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Level crossing stupidity...


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I had one the other day at Stonea - near March, where the "normal" road bends to go under a very low bridge. This has been closed a while due to structural damage caused by a bridge strike. The straight road, along a river bank, continues over the line on a LC with gates. Since the bridge closure, temporary traffic lights have been installed operated by the gatekeeper, but installed at the bottom of the approach ramps to the LC.

The road has a permanent 50mph restriction due to the proximity of the river. However temporary speed restrictions have been added, counting down to 20mph from before the TTLs.

Some way back from the LC, I had to pass an oversize farm implement which had stopped & pulled over to the left to let a truck in front of me past - it took up 1-1/2 lanes. The truck, a little way ahead of me, then stopped at the red light. When I stopped behind it, I left a fair gap, enabling me to see past the truck to watch the train. A couple of minutes later, the tractor caught up, and again he pulled over to his left to clear the opposite lane, also leaving a fair gap behind me.

Another couple of minutes passed, and I glanced in my door mirror, to see a 4wd coming up behind pretty fast, with his headlights blazing (well it was nearly midday on a bright sunny day).

He pulled out to overtake the tractor (no signals) kept in that lane as he was shooting up towards me, then suddenly realised the LC gates were closed. He came to a stand alongside me, wondering what to do, then sheepishly (and not very well) reversed back beyond the tractor.

Now the irony. Train passed, gatekeeper opened the gates, changed the TTL to green. I passed over the LC at no more than 20mph. In the mirror I saw the tractor wait for traffic to pass in the other direction, making the 4wd wait behind him. Eventually, after about a mile, I saw the tractor come over the LC hump, followed by the 4wd. Much further, the 4wd got past him, then immediately turned left over a private bridge into a far the other side of the river. Por soul had got delayed!

 

Stewart

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11 hours ago, 101 said:

 

I wonder what happened, did he end up in court. Police would have had time to turn up and 'help' him down from the crossing lights. This was 3 years ago now.

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1 hour ago, corneliuslundie said:

It has just been announced on Radio 3 that today is International Level Crossing Awareness Day.

I am sure you wanted to know that!

Jonathan

 

Every day now seems to be an international day of something or other. IMO its all got quite meaningless.

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1 hour ago, corneliuslundie said:

It has just been announced on Radio 3 that today is International Level Crossing Awareness Day.

I am sure you wanted to know that!

Jonathan

That will confuse any country that has grade crossings instead!

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3 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

That will confuse any country that has grade crossings instead!

 

I rather think that, at least one such country, spends most of their time being confused about most things...

 

Julian

 

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18 hours ago, corneliuslundie said:

It has just been announced on Radio 3 that today is International Level Crossing Awareness Day.

I am sure you wanted to know that!

Jonathan

 

So motorists only needed to be aware of level crossings yesterday?

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On 11/06/2020 at 08:27, Colin_McLeod said:

 

Every day now seems to be an international day of something or other. IMO its all got quite meaningless.


International day of something or other was April 17th. You’ve missed it for this year :laugh_mini:

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I'm not certain if this will work but here goes. It's from a Russian NG Facebook page I follow, they are a preserved NG line. It seems the local authorities resurfaced the main road, including tarmacking over the rails! Certainly level crossing stupidity!! This is the video from the FB page of the volunteers removing the tarmac!

 

 

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8 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

????

 

A new take on level crossing stupidity!

Edited by rab
Fat finger syndrome, again!
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More likely the track circuits were left intact and 'live' after most of the track was lifted and something has connected across the two rails giving a false reading of a train on the line.

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EDIT: BBC too quick off the mark - One person seriously Injured

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-53141611?intlink_from_url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk&link_location=live-reporting-story

 

"

One person has been seriously injured and rushed to hospital after a train hit a car in mid Wales.

The car driver was severely hurt after a train travelling from Shrewsbury to Welshpool struck their vehicle on a single-track level crossing in Powys.

The incident happened at Smith's Crossing on the A458 at Buttington, north of Welshpool, on the Powys-Shropshire border at about 13:45 BST.

The Wales Air Ambulance has also been called to the "ongoing incident".

The ambulance service also sent three emergency ambulances and a rapid response vehicle to the collision between a car and what is thought to be the 13:27 service from Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth.

All trains on the Cambrian Line - between Shrewsbury, Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, and Pwllheli, Gwynedd - have been cancelled as the line is blocked.

National Rail said service disruption is expected until approximately 18:00

."

 

JIm

Edited by luckymucklebackit
Updated Information on BBC News
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