need a law to make all drivers drive with a window down and radio/phone speakers at a low volume.

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sam_smith | 10 years ago
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I've heard similar stories to your friend's, Old Ridgeback, from a guy who was running a track walking training course I was attending. The tale of the suicide who put his neck on the track and was beheaded would make your toes curl. Personally I think the railways get too much flak over level crossings. The warning signs, flashing lights, barriers and what is stated in the highway code about level crossing should deter people enough from doing this sort of stupid behaviour.

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andrew streit1 | 10 years ago
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Where's Darwin when you need him?

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OldRidgeback replied to cidermart | 10 years ago
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cidermart wrote:

It's a sad state of affairs that you have to write that 'Stumps' but  41

Ignore the cock jockeys and carry on.

+1

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Puncheur-David | 10 years ago
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Was it Emma Way? I mean I know she IS a cyclist, and she has that amount of disregard for safety?

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pwmedcraft | 10 years ago
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This was on Jeremy Vine earlier. It gave the usual mouth-breathers the opportunity to roll out their hilarious generalisations despite Vine mentioning the fact that there were 50% more fatalities to car drivers/passengers than cyclists on level crossings last year.

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southseabythesea | 10 years ago
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Natural selection in action!

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freespirit1 | 10 years ago
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As far as I am aware there is a rolling programme to replace single barriers with double barriers.

Perhaps in the meantime window lickers like the lady in the video should not be allowed out on their own.

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OldRidgeback replied to freespirit1 | 10 years ago
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freespirit1 wrote:

As far as I am aware there is a rolling programme to replace single barriers with double barriers.

Perhaps in the meantime window lickers like the lady in the video should not be allowed out on their own.

Window lickers - I like that one - very apt in her case.

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Cooks | 10 years ago
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I like how she didn't quite know what to do afterwards, from the massive adrenalin injection. Like Uran after his crash at the weekend.

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The Rumpo Kid replied to Cooks | 10 years ago
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Cooks wrote:

I like how she didn't quite know what to do afterwards, from the massive adrenalin injection. Like Uran after his crash at the weekend.

Uran knew exactly what to do. He finished the race. Back on topic, if a half barrier is good enough, why not dispense with barriers completely, and just have the stop lights?

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theove | 10 years ago
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Do you think she decided to turn back to get some fresh underwear?

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Stumps | 10 years ago
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Ok lets get this straight i put comments on here because i want to and personally i dont give a flying fcuk what you, Northstar, think about me or my job but if you get your kicks from trying to be clever fill your boots mate because in the end you are only making yourself look stupid.

And to be honest i have been called a lot worse by people a lot better than you.

Farrell - do you honestly expect myself and others to believe that because there is only one barrier then the other side is safe ????

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alotronic | 10 years ago
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So that's where the 'wipes forehead with relief' thing comes from then...

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OldRidgeback | 10 years ago
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Ok, so someone does something really stupid and ignores obvious safety warnings, and once again it's Stumpy's fault as he's a cop.

I despair.

I regularly use a railway crossing when going to one popular South London cycling facility. The barriers do seem to linger in the down position for some time. I've seen a few people crossing when the barriers are lowered as I wait impatiently in the queue, but I've never felt the need to rush across with them.

I know train drivers suffer a lot of psychological issues with regard to suicides and accidental deaths from crossing incidents that don't have such a happey ending as this one. A friend of mine used to work for BR (as it was then) and one of his jobs was to check whether a loco was safe to be moved after it'd hit someone. His description of having to crawl under a loco stopped on the rails and disentangle what was left of a human being from the drive system was rather graphic.

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a.jumper replied to OldRidgeback | 10 years ago
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OldRidgeback wrote:

Ok, so someone does something really stupid and ignores obvious safety warnings, and once again it's Stumpy's fault as he's a cop.

You're confusing two things! Maybe even three!

1. Yes, jumping that crossing was really stupid. I think almost everyone agrees.

2. But why aren't there full barriers at a crossing that fast/busy? Some quieter ones have them. Misprioritisation in the past?

3. It's Stumpy's fault he's thrashing around with the heavy I-Know-Best boots on again.

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OldRidgeback replied to a.jumper | 10 years ago
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a.jumper wrote:
OldRidgeback wrote:

Ok, so someone does something really stupid and ignores obvious safety warnings, and once again it's Stumpy's fault as he's a cop.

You're confusing two things! Maybe even three!

1. Yes, jumping that crossing was really stupid. I think almost everyone agrees.

2. But why aren't there full barriers at a crossing that fast/busy? Some quieter ones have them. Misprioritisation in the past?

3. It's Stumpy's fault he's thrashing around with the heavy I-Know-Best boots on again.

The rail crossing I go through regularly does have full width barriers as it happens. Even they don't stop the occasional moron who can't be bothered to wait and squeezes past or who lifts a bike over the top, and yep, I've seen both. Some people really are that stupid. I dislike waiting at railway crossings like everyone else. But after hearing my friend's description of picking bits of human flesh from the brakes of a locomotive, I'd rather wait albeit impatiently all the same.

Stumpy gets a lot of flak on here and I find it wearing, as I'm sure others do too. I've been the victim of a troll on this website and stayed away for quite a long time because of that. It isn't nice. It isn't clever. It's just unpleasant. I'm fed up of keyboard vigilantes with something to prove and who think that they can say what they like as the Internet gives them anonymity.

I'm not aiming that last at you by the way. I don't know who you are. But there are others who post on this website who certainly need to consider what they say.

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Blackhound | 10 years ago
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I used to work for Railtrack, Network Rails predecessor going to local rail committee's to discuss their concerns and wishes for the line along with the relevant train operators. On one occasion I had to defend the railway network because a young man had done the same thing (in a car) but was not so lucky.....

Not a nice thing to do when someone is dead because they ignored signs, bells and barriers.

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freespirit1 | 10 years ago
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And she was filtering through on the right side, but otherwise completely brainless. Another example of care in the community not workiing?

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PJ McNally | 10 years ago
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At least her brakes work.

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Chris | 10 years ago
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Flippin eck, that was close.
A much more effective reminder for taking proper care than any of those expensively produced TV ad campaigns, cos you know this one is actually real.
Scary.
Trains are big and fast.
Also, what an idiot.

My wife will always go the long way to avoid level crossings as she doesn't trust them even when the barriers are open, but that might be a bit of an over-reaction. still, she's never been hit by a train so it must be working.

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caaad10 | 10 years ago
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As a cyclist I get this from pedestrians all the time, they don't even bother to look if they don't hear a car's engine, it's really quite unbelievable how natural selection has allowed this sort of thing to exist today - maybe Darwin's theory has a hole in it somewhere....

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petec | 10 years ago
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As a cyclist surviving 50 years in central London my sympathy is with the train driver...that he braked was a human response but put passengers on the train at risk for an idiot who should have suffered the consequences of her stupidity.

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Grizzerly | 10 years ago
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To call her a stupid cow is a serious insult to cows.

Mind you, I was irritated to see this report on Google News under the 'Sport' heading.

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Jimbonic | 10 years ago
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Just last week I saw a guy / runnist / joggler almost get lifted off his feet by a barrier he was trying to hurdle (well, when I say hurdle, perhaps clamber is more accurate). No idea what he was trying to achieve. But, I'm sure waiting a few minutes to get his breath back would have improved his run time. Certainly would have been a better achievement than ending it as a dead person.

This sort of stuff makes my brain ache. I think there must be some sort of competition going on out there to see who can be the biggest f***wit!

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Jack Osbourne snr | 10 years ago
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Jeezuz  13

I sincerely hope she never gets a driving licence.

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alexholt3 replied to Jack Osbourne snr | 10 years ago
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Jack Osbourne snr wrote:

Jeezuz  13

I sincerely hope she never gets a driving licence.

Where does it say she doesn't have one already?

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